Fighting the Insomnia Beast
I've had insomnia for years. I will wake up in the wee hours of the morning and be wide awake for up to two hours at a time. Finally, I'll fall asleep pretty much right before it's time to get up.
I thought I'd dodged it for a while in the past months. It's been months since I've laid awake like that.
However, I've developed a new version of insomnia. This one has me in an unrestful sleep and tossing and turning most of the night. It started when I was in Mexico. I thought it was a vacation thing brought on by too much alcohol, sleeping in a strange bed and sharing a room with a snorer (albeit a light snorer). It didn't go away when I got home, though.
Home brought a new factor into the process. George sleeps near my legs and every turn wakes her up. If it's remotely close to daylight, she interprets the move as a signal for kitty loving to start. Next thing I know, she's lying on my chest demanding that I pet her. I can do that half asleep but I can't doze through the sandpaper face washings.
I've tried several techniques. No alcohol. No caffeine. No alcohol or caffeine. Going to bed at the same time every night. I even exercised which tells you how serious I am about getting rid of it. Nothing helped and I have just been getting more and more fatigued as each day passes.
Several people have suggested an herbal approach. Julie brought up Melatonin. I actually bought some a while back but my friend Cyndi said it gave her horrible nightmares. I already have enough issues with nightmares (one reason why I'm so afraid of axe murderers - I dream about them way too much).
I actually think the cause is more likely stress than anything physical. I've just been under the gun from so many directions of late and it's wearing me down. I finally figured that out when I started getting canker sores in my mouth. Those are a definite stress sign.
Friday was probably the day that my body just wore out. I had to drag myself into work and ended up there until 7. It was killer. I was in bed at 9:15 and slept straight through to 5. My alarm was set for 5:30 so that wasn't too bad. Saturday night, I was in bed by 10:30 and slept until almost 7. It was heavenly!
I'm thinking positive thoughts for tonight. I might have just made it over the hump.
I thought I'd dodged it for a while in the past months. It's been months since I've laid awake like that.
However, I've developed a new version of insomnia. This one has me in an unrestful sleep and tossing and turning most of the night. It started when I was in Mexico. I thought it was a vacation thing brought on by too much alcohol, sleeping in a strange bed and sharing a room with a snorer (albeit a light snorer). It didn't go away when I got home, though.
Home brought a new factor into the process. George sleeps near my legs and every turn wakes her up. If it's remotely close to daylight, she interprets the move as a signal for kitty loving to start. Next thing I know, she's lying on my chest demanding that I pet her. I can do that half asleep but I can't doze through the sandpaper face washings.
I've tried several techniques. No alcohol. No caffeine. No alcohol or caffeine. Going to bed at the same time every night. I even exercised which tells you how serious I am about getting rid of it. Nothing helped and I have just been getting more and more fatigued as each day passes.
Several people have suggested an herbal approach. Julie brought up Melatonin. I actually bought some a while back but my friend Cyndi said it gave her horrible nightmares. I already have enough issues with nightmares (one reason why I'm so afraid of axe murderers - I dream about them way too much).
I actually think the cause is more likely stress than anything physical. I've just been under the gun from so many directions of late and it's wearing me down. I finally figured that out when I started getting canker sores in my mouth. Those are a definite stress sign.
Friday was probably the day that my body just wore out. I had to drag myself into work and ended up there until 7. It was killer. I was in bed at 9:15 and slept straight through to 5. My alarm was set for 5:30 so that wasn't too bad. Saturday night, I was in bed by 10:30 and slept until almost 7. It was heavenly!
I'm thinking positive thoughts for tonight. I might have just made it over the hump.
