I need help with my insomnia!

[Scriabin]

You can learn how to stop thinking.

You simply need to stop telling yourself that you can't.

[AsheDina]

  DWI- I FEEL for you- BIGTIME. I mean REALLY BIGTIME. I suffer from TERRIBLE Anxiety attacks (lots of people will think- 'well of course she does, shes a nut') fine, fine.. Mine started at 25. Some years go by, and no problem, and then I will have 2 yrs of this terrible problem. I dont do the caffeine, chocolate- and all that other JUNK- I tried everything, and it was AWFUL. 
  I sincrerely HOPE that you WILL get through this - I meditate on "For he gives His beloved sleep" I have to confess, I am in now way as strong as Chaim, or the others here- I have to do what I have to do, when this bad off- which is not really too much this past year- I know many will disagree- however- for myself, just to get through some bad weeks once in awhile- I do take clonezepam, on an "as needed' basis. Yes- it is a benzo, I know- And I hope I am not offensive to people here- but a nut crazy person like myself- I MUST GET SLEEP. It is a MUST. 
 I will say, however, that being with my 'soul-mate' (when I am there) I am in so much peace, that when he goes to tuck me into my bedroom, I am so at peace with life, I just seem to fall asleep.  PLUS he works out EVERY single day- and THAT makes ME exhausted. I hope that you get rest from this situation, I PROMISE- you ARE in my prayers. I FEEL FOR YOU VERY MUCH.

[Ulli]

For the last 4 years, I have has pretty bad insomnia. Their have been periods where it was better but their are also times when its unbearable. The annoying thing is that its not a physical problem with me, but a psychological one. It started when one night for whatever reason I had trouble falling asleep and ever since then, I get all tense and nervous that I will not be able to sleep. This tension about sleep is what actually creates a state of alertness when I try to sleep. Even though I know what the problem is, I still cannot control it, and my body automatically gets very tensed up as I try to go to sleep. The reason why I am writing about this now is because this problem has forced me to drop my summer classes. Ambien and Lunesta didnt really work for me. I just got restoril which works but its too late to salvage this semester. I dropped my class in time and I wont get a "W" on my transcript.

I was wondering if anyone here has any ideas for me on how to get rid of this insanely annoying problem. I dont want to have to rely on restoril. If someone here has any advice at all for me, I would appreciate it greatly.

I have sometimes exactly the same problem. I have tried it with Valerian and hop-tea. I began to be sleepy, but then the state of alertness came back much more heavy.

I have bought spleeping-pills with diphenhydramine in the apothecary, but this was a real nightmare. The next day I was like a zombie, so I throw it in the garbage.

The best solution imo is dry, fruity and heavy red vine. The best are imo the Bordeaux denominations St. Emillion or Medoc. It has 12-13 vol alcohol and tastes excellent.

So after at least half of a bottle you will sleep like a chuck. No fear, no panic no nothing.

I can tell 

But perhaps is this no solution for everybody 

[Ulli]

Oh I forgot. Another important point for me is to feel safe. I live alone in a greater building. So I check everyday before I go sleeping if all doors and windows are locked and in addition to that I block the door to my sleeping room.

If family or friends visiting me I forget to do this regulary. But if I am alone never. 

If I feel not safe I can't sleep.

And I drink never tea or coffee in the evening. Some black teas make you very wake.

[cjd]

DWI you have to stop thinking about not falling asleep its just that simple. The hard part is to get your mind not to be concerned about it. I have no problem sleeping however the few times I did it was because I had something to do the next day and was worried I would not get to sleep enough and then be tired. You need to distract yourself from the thoughts of not getting to sleep. I find listening to something quiet on the stereo, looking through a picture book that does not require a lot of reading or even watching something on TV often puts me to sleep. Most electronics today have a sleep timer so you can set it to go off after 30 min.

[SavetheWest]

Try reading in bed.  Make sure you turn your TV, computer, and cell phone, completely off.  Cell phones make noises in the middle of the night especially if you have a device like a Blackberry.  Get exercise early in the day and don't have caffeine at least 6 hours before you go to bed..maybe even more.


I have a hard time trying to sleep because of the possibility of an Obama presidency! Maybe that could be a reason for you too!

[Ulli]

Look DWI what I have found:

[~Hanna~]

Believe me the Chamomile tea will help considerably....

[Rubystars]

I think Pheasant was right when he talked about feeling safe when going to sleep. I think that has to be something of an issue here if the stress builds up right when you're trying to go to sleep. If your body is afraid of sleep, maybe you should try to make sure you control your sleep environment as much as possible beforehand so you know that it's a safe place to not be aware of your surroundings.

[DownwithIslam]

I have tried everyones suggestions in the past and they dont work. I have tried not thinking about sleep and that doesnt work. I have tired ambien cr, lunesta, melatonin/valerian, unisom and others. They dont work. What does work are the more hardcore meds like valium/restoril but this is not a long term solution. I have tried everything already.

[Scriabin]

I have tried everyones suggestions in the past and they dont work. I have tried not thinking about sleep and that doesnt work. I have tired ambien cr, lunesta, melatonin/valerian, unisom and others. They dont work. What does work are the more hardcore meds like valium/restoril but this is not a long term solution. I have tried everything already.

You need to learn how to reduce your thinking.

Ninety-percent of the thinking that we do on a daily basis is not only unnecessary but harmful.

You are simply in the habit of overthinking.  Correcting this problem will require a conscious effort on your part. 

You need to practice.  Don't give up so easily. 

Never tell yourself that you cannot do something. Thoughts become reality.

[DownwithIslam]

Scriabin, their have been thousands(I am not exagerrating) of night in which I told myself to calm down and to stop thinking but it doesn't work. My body is simply afraid of sleep as I have had this problem so long. It is happening automatically. I think I will have to search for a sleep psychologist.

[~Hanna~]

Have you tried taking Epsom Salt baths yet?

The Magnesium in the Epsom Salts is a natural muscle relaxer....

Perhaps that might help, along with the tea.....?

If I did all that I would sleep for 12 hours I think....

I have tried everyones suggestions in the past and they dont work. I have tried not thinking about sleep and that doesnt work. I have tired ambien cr, lunesta, melatonin/valerian, unisom and others. They dont work. What does work are the more hardcore meds like valium/restoril but this is not a long term solution. I have tried everything already.

[Scriabin]

Scriabin, their have been thousands(I am not exagerrating) of night in which I told myself to calm down and to stop thinking but it doesn't work. My body is simply afraid of sleep as I have had this problem so long. It is happening automatically. I think I will have to search for a sleep psychologist.

Telling yourself to calm down is thinking!  Don't tell yourself anything.

You need to practice meditation.

I suggest that you study internal martial arts like Tai Chi, Ba Gua and Chi Gung.

[White Israelite]

I have a pretty difficult time sleeping as well. I get maybe 2-3 hours of sleep a night and by the time I get up, i'm suffering anxiety attacks and pacing around the house 50 times until I finally decide to shower and get ready for work. I tend to wrestle with my pillows and literally start break dancing in my bed due to the insanity. My eyes burn and I get horrible headaches that last the whole night. Not sure of any suggestions for you downwithislam but your not alone but for whatever reason, I don't sleep very well at all. It definitely affects me though to the point i'm seeing double vision and hallucinating.

If you find answers, let me know.

[~Hanna~]

or perhaps wine...drinking a glass or two of wine....

but I bet you have tried that too....!!!!

[Americanhero1]

Do you have a strenuous job?

[zachor_ve_kavod]

I had the same problem a few years back.  I got into chi-kung, which is a chinese martial art that develops a person's internal energy.  Now if I can't fall asleep, I do a couple of chi-kung exercises (which only take a couple minutes) and I can fall asleep right away.

[Scriabin]

Do you have a strenuous job?

People who do hard physical labor sleep well at night.

Doctors, lawyers and accountants do not.

[Americanhero1]

Do you have a strenuous job?

People who do hard physical labor sleep well at night.

Doctors, lawyers and accountants do not.

I ment is it strenuos on the mind because if it is that will put a lot of stress on him

[Scriabin]

I had the same problem a few years back.  I got into chi-kung, which is a chinese martial art that develops a person's internal energy.  Now if I can't fall asleep, I do a couple of chi-kung exercises (which only take a couple minutes) and I can fall asleep right away.

Bravo!

Internal exercize is by far the most beneficial.

I am thrilled to hear that a fellow JTFer is working on internal energy exercizes.

Bravo indeed!

[Scriabin]

Do you have a strenuous job?

People who do hard physical labor sleep well at night.

Doctors, lawyers and accountants do not.

I ment is it strenuos on the mind because if it is that will put a lot of stress on him

I see, you meant 'stressful'.

Yes, you are correct.  Stress is the greatest enemy of healthy sleep.

[Zelhar]

I would suggest you go to sleep with a sleepy cat. Let it lie on you or next to you. Cats have a calming effect on humans when they are placid.

And also like Scriabin said- you need to empty your mind, try to do/learn meditation.

[Americanhero1]

I would suggest you go to sleep with a sleepy cat. Let it lie on you or next to you. Cats have a calming effect on humans when they are placid.

And also like Scriabin said- you need to empty your mind, try to do/learn meditation.

The cat thing might work because I have a cat and calms me down

[Rubystars]

One time my sisters cats were visting and I was tired so I laid down in the middle of the room where they were and one of them slept on my back and I went to sleep. We slept there for a long time too.