Insomniachick

The older I get the harder I find it to go to sleep at night. My brain won’t shut down. In fact I think about more stuff when I’m trying to go to bed than I do working and piddling around all day. I have had several serious bouts with insomnia as an adult. Some of these have been the result of my heart arrhythmia which was misdiagnosed as depression and anxiety for several years. It turns out that I have a Magnesium deficiency and have to take Magnesium Oxide supplements to quell that issue. Since moving to Raleigh I had problems sleeping in my new apartment at first, especially after my new furniture came. You would think that an air mattress would strike fear in the heart of an insomniac before a big old Sealy Posturepedic would. At any rate, I have consulted a few web sites and read a lot of blogs to help me in my quest to re-gain my natural sleeping habits. I think part of my problem is that I am used to having a TV in my bedroom which always lulled me into a coma at night. I don’t have that luxury right now and my body is giving me hell for it. Here’s what I have done so far to try to ease myself to sleep:

The combination of these things has earned me a few nice nights of sleep, however I cannot seem to sleep more than 6 hours at a time with any consistency. I have had less than 7 total hours of sleep since this time last week and it is obviously frustrating. This sleep deprivation is also having a negative effect on my attention span when I work, and my drive to write and be creative. I have been woken up in the middle of the night and headed the computer because I have discovered that I had something to journal
or blog about, but being up for such long periods of time and not being able to create anything is crippling me.

People are quick to give advice and say that maybe I am indeed depressed or having bouts of anxiety, but I don’t feel either at all. I have been happier since I moved to Raleigh than I was the entire time I was in Florida. I miss my family but it’s no different than when I was in college. I do not experience any bouts of panic or nervousness. I would almost feel relieved if I could pick out what exactly is keeping me from resting even if it was depression or anxiety.

I plan on attempting the following to see if it will help me change my sleeping habits:

If you are reading this and have any suggestions I would appreciate all the help you can give. Sleep deprivation is worse than water torture and I don’t wish it on anyone. I seem to have had more than my fair share over the past 6 or 7 years.

Tags: insomnia, Me, sleep, wake

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January 27, 2007 | Filed Under Me 

Comments

3 Responses to “Insomniachick”

  1. AliceRouland on January 27th, 2007 5:23 pm

    These are good solutions and ideas. I have to say that I sew a great post and a smart writer behind it!

  2. elise on January 27th, 2007 5:37 pm

    Thanks for the kind words Alice. I edited your comment to remove the url as it was to a page for a sleep aid. I appreciate you stopping by but I don’t feel comfortable allowing people who comment to use my blog as a springboard to sell their product, especially if it is one that I have not used or cannot endorse.

  3. Alex on March 11th, 2007 11:06 pm

    Hi,

    I don’t have insomnia but I heard night walk should help. Just get some fresh air before going to bed. Running, working out or just exercising should also help.

    This has nothing to do with milk or calming down, just fresh air and oxygen, afaik.

    Good luck!

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