Insomnia - Come On In And Join The Club

First topic message reminder :

I'm starting this thread for all of us who suffer from insomnia.

It's a place to whinge and moan about not getting enough sleep.

It's also a place to suggest solutions, try new things and post about how they worked.

It's probably one of the worst clubs to belong too, as any seasoned insomniac will tell you, but we need to stick together to try and beat this torturous condition. And it is the worst form of torture if you suffer from it every night. Nothing on earth beats a good, restoring night's sleep. And as they have proven over the last couple of years, good sleep aids in weight loss. So this thread has an important relationship to what we are all trying to achieve.

So I'm the first member. Come and join in if you feel the need. But I will be very glad for you if you don't feel the need. You're very lucky.

Hugs,

Janey, my man's always raring to run around after "snuggle time" - I'm the one that wants to roll over and go to sleep! Tee hee. Although I'm usually sleep deprived, and he's one of those horrible people who drifts off in 3 minutes flat. On about the fourth night of no sleep for me, I'm always ready to strangle him - his snoring sounds like it's mocking me...
Janey, my melatonin capsules are 5mg. You can go up in dosage if you have no luck with those ones. I looked into some homeopathic ones online too, because I was worried about the cost of these ones (you need a compounding pharmacy - my nearest one is Maylands or Floreat - and I got 90 tablets for about $60). Apparently the homeopathic ones are diluted, so there may not be as much actual melatonin in a 5mg one as a 5mg pharmacy one, if that makes sense - but the ones you found are much cheaper, so definitely worth a try. Maybe just try the recommended dose the first night, and up it as needed - that's usually my method. I hope it helps you out! Golden Glow sounds kind of sexual...
I've taken Edronax as well - not only did I feel like shit, it didn't help my depression. I think the most Seroquel I've taken in one hit was about 2400mgs, which knocked me out for 14 hours and that was it! Argh! Glad to be off that stuff.

Hi Chris,

They are called Homeopathic Melatonin and I bought them from http://www.goldenglow.com.au and they were $18.95 for 90 tablets.

I'll let you know if they're any good. Jezzy hasn't gotten back to me on the size of hers but these ones are 5mg.

I did get back to sleep thanks Chris but was up at 6am as I had 2 appointments.

Hoping for a good night tonight. I'm exhausted now.

Hugs,

Good morning, everyone
Janey, I hope that you've been able to sleep after getting up this morning. Not sure what will happen to me, but I'm into the drugs - nicotine, painkillers and tea (decaf).
Those melatonin capsules sound good - will ask my doc. What are the natural ones called?
Hope everyone else is having relaxed, happy dreams!
Chris

It's the first up and out of bed tonight. Took 1 and a half Stilnox and they haven't worked yet. I have eaten something though so will log off and try again.

Wish me luck.

Hugs.

I'll definitely try a chorus or two or two of wheels tonight Tracey.

Don't all guys fall asleep straight after or is there a gem or two out there that like to cuddle? I doubt it but I'm prepared to tbe urned into a believer.

A nice, warm bot will be welcome at about 4am tomorrow morning Trace. I'll be waiting. Tee hee.

Hugs,

i gave up on all meds a while ago as nothing worked for me either, but jezzy i will ask my gp about melatonin. thankyou for sharing with us...and welcome to our club. kyles and kylie to! this is the thread that is open 24/7.

janey, the dry bum and warm bot sent jayden straight back off to sleep (after we sang wheels on the bus and the iggle piggle song.).....maybe we should be all trying that!!! would gladly make the trip over to tuck you in to help a fellow insomniac.

what a difference a few solid hours of sleep make. i got so much done today, hopefully i'm tired enough to have repeat performance tonight. (my hubby says he has the perfect cure .....the good ol' horizontal sleeping pill!! it certainly puts him to sleep LOL!)

good night kisses for all
the wheels of the bus go round and round, round and round...

Seroquel is the pits. Stay away from the stuff unless you absolutely have to take it.


Kylie I was on Edronax too for a short while. It's nasty as well.

I was put on seroquel to help me sleep while on edronax.
Edronax kept me awake for 5 days straight.
1/8th of a tablet of seroquel made me stuporose for 2 days.
Isnt it weird how we all react so differently to drugs.

Jezzy how much Melatonin do your capsules contain? I just did a quick search and found some Homeopathic ones that contain 5mg. The others all contained 3mg. I have ordered some because I don't have time for a GPs visit this week before surgery and wanted to start them asap. I'm desperate for a good night.

If I know how much you're taking to get a result I will then know how many to take when they arrive.

Thanks so much,

Oh and welcome to the club Kyles. Sorry you qualify to be a member.

Hope you find some good advice here.

Hugs,

Hi Jezzy,

Your story sounds much like mine. Tried everything you have.

Including all the electronical devices out there. I have spent thousands and none of it works. Don't be taken in by MAD, Sound Machines, those electrical impulse things you put on your ear lobes or strobe light glasses. Don't waste your money on pressure point wrist bands or aromotherapy rubs. It's all totally useless. See I really have tried it all. Even resorted to Kava despite it's bad effect on the liver. No good either. All the herbal sleep remedies that contain valerian are no good to me as valerian makes me hyperactive.

I will go to my GP and see if I can get the melatonin tablets. Sounds like an excellent idea. I'm so glad to hear they are working for you.

Thanks so much for sharing. That's exactly what this thread is for. Swapping ideas and trying out new things.

Hugs,

Aww, poor peoples! I'm a long-time insomniac - 8 years now. I have trouble initiating sleep, trouble maintaining sleep (although I'm taking Nitrazepam at night which helps me stay asleep), and have persistent nightmares and night terrors from PTSD. I'm not a lot of fun to share a bed with! Here's my list, and my new favourite creation in the world - hope this is helpful to someone.

So far I have tried:
- Stillnox - caused binge eating (I'd wake up with ice cream on my face and surrounded by chocolate wrappers, with no recollection of how they got there - I also put on 24 kgs in 3 months). After prolonged use, stopped making me sleep and started making me hyperactive - I'd run around the house cleaning frantically and making 4-page To Do lists at 3 am. Amusing for others, not so much for me. Eventually made me hallucinate. Don't take them anymore :)
- Seroquel - I'm not actually psychotic, but took this anti-psychotic for about 3 years 'cause it was all that worked. Causes dependence and withdrawal, and I kept having to up the dose until it was so high that I'd be a complete zombie for the whole next day and couldn't get anything done, but it STILL took me 4 hours to get to sleep. Now it makes me suicidal. Don't take this anymore either :)
- All the calmatives - diazepam, temazepam, clonazepam, etc, etc. The only one I've found helpful is Nitrazepam, which maintains but doesn't initiate sleep - it helps with my nightmares.
- Over the counter hypnotics like Restavit - nothing.
- Antihistamines, medication for Restless Legs Syndrome, antidepressants and mood stabilisers that are supposed to specifically help with sleeping - nothing.
- Herbal preparations like Rescue Remedy Sleep and St John's Wort - nothing.
- Drinking till I passed out - helped for a short while, then stopped working. Alcohol apparently inhibits staying asleep anyway - once your body metabolises it you wake up, too early to be rested.
- Smoking pot - the only way I got any sleep during the last 2 years of high school. Can't smoke pot anymore because I have a family history of pot-induced psychosis. Not terribly healthy or practical anyway.
- Painkillers - at the moment I have a dermal Buprenorphine patch for pain management, and for the first month or two, that in combination with 4 Mersyndol (containing codeine) helped me get to sleep. That's now stopped working, and was probably shutting down my liver anyway.
- Alternative therapies - hypnosis 4 different times, relaxation and meditation. Oh, and praying!

So, once again at the end of my tether, I asked my GP if there was anything he could recommend. He suggested something that has only been approved for therapeutic use in Australia recently, and that tends to be a last-resort for people like me who have given everything else a go. They're capsules of melatonin, which is a chemical your body produces to regulate sleep and wake cycles, and in some people with sleep disorders is deficient. You take 1 to 2 a night. Because it's a natural substance, unless you take the whole bottle, you don't get any side effects - so no hangover the next day. I've been using it for 4 nights now, and I'm happy with it. The first 1 - 2 nights, it still took me 5 hours to get to sleep. But during that time, instead of ruminating and panicking about all the things I had to get done the next day and wouldn't have time / would be too tired to do - instead of that I was sleepy and relaxed and happy. The feeling was one I vaguely remember from when I was about 10, and it's the warm dozy feeling you naturally get before sleep. So although I still slept a bit late the next day and needed more sleep than I got, I woke up refreshed. I think because I'm relaxed and happy, it's less stressful for my mind and body to be lying awake than usual, and my body is still resting rather than freaking out. The last 2 nights I've fallen asleep within an hour after 2 - 4 tablets, have slept 8 - 12 hours, and have woken up feeling good for the first time in about 5 years.

Sorry to babble on, but I wanted to share this. Anyone who hasn't tried melatonin, and thinks it might help, ask your doctor for a script if you're out of other options. I know how debilitating insomnia can be, how it sucks your will to live, and I don't want other people to go through it if they don't have to. For everyone else, I'm sending happy thoughts and sleep dust your way tonight.

I have problems sleeping now, I wonder how I will be after surgery :(

Lots of fairy sleeping dust to you all

Hey lovely ladies I'm up after a good sleep but unfortunately it's now the afternoon. Not good.

I finally crashed about 6am and slept until 1pm. Luckily there was no appointments on the agenda today.

I have to get up really early tomorrow as my first appointment is at 8.15am and that means tackling the work traffic on the freeway. So I had better get to bed early to start the toss and turn.

Caz I had not gotten up. I hadn't been to bed at all. Yes I desperately need some rest. Thanks for caring.

Chris LOL about the bunk beds. My son has a bunk bed so I might have to push him out one night and give it a go. Or maybe I should just change the sheets on the upper and lower bunks.....this always completely exhausts me....anyone who has done it will know what a bugger of a job this is!!!

And Trace will you come and change my nappy and give me a warm bottle too please. LOL.

It was a great idea to start this thread. It gives us all a chance to whinge without bothering all those lucky sleepers.

Hugs,

Hey Janey
Hopefully you're sound asleep at the moment, and enjoying a restful sleep without muscle tension.
I know what you mean about the jaw clenching - that's relatively recent for me, but quite painful.
Oh, for the days when I used to sleep soundly all night (except for getting up to pee, which I've always had to do)!
Actually, when I was a kid, I used to fall out of the top bunk and roll under the bottom one without even waking up (or maybe I just knocked myself out when I did that?) LOL
Chris

janey are you still up?? poor thing. i hope you get a little nap before day starts but remember to set alarm, don't want to miss any appointments!

Way too early for you to be awake Janey - or did you not sleep?

Get some rest!!!!

Hugs
Caz

Morning Trace,

Lucky you that you got some sleep. Send some my way girlfriend.

Making lunches and going back to bed to try again. God it's getting old isn't it?

Hugs,

Hi Chris,

I get very stiff when I sleep. I always seem to have my jaw clenched and I know I grind my teeth. My legs and arms are always stiff. I must create a lot of tension in my dreams. Really weird.

I haven't been to sleep at all and I'm thinking about having another go just as soon as I make the kids lunches so that I don't feel guilty for not getting up to see them off this morning. Hubby takes them to school so he can supervise. That is supposing I manage to get to sleep.

Yawns and hugs,

last night i slept from 10.30 till 4ish this morning! yah for me. actually feel a little sociable..........

unfortuneately jayden has woken up the last two mornings at 5.30am. WTF! he wanted a bottle this morning so naughty nanny gave in and sent him back to bed with warm bot and dry nappy. hope this waking early is not a new thing!

morning chris, yes i do get up feeling all crooked after reading most the night. never know whether headaches are from old tired eyes or sore neck.

cheers
tracey

Hi everyone
I was up just before 3 this morning, but went back to bed and read myself to sleep again. Major headaches at the moment, though, and the usual back, neck and shoulder pain from sleeping. I swear I cause myself more damage from sleeping than anything else! Anyone else get that?
Chris

3.21am and here I am. Not a second of sleep so far tonight. Blast it.

Took a Stilnox too and nothing. God damn it. This is the second time I've been up and I've had milk with some Baileys in it and still nothing.

It's so frustrating as I have a lot to do tomorrow and will probably end up sleeping in till late morning.

I hate, hate, hate insomnia. It is evil and it must be destroyed.

Tired hugs,

Welcome to the club Max.

Sorry you're a candidate but glad that Stilnox works for you. It's just a pain that you have to keep getting a new script for it everytime, though I understand why they don't issue repeats.

You didn't alarm me Kylie, so don't stress.

Hope we all get a good night tonight. Lets see if a full force positive thought has any effect.

Hugs,

Hi Girls,

I use Stilnox from time to time and find it great. I'm not much of a sleeper either but will only put up with it for a little while and then resort to the stilnox if I have to get some sleep.

Stilnox has received a lot of bad publicity but like anything, it won;t be for everyone and others it will be just fine for.
I find a little pot from time to time is also good for sleeping.

I feel your pain.
Max

Yes it doesn't make everyone do loopy things.
It was only the once for me that I know of.
It also works perfectly fine for other friends of mine.
I wasnt meaning to scare anyone.

Yes it can cause people to do weird things and it all started with a lady who took a heater to bed with her and nearly burnt herself to death. She blamed it on the Stilnox. I tended to blame it on sheer stupidity but having heard your story Kylie I now have doubts. You sound like a perfectly intelligent lady so maybe the statements people are making are true. Btw did the kids enjoy the middle of the night Happy Meal?

I haven't done anything dangerous. It works fine for me but I am a bit immune to it now as I have taken it on and off for several years. I don't sleep as long with it as I did.

The only effect it has on me is the sudden desire to eat something once I've taken it. I always have to get something to eat and then I'm out like a light. So nothing dangerous,unless I have a hankering for take away, only fattening.

Hugs,