insomnia and you

Mojo2k

since moving to DC for the job with mythic several months back, i have had a horrible problem with insomnia, i just toss and turn and never go to sleep, i've started taking nytol just to get to sleep, and then i have a hard time gettin woke up in the mornings, and feeling like crap all day.

anyone else have problems like this, and why is it only since moving here? and what can i do to fix it?

Nerd Groupie

My sleeping schedule has become totally fucked. Working from home, I get to make my own hours. I'm a total night owl, so needless to say I'm up late. Which really becomes a problem if I have to go to bed before 3-4 AM, like if I have to get up early.

Odd you made this thread. Just last night I had a horrible time sleeping. I fell asleep on the couch, then when I tried to crawl into bed I got in trouble so I ended up back on the couch. Then was woken up by someone getting ready so I went back to bed. And then ended up waking up earlier than I would have liked. Maybe that means early bedtime tonight. Yeah right.

rolfness

Hi Mojo

you must have something really bothering you. I was like that at the start of this year when things went tits up for me. I would only get about an hours sleep and feel like shit all day long. Nytol is only useful in the short term for jetlag and etc, I think you need to sort out whats goin on in your head. making yourself physically tired may help. are you frustrated or upset about something ?

Hope you find out what it is thats making you sleepless

The3DGuy

even if i work at 6am i am still up till at least 3. i have been this way ever since high school and all through college. I just can't go to sleep unless i am worn out.

aesir

try doing some exercise. Tire your body out so you can get some good solid rest

bearkub

I dunno how keen you are on taking herbal supplements, but I have a bottle of valerian root http://www.1001herbs.com/valerian/ laying around the house for insomnia (which I should have taken Sunday night when I had insomnia...D'OH!). It calms your nerves down and allows you to relax and sleep and doesn't leave you groggy in the morning. Yes, it's legal, you should be able to find it at just about any place that carries herbal supplements or vitamins.

frosty

As long as I did physical work, fix the home, weights, 1 hr walking I sleep ok.

_Shimmer

It helps if you stop thinking in bed. For this you should make a detailed schedule of stuff you want to do the next day. Sounds timeconsuming and strange but it works.

I often cant sleep for one or two hours when im think of too much stuff all the time so i start thinking of a dream, with no stuff to worry about. really strange stuff i do maybe but hey it works for me sometimes....

tpe

Cereal (musli or corn flakes etc with milk, if you are not lactose intollerent) before or in bed as it contains some stuff that makes one sleepy, and then something to read that takes a bit of concentration to read but is made up of short independent articles, because then you have to think about them to understand them and you dont get to think of anything else and you finish them very quickly so you have plenty of chances to put them down. I highly recomend getting a subscription to the popular science magazine new scientist, if you do both of these I promice you your insomnia will be totally cured. If not i will gladly publicly humiliate my self on lie in a manner of your choosing, but if it works you owe me a good evenings drinking session,ok?

tpe

b1ll

none, ya know, I just dont have sleep problem, but then again, I do 2hours at the gym in the morning, and punching bag, at my place after So I just jump in bed, read a fews chapters, then sleep like a baby.
Its cool, its been like that forever, and its the same since I move to freelance, its great hehe

Ryno

I used to be a terrible insomniac, but no longer have any problems in the slightest. First, strenuos exercise will help tremendously. Jogging is really cheap, and doesn't take too long. Try going on a couple mile run every day, and I can almost guarantee that you will sleep better.

Another trick that I use is a type of self-hypnosis. Insomnia happens when your brain just won't shut down, so you need to eliminate extraneous thoughts. Basically what I would do would be to try to visualize myself in some non-structured, peaceful setting. Flying through the clouds like Superman was my best one. I'd see the mist in front of me, the ground below me, and I would just sail over the tops of pillowy cloud cover.

You can use whatever type of imagery that you like, whether it's running through wheatfields, counting sheep, etc. The key is to maintain this imagery and not get sidetracked trying to structure this abstract imagery, or start thinking about day to day stuff again. When I first started doing my flying through clouds trick, it was really tough. I'd be flying along, then I'd look down, and see someone I knew. I'd fly down and start talking to them, then we'd start bitching about some homework assignment. Before I'd know it, I'd just be lying there in bed worrrying about some term paper. I'd just have to force myself to drop the thought, and start flying through the clouds again.

It is this unfocused, rythmic brain activity which generally leads to sleep, so that's what you need to get yourself to. After several months of this trick, I could get to sleep with no trouble. I'd simply re-trained my brain, and now have no problem putting stuff out of my head and getting to sleep quickly.

Once again though, physical fatigue will make this happen a lot easier. Do some hard exercise, as it's good for you anyway.

sonic

[ QUOTE ]
even if i work at 6am i am still up till at least 3. i have been this way ever since high school and all through college. I just can't go to sleep unless i am worn out.

[/ QUOTE ]

ditto, i dont think ive gone to sleep earlier than 2:30 or 3 am for the past couple months, and i have school and work

swampbug

Look forward to having dreams.

Enter sleep by going through a routine. Maybe your body will get used to this routine and physcally prepare to fall asleep soon after.

Throw excersize in there for routine. Even if its just 20 pushups and or situps.

I often think about stuff, give thanks for the day I had.
I often look forward to dreams or nightmares I have. :F

Make sure you are eating good too.

I noticed at college I ate lots of the same stuff every day. Since I've been on my own haivng a kitchen.. I eat what I please.. I've gone without using TUMS (for occational heartburn) for a year now. I owe that to diet.

I had 2 kiwis and an orange before bed last night. If i did that at college with my crappy diet.. Forget about it.

OK.. I went on a tangent.. but maybe it could be useful.

_Shimmer

the really trick thing is, that your brain is one of the most energy consuming parts of your body. so, after thinking about stuff 2 hours long you fall asleep immediatly. That bad for me for exampe cause i have to wake up 3 hours later, moslty in the middle of my dreamphase. This is soo weird often, i dream that a alert is starting, in a normal house for example, and after a half minute or such i weak up and relize that it is my alarm clock.

Sleeping is one of the most strange stuff in the human beeing

frosty

Not trying to be a smartass here really, but consider masturbation or sex and warm milk or melotanin.
Well, wash your hands if you drink the milk second anyways. Sheesh this sounds weird.

Goodluck Mojo!

Frankie

If you take drugs to make you sleep you have to take drugs to wake you up again!!

rawkstar

No, you can't die from insomnia. Chew some valerian root and get more exercise. You need healthy natural sleep.

Mishra

i elevate my legs, it gets me asleep sooner. you may want to try that.

RageUnleashed

^ would you happen to be a Fight Club fan, sir? I think you might be what with the quoting and the icon. ;D

As for insomnia, I had that in high school a bit, then high school and work were a bit of a blur, now, I oversleep too much, any time I don't set the alarm I end up sleeping 10 or more hours...and continue to be sleepy after I wake up! Arggg.

Mishra

[ QUOTE ]
^ would you happen to be a Fight Club fan, sir? I think you might be what with the quoting and the icon. ;D

As for insomnia, I had that in high school a bit, then high school and work were a bit of a blur, now, I oversleep too much, any time I don't set the alarm I end up sleeping 10 or more hours...and continue to be sleepy after I wake up! Arggg.

[/ QUOTE ]

that frequently happens with me, which is why i hate mondays with a passion. on saturday and sunday i wake up at about 1 or 2 pm, then i've got to get back in the schedule for weekdays. same thing happens, but is worse with summer vacation, when i have abolutely no set timer. i sometimes went to bed at 5 pm, i sometimes slept until 5 pm. then september comes and i'm all messed up.

Jeff Parrott

I seem to sleep the best when I exercise (never). I did have a bad case of insomnia for about 6 months. I think it was like Shimmer said though, I was thinking/worrying about stuff. I'd really not advise using supplements/drugs to sleep though. Best of luck with it Mojo. Just try a few different things for a week or so and go with what works. Worse case go see a doctor and get some professional advice.

Downsizer

I've lived in your area most of my life. In fact I recently visited the Mythic offices to see poop about a tablet. I can tell you your not alone. My fiance moved here from Indiana, and has had some insomnia and health problems since. I've had sleeping problems all my life too. I'm guessing some people are more sensitive to the environment here. We have extremely bad air quality, and environmental stress agents. In fact, she's never snored in her life until she came here. She now has sinus problems almost everyday, and she does'nt have allergies.

The traffic here alone is enough to frustrate anyone into restlessness(sp). I find excersizing in the morning, puts your body in a nice state to get some rest in the evening. I would also take a few breaks a day away from your monitor, to get some fresh air. Avoid fast food and soda. Did I say avoid soda? Part of my sleep problems were solved that way. A doctor told me I had caffine intoxication, and I had to quit and go through withdrawl.

And i'm babbling. Good luck with it, and congrats on the mythic employment. Hear they really treat the employees well.

adam

For myself, in any circumstance, have no problem falling asleep. Getting up in the morning is a different story.

However, Gail is horrible with getting to sleep if she has a lot of anxiety/anticipation for whats coming up the following day. She stresses out for it HARD and just won't fall asleep. Perhaps you have something on your mind mooj?