Need help for insomnia
Ive had insomnia for a while now, maybe a little over a year. Generally I get about 6 hours of sleep. However I go some nights 2-3 a week were I get as little as 0-3 hours of sleep. I am kind of worried about my long term health.
Ive tried changing my sleeping habits and hygiene and nothing works:
Ive tried all the following but no luck:
Herbal Supplements: Melatonin, Valerian Root, Chamomile, Passionflower
Other medication: zolpidem (didnt work at all) (edited to generic term by Roadie)
No caffeine after 5pm
No lights before sleep (including phones and tablets)
Keeping the temperature cool
Reading until I get sleepy
Getting out of bed after 20 minutes if I cant sleep and getting back in after I get sleep
Daily exercise (before 7pm)
Mindfulness (concentrating on deep breathing), muscle relaxation, and stretching
Getting daily sunlight
CBT for avoiding negative thoughts (like I cant sleep)
Ive done all of the above and Ive even gone through nights with 0 hours of sleep. If Im in luck, I get 2-3 hours of sleep. I just feel like Im hyper and restless. I don't necessarily feel stressed just like how I would feel during a daytime, energetic, even after exercising and a long day at work. I dont know what to do. I dont want to show up to work with 2 hours of sleep. I dont know what else to do. Any advice? Please see my list above. Thanks
Hello, I'm sorry to hear that you are experiencing this *hugs*. May I suggest that you read this guide https://www.7cups.com/sleeping-well/ for more information and advice which may help you with this? I hope it helps, have a nice day! :)
Everything that article says pretty much is listed in my list of things I've done already (changing my sleeping hygiene and habits, etc.) which has not helped. I have been keeping a sleeping diary to see my sleeping pattern. I'm just confused.
@SilverWaterfall
Hi,
It really does sound like you have tried most of the usual suggestions, "sleep hygiene" strategies , the types of things covered in the sleeping well course. Insomnia is so frustrating, especially when you have tried so much to no avail. I am no expert on you, but I will share what has worked for me. I used to have a lot of trouble getting to sleep. Then I discovered what worked for me- relaxing sounds. I found an app called , I think, sleepmaker or something like that. There are lots of similar apps containing relaxing sound effects such as rain on a roof, relaxing music, white noise etc. After I discovered sleepmaker, I found out that a lot of forms of background sound work well for me- sleep "hypnosis" tracks on youtube, guided meditations,affirmations- for me, even a podcast or lecture played softly does the trick. The more I have used it, the more I have become conditioned that soundtracks such as these mean it is sleep time... and they work better than ever now that I am conditioned by this routine. Experimenting with different sounds, different voices in meditation tracks etc can pay off in finding the most relaxing soft noise for you. It may not help you but i thought i would share my own experience.
Sending you zzzzzz's, Tiana
@TianaCares
Hi Tiana,
I have really really tried relaxing music before sleep but I'll give it a try. Usually, music does help me relax. I'll see how it goes thanks!
