insomnia ARGH

[Guest GUTTERbOY]

For the life of me, I cannot get onto a semi-normal sleep schedule. I suppose it's the consequence of years spent working predominantly nights, but now that I work days, I just can't seem to get myself to sleep before 1-2 AM at the earliest... and then some nights, like now, even laying down then just results in tossing and turning for a few hours.

I used to think that if I just forced myself to not take early evening naps, that this problem would rectify itself... nope, I can seep 3-4 hours in a night, work all day, make myself busy through the evening, and still be wide awake at 2 AM.

urgggghhhhh

I don't want to resort to sleeping pills, but it might just come down to that... not tonight, though. Heck, my alarm will sound in three hours.

[Smith]

i find nyquil works great in these situations.

[strickj]

i find nyquil works great in these situations.

I buy that stuff by the 12-pack

I have tried every brand of sleep pill available by prescription,and that family size bottle of Nyquil still comes out on top!

I once had my doctor tell me this is because sleep pills do not make you sleepy,but instead turn your mind off.Since I dont have any thoughts running through my mind anyways they dont work for me

[Guest canynracer]

Surf pr0n...you will get worn out....right Strick?

[KahrMan]

Surf pr0n...you will get worn out....right Strick?

Always makes me sleepy after just a little bit...

[Guest EasilyObsessed]

Try taking Melatonin. Works great! I found 1mg is plenty to help me get to sleep. I take it about 45 minutes before I want to fall asleep.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melatonin

Of course, it is always best to consult with your primary care physician before taking anything

[Guest Grout]

Read a really boring book like Little Women or Cold Mountain.

[Punisher84]

I have the same problem Gutter. I sleep better at night than I did during the day, but it's hard for me to fall asleep. I haven't really found a solution yet either...

[Guest Verbal Kint]

Another insomniac reporting in.

My normal sleep routine is about 3-4 hours a night, maximum, after predominantly working swings/mids in the military. I function perfectly fine during the day, with no fatigue due to lack of sleep. Just one of those things were your body gets use to it.

[Guest GUTTERbOY]

I generally don't have issues with staying awake during the work day, but I do have issues getting up when I need to if I stay up too late. I almost always get the urge to take a nap around 9-10 PM, especially if I'm not active at that time. If I'm sitting in front of the computer or TV, then there's a good chance I'll nod off.

The waking up thing is more of a motivation issue than anything else. I rarely had any trouble waking up at 5:30 AM after getting to sleep at 2 during my ROTC days... I guess the spectre of the staff was a bit more intimidating than losing an hour of billable time.

[Guest Verbal Kint]

Well... I'm up at 4:30am, regardless of when I went to sleep. Which isn't bad if you crash around midnight... but if you go to sleep at 2:00 or 3:00, you wake up and are like WTF?

I try to catch an hour nap during the day to offset nights like that, but doesn't really effect me either way.

[Guest bkelm18]

The military definitely wrecked my sleeping habits. I cannot sleep past 6, 6:30 for nothing. Most of my nights are pretty restless, tossing and turning.

[Guest Medic908]

...I don't want to resort to sleeping pills, but it might just come down to that... not tonight, though. Heck, my alarm will sound in three hours.

Try to stay away from the sleeping pills if possible...many you see on tv these days claim they are not habit forming, but can become easily abused. Benadryl works well (it's "over the counter") but can leave you a headache often times ("benadryl hangover")

Some things to try:

Hot shower/bath before going to bed

Fan in the bedroom

Stay away from alcohol prior to bedtime (it will initially act as a stimulant instead of depressant)

Keep any type of stimulants out of the bedroom - stereo, tv, computer, etc.

No caffeine after 3:00 pm

Decide upon what time you'd like to go to bed for an adequate amount of sleep and then make it a habit/routine.

Just some suggestions - good luck...

[TripleDigitRide]

[Guest tnmale46]

For the life of me, I cannot get onto a semi-normal sleep schedule. I suppose it's the consequence of years spent working predominantly nights, but now that I work days, I just can't seem to get myself to sleep before 1-2 AM at the earliest... and then some nights, like now, even laying down then just results in tossing and turning for a few hours.

I used to think that if I just forced myself to not take early evening naps, that this problem would rectify itself... nope, I can seep 3-4 hours in a night, work all day, make myself busy through the evening, and still be wide awake at 2 AM.

urgggghhhhh

I don't want to resort to sleeping pills, but it might just come down to that... not tonight, though. Heck, my alarm will sound in three hours.

same here

[Guest Grout]

Someone mention insomnia.

[strickj]

Looks like yall are rookies!

Here I am at 4:20 and just got out of the shower so I'm good and awake

Stay away from alcohol prior to bedtime (it will initially act as a stimulant instead of depressant)

Keep any type of stimulants out of the bedroom - stereo, tv, computer, etc.

No booze is just crazy talk!

And when I can go to sleep it is from watching tv.I have never been able to nod off with out some form of light and sound.