Sleep deprivation?!
Question:
Sleep deprivation?
Lately I have been having a hard time falling alseep and staying asleep. I will be sitting on the couch till I can't hardly hold my eyes open but once i lay down, it seems like I am wide awake again. For the past 2 years I have gone to bed at 8 and gotten up at 4am. But for the last 5 days i have not had a full nights sleep. Like always I head to bed about 8 with my husband, but I usually don't fall asleep till 10 or 11, then everynight at 1 I wake up, and don't get back to slepp till 2, and usually I wake up about 3:30, and just stay awake cause my alarm is about to go off anyways.
Nothing has changed in the last 5 days. I still do the same things, and sleep in the same spot. But I have been having strange and scary dreams, usually what I wake up from in the middle of the night but it happens at the same time. It is wednesday and I can not concentrate on my work, or anything I ma so tired. I need to sleep but can't. I have tried everything but pills. I want to stay away from pills
Answers:
1) No sleeping pills (they will make you groggy the next day), if you must take something to help you sleep try melatonin, a natural hormone you secrete at night (the reason why we are sleepy at night). It is sold OTC where the vitamins are. Take a low dose, either 0.3mg, 1mg or cut the 3mg pill in half, one half hour before you sleep Or you can take it when you wake up 1-2 hrs after your bedtime. It should be tailored to your individual size and also may affect individuals differently so you may need a higher or lower dose, go low first. Also, sleep MD helps me to sleep, it has melatonin also but with a mixture of other natural sleep herbs. 1 pill should do it and no grogginess the next day!
2) Make your room totally dark when you will be sleeping, you can buy extra thick shades that will do the trick (melatonin is inhibited by light). Also, keep the lights low at night so that your natural secretion of melatonin will help you feel sleepy and this will relax you. This means when you got to the bathroom at night keep the lights low or put a red light in the bathroom.
3) Consistently get the bright light at the same time each day, or if you have a bright fluorescent light, sit in front of it for as long as you can in the morning. This is called light therapy, it will help set your circadian rhythm and helps depression. If you dont have a light, make sure your outside in the sun, if not iin the morning, maybe during your lunchtime?
4) NO alcohol, at all, it actually inhibits sleep and also, No caffeine after the first few hours you are awake.
5) Make sure your stomach is full when you go to sleep A nice full stomach will help you sleep but dont overeat or you will have the reverse affect, just dont drink too many fluids or you will have to get up to use the bathroom. Banana or turkey have tryptophan a natural chemical that will help you sleep. Warm milk also seems to help some people, just remember though it may have you get up to use the bathroom.
6) Use earplugs, they really helped me!
7) Write down all your worries or your to do list for the next day before you go to sleep, and forget about that and all of your problems-easier said than done, but try it.
If you are still losing sleep, see your doctor, it may be you actually have a sleep problem and they can perform a sleep study.
Source(s):
I've done sleep research