Sleeping problems

[VanessaW]

Hello all

it's 4.30am and as usual I am awake. I know that after SAH sleeping problems are common, but it's making me go a bit mad and seems to have gotten worse lately. I get this sensation in my head after I've been lying down for a little while, it's hard to describe, something like a massive anxiety and swirling/juddering in my head but without me actually feeling anxious. Does that make sense to anyone? Anyway it takes me forever to get to sleep and then I usually wake up a lot. I am really fed up. To make matters worse, I sprained my ankle whilst out walking yesterday. I feel really jinxed at the moment and sorry for myself.

I've tried herbal sleeping tablets which don't help and all the usual things to help me sleep, to no avail. Do other people have sleeping issues and what do you do?

thank you

best wishes

Vanessa

[DawnS]

Hi Vanessa,

I had terrible sleep problems for an entire year. I would regularly manage to nod off at 02:00 if i was vey lucky, but more commonly around 04:00 out of sheer exhaustion.

This isn't going to help you much I'm afraid, but this all stopped as soon as I went back to work. I have found out a couple of things though...

I rarely stay up beyond 20:30 and if I do, I'm in for one of the old nights of laying there for hours getting to know my ceiling very well.

I have taught myself to appreciate that if I'm lying there in the dark, in the quiet then I'm giving my brain a good rest even though I'm not asleep. This new spin on being awake really seems to have helped and I nod off within about an hour and a half usually.

Dawn x

[Louise]

Yes from time to time I do have them really bad, & its hard not to nap in the day but if you do then you cant sleep at night its one of those catch 22 situs....

Mines is normally too much on my mind/stress, cant really say what I do just lie and wait I guess....

sorry not a lot of help but just letting you know your not alone...take care.

[Winb143]

I also have trouble sleeping, but I only remember when I had a shunt fitted and since then I sleep awkwardly.

It has got better though. So keep positive and you will sleep all the way through the night, give it time Vanessa it does come.

I still have nights when I cannot sleep but they are less than more.

Good luck

WinB143

[donnamarie]

My sleeping pattern is awful it changes so much all the time one night it's no sleep even if I'm tired and have tried to sleep !!! This goes on for days then my body shuts itself down and I just sleep for hours / days

I've had sleeping tablets and even with these on bad nights I can only manage about two hours

Donna

[Gill C]

I go through phases, at the moment its a waking early & not going back to sleep one. I don't usually struggle to get to sleep but then I have tablets to help me sleep. I don't nap during the day any more but if I'm allowed to sleep in its usually a 9am ish lie in (assuming I do go back to sleep)

Occasionally I will have a headache in the night which wakes me up, its usually becauase I'm too warm in bed (according to my bloods its nothing to do with my age) but I do have a problem with regulating temp still.

[Louise]

I cant regulate my temp either Gill:roll:

[kpaggett]

Van,

4:30 is my time too. I have an average night if I don't wake at 2am, a terrible one if I do and an unusual one if I don't wake by 5am.

I used to worry all the time about it, but I realized that this only exacerbates it for me. I went out and bought a lava lamp and turn it on before bed in the living room. When I wake up, I can always count on being able to gel out even it I'm not awake enough to read or Sudoku. I sometimes write, but NOT on the computer as the white light really wakes me up further. The pons is implicated in sleep, so I think this is to be expected. I tend to spend a lot of time in somnolence instead of deeper stages of sleep.

Also, your ankle thing...I have noticed that because my muscles are less innervated, I can easily hurt myself doing regular things. I do yoga now and have to be very careful that I don't overstretch in the wrong way. I'm like 'Circ du Soleil'. I have to make sure that whatever I do, I am aligned perfectly...even in posture or everyday activities.

~Kris

[Patsy Robertson]

I also suffer sleep disturbances since my SA haemorrhage. I now tend to be in bed by 10pm whereas before I would be awake until 1am. Unfortunately I go through spells of waking at very inappropriate times, this morning for example I woke at 2.15am. I couldn't go back to sleep which is the usual trend to be honest.

How I have completed an hour of aqua aerobics on so little sleep today I not know

They prescribed me Duloxetine 60 mg it is an anti depressant but it isn't working in respect of allowing me more sleep.

Sorry to hear you are suffering too, I am now accepting that this is now 'just me' as miserable as it is

If anyone has any ideas on how to resolve these issues I would be very interested also.

[Louise]

Aw Patsy sorry to hear that:

'just me' as miserable as it is

I get like that at times its rotten, but in time it'll improve....take care

[Slim]

Hi Vanessa and to all the other Night Owls.

This really takes me back. It was an awful time so I sympathise with you completely but on the plus side it was during this sleepless phase that I discovered "behindthegray".

In the first year of recovery I could have slept round the clock and never felt refreshed. The insomnia wasn't simply that my sleeping patterns were mixed up. I needed rest during the day too. What helped me was firstly advice from me G.P to nap no longer than an hour at a time. even If I need to take several short naps. I did usually push this to the limit and set my alarm for 59mins.

Get fresh air every day. Even if it is to sit by the window. (Obviously weather permitting). If you can manage a walk even better.

Cut out caffeine and cut out or down on processed food.

I don't answer the phone after 9pm at night or do anything mentally stimulating even exciting tv. (I discovered carrying on on the phone kept my brain hyper and will try to shut down my brain even earlier. (like a parent trying to get a child wound down before bed time).

The biggest turning point was my G.P prescribed a sleeping tablet. I was quite scared of taking it as I was worried about getting addicted....... and I don't really like taking tablets. However best thing ever. (for me) I obviously was in some sort of cycle. I can't remember how far I was into recovery poss 6 months and it was a last resort. But it did help. Think i only took it for a couple of weeks. But I did have some for occasions when I knew I would need a sleep. e.g having to be up early for an appointment. (I haven't had them in several years)

I still have problems sleeping if I'm somewhere new or exciting things have been happening. The reason I can't sleep tonight is because I've had a busy day been drinking coffee and a big pizza and finished it off with a bottle of wine. Boy do I need to take my own advice!

I'm not sure if the above will work for you, I hope something will talk things over with your G.P and if it gets worse ask to be referred to the sleep clinic.

But it could be just that your body is healing itself and this if your phase. Try not to get too worked up and find something that will relax your brain and help you sleep. (i love arran aromatics lavender or lavender and teatree) normally hate lavender.

Take Care hope you are in the land of nod soon.

[Jigsaw]

Hi everyone

I try really hard to listen to my body because if I do too much, strangely I do not sleep as well! Its hard because I used to be a 100 mile an hour person! Ive also downloaded some relaxation apps that can help if only to stop me thinking and worrying about things that will really not be important the next day! x