Sleep deprivation

[animroo]

I was wondering if anyone else suffers from this due to social anxiety or depression? For the past month or so it's been getting worse and I'm slightly worried because, if I'm honest my mind is hoping to never wake up when I do sleep.
Is this normal?

[Walden]

I've been going through the exact same thing for last 2/3 weeks. My sleep schedule is basically trying to get a few hours sleep whenever my body allows it. likewise, I imagine how much easier everything would be if I just didn't wake up.

[animroo]

I'm both sorry and selfishly relieved I'm not on my own with this. Do you think it's due to SA or Depression for you? My sleep is always broken as well, I can't remember the last time I slept straight through a decent night's sleep and woke up better off x

[animroo]

Thanks flumpsy might have to try valium tbh I don't feel like my brain ever rests. I stress out and over think way too much and it frustrates me. I'm wondering if depression is winning the battle with me as I find myself crying most nights before I eventually sleep.

[Walden]

Honestly, SA/depression just seems to be completely intertwined for me. If it's not anxiety causing my heart to race, Its depression causing every negative emotion in my brain to come to the forefront.

Generally, I have my up's and downs. When I can get a good routine going everything seems to be smooth (although I still never feel fully rested which I guess is from depression, in fact, i can't even remember what that feels like anymore to be fully rested) messing up a single night just makes everything spin out of control, though.

[newbs16]

Worrying doesn't help, if you have something on your mind and you can't sleep and then you think a lot about it, worry some more etc but you know it you've been awake for hours.

Sometimes I worry about things that do not make any sense and then in the morning wonder what all the fuss was about. Hope you manage to get some sleep.
Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

[Ronnie_Pickering]

I have the never fully rested thing. Maybe 1 in 6 nights I get a good quality sleep.

[Azalea]

Sleep, what's that?

[newbs16]

^ Hope you manage to get some sleep.

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

[Aimz]

I am a terrible sleeper. I have no trouble getting off to sleep, but actually staying asleep is a serious problem.
The slightest of noises wakes me up, when I do wake up I cannot get back off for ages...I can't relax, my body aches and I keep having to move position etc....
The absolute worst is when I know I am going away the next day. I get anxious over the whole thing instead of looking forward to it, and I just don't get any sleep and feel awful the next day.

[misska]

Ive suffered on/off with sleep problems for years. The only time I slept well was when I was a room attendant and was on the go constantly. Getting up for work at 9 also helped me to get a better routine. Maybe getting up earlier may help get a better routine.

[animroo]

The struggle is definitely worse when you have to be somewhere the next day. A friend of mine has bought me camping and I'm relaxing a bit more than I have done in ages. Doubt this feeling will last when I get home though...

[Cairn]

Where are you camping, Animroo?

[animroo]

I'm just coming back from glastonbudget Cairn. Was a great weekend, haven't been camping in 2 years.

[Cairn]

I thought you might have gone somewhere a bit more rugged.

[animroo]

Originally Posted by Cairn

I thought you might have gone somewhere a bit more rugged.

Aha sorry to disappoint =B

[Cairn]

Originally Posted by animroo

Aha sorry to disappoint =B

Bit flat and noisy for me.

[newbs16]

^ are you okay Boy?

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

[Stotch]

I tasted insomnia once, by far the scariest body state to be in. I'd gone 6 days with absolutely no sleep, I was working at same time aswell. Everytime I tried falling asleep I would instantly wake up, even though my body was exhausted my mind simply would not let me fall asleep even for 5 minutes. I waited for it to pass but the days kept rolling on. It was day 6 when I finally buckled, I had pretty bad eyesore and everytime I closed them I could feel my heartbeat in my eyelids.

I became worried that I may die from the sleep deprievation, I remember thinking that the world record was 11 days but that was set by a guy who did little to no physical activity. I thought if I'd included the 10hr shifts I was doing then on balance I must of been on day 12. I really did fear for my life at that moment. Its scary how it effects your ability to remain rational.

It came back though, it went from 4hrs the first night, 10 the second and 14 the third. It was back to normal after that but it was defintely a humbling experience.

[Tembo]

^ that sounds like it was really tough stotch! Not sure how I'd cope with that! Hope you sleep a bit better now.

I'm currently on holiday, and got literally no sleep last Night. I was laying there with my eyes closed for most of the night, so at least I got a bit of rest. I think it's a combination of the heat out here, and all the thoughts of where the hell my life is going and what shit I'll be going back to when I return.

I've always struggled with sleep, but that is the first time I've had literally no sleep. It's pretty much ruined my last day here. Today just felt like a very wierd dream... Paranoia, anxiety and depression were also much higher than normal.

[FraidyCat]

I take tiny doses of Melatonin (sleep hormone made in the brain when it starts getting dark, also found in some foods) to help me sleep.

150 micro grams, half hour before bed, works a treat for me, always helps me drift off.

But im over 40. And the body produces less Melatonin after that age.

I buy my Melatonin pills from Ebay, from the US where no prescription is required (as it occurs naturally in foods like bananas). In the UK you need a doctors prescription.

Works for me. If anyone want to buy them, less is more, the smaller doses work better than the larger doses for some reason. If you take too much it doesn't work.

[Consolida]

I absolutely dread the nights because they usually consist of me laying awake hour after endless hour, mind racing, worrying about anything and everything. I've suffered with insomnia for years now, in fact I don't think I've had a normal nights sleep since I was a teenager. Consequently, when the alarm goes off at 7am I feel completely shattered. Years of sleeplessness have definitely taken their toll on me physically and mentally. My anxiety is sky high when I haven't slept and I really don't know how I manage to get through the day. I shuffle around like a Zombie and can barely muster up the motivation to do even the most basic of tasks. My sleep deprived mind becomes more irrational than ever and I struggle to put a coherent sentence together - just writing this is a massive struggle. It's only when I take Lorazepam that I can be guaranteed a decent nights sleep but being dependant on drugs for something that most people take for granted is pretty depressing and is no doubt compounding the problem further. Sometimes when I'm feeling desperate I almost wish I could take the whole packet of pills and just fall asleep forever but of course I would never do anything so desperate while I have my beloved husband and son to think about. It all feels a bit hopeless right now to be honest.

[red_kites]

Sleep is a big issue for me. I am a very light sleeper so even a quiet sound outside can wake me up. Although I don't have any issues getting to sleep, my anxiety wakes me up, quite often in a sweat.

I've dealt with it by getting black-out curtains, ventilating with trickle vents instead of opening windows, using earplugs when the sound is really bad, and I've recently bought a wool-filled duvet which has stopped the night sweats (waking with anxious thoughts).

R

[Consolida]

I was awake the entire time last night. And when you can't sleep the hours tick by sooo slowly. It's a time when my negative thoughts run riot. Not surprisingly, I've felt absolutely shattered today and could easily fall sleep. But tonight, I will be back to square one. Until you suffer with Insomnia you don't realise how essential a decent nights sleep is for a healthy body and mind

[hollowone]

I have a delayed sleep pattern, it's hard to fall asleep early, hard to get-up early.

A problem I face when I try to set my alarm earlier is that I get very anxious at the thought of having less time to sleep and the thought that time to 'get a good nights sleep' might run out. Putting on the alarm is like turning on the falling sword, the rising tide, the impending doom. I've had this problem long term and have felt powerless over it for years. What has shown mild success is focusing on resting rather than being asleep.

RE Insominia
I've experienced being kept awake till 6 nights on end back in 2012 when it was at it's worst. Insomnia is more than being worried about how awful you'll feel the next day, it's more a question of physical sensations showing-up when you don't want them too; raised heart rate, sweaty hands, tense muscles, high alertness etc. appearing at the time your expecting a good nights sleep. I had that, and it scared the crap out of me. I thought I'd forgotten ho to sleep for good. At that time I took drastic action, fed-up of the rubbish from my GP and saw a professional) that I had discovered through many searches. I can't remember what I searched for specifically at the time. I spent a lot of money, sacrificed a lot of social life, though what I got out of it was WORTH every penny. Refreshing change from the usual 'get 8 hours sleep or else'. (I would recommend checking out the book, everything that I'm about to explain will be talked about in grater detail, it's an expensive therapy, I was desperate at the time).

For the first time Ever, I felt UNDERSTOOD for the feelings I had when I couldn't sleep, and an explanation of what insomnia actually is. Insomnia, unlike sleep disturbances is conditioned anxiety; that means after repeated experiences of anxiety-laden nights, the primitive reptile brain learns to associate the night with being threatening, so it automatically learns to put you in FIGHT FLIGHT MODE at night. This is what had happened to me.

What's to take away?
Disclaimer; I'm not trying to egg people to spend money but I do want to share what I've learnt and only think it's right that such up-to-date information should be readily accessible through our GPs. What is to take away? It is based on mindfulness and cognitive diffusion. Please read on.

This program is about learning to become comfortable with the thought of being awake all night (as bizarre as it seems) and instead focus on rest. CRUCIALLY, that a bad nights sleep DOESN'T ALWAYS HAVE TO BE PUNISHABLE BY FEELING AWFUL. Even if you cannot get to sleep, you CAN learn to be calm with the wakefulness and anxiety and 'watch' it that can make a difference to your energy levels. This was life-changing.

The second thing; the physical symptoms of insomnia (anxiety symptoms; tight chest, raised heart rate, knot in stomach, sweaty hands, alertness) when showing-up on expecting a good kip tend to trigger the thought 'Oh no, not this, I'm going to be kept awake all night!! There are better ways to respond to theses daemons.

Insomnia IS a TYPE of anxiety problem, not simply a question of poor sleep patterns.

What this is about
Paradoxically, when you ACCEPT the thought that you might not sleep, you're less scared of the prospect, hence sleep comes. On a similar note, it's all about teaching the amygdala (the stupid thing responsible for anxiety) that the thoughts and feelings that show-up when you can't sleep are not a threat, so that it learns not to generate those feelings, and paradoxically helps you to sleep better in future. A big part of insomnia is the physical sensations being perceived by the brain as threatening 'oh no, not these feelings, I'm going to be kept-up all night, aaaahhhh! It's all about learning to accept these too.

Going back to topic
As for this thread, there were many side notes brought-up, but for now, I hope you find my infill in insomnia helpful.

[AnnieLu]

Once I'm asleep, I sleep fine. Falling asleep I find difficult though, which is annoying because I've always found falling asleep easy. But being back at my Mum's, I can hear her drunkenly banging around downstairs so I have taken to listening to music or watching something on my phone with headphones when I go to bed. But that's ended up in me going to bed at 10 and still being awake at 2!! My sleep hygiene is rubbish at the moment...something I need to address in the new year...hopefully when I get my place I'll be OK again.

[red_kites]

Originally Posted by MissKitty

It's almost five years of sleep deprivation and i'm like a brain-dead zombie most of the time

I need the loo after 4/5 hours sleep or my brain just switches on. GP gave me zopiclone a couple of months ago but it was useless because I tend to fall asleep within minutes..it's just maintaining it.

I recently heard someone mention the Pineal gland so i'm wondering if my body has lost the ability to sleep properly due to years of sleeping during the day and being awake all night.

I'll state the obvious - cut out all sources of caffeine at least 2 or 3 hours before bed.

I hope you get your sleep back.

[Mat999]

I am a long time insomniac and find that gradually slowing down, turning lights down and watching something boring does the job most times. I have a chamomile and honey tea bag and a Pukka Night Time tea bag together (it has things like valerian root in it), maybe 90 minutes before sleeping.

I often finish with the below video on my tablet, or Noam Chomsky lectures are so monotone that they are a great help. before Noam or the below I wait until I really am tired and close to sleeping and just need that extra distraction to stop thoughts.

ps. there are no ads, but don't forget to unclick Autoplay on Youtube, then another video won't start after it.