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Why Can’t I Sleep?

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Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#21

Post by globular-toast »

sammorrowdrums wrote: post #18
me_me_me wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can only recommend book by Matthew Walker 'Why we sleep - The new science of sleep and dreams'

I really wanted to love this book, and I was if anything biased heavily towards believing it. I read it cover to cover in less than a week. Sadly, I found that book made my sleep worse. (A quick Google will show I'm not alone). Also there is a lot of debate around the quality of the research underpinning the book, this is the most prominent article: https://guzey.com/books/why-we-sleep/ Also I really do not love his…

I'm not familiar with the book but when you say "the book made my sleep worse", do you mean following the advice in the book made it worse, or simply reading the book made it worse?

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#22

Post by tallanvor »

odiroot wrote: post #15
tallanvor wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Don't discount the short-term use of sleeping pills to help you reset your rhythm a bit. Using them for a week isn't going to create a dependency, but it may be enough to help you get through whatever is making it difficult for you to fall asleep.

> Don't discount the short-term use of sleeping pills to help you reset your rhythm a bit. Yes but before reaching for benzos maybe try something milder like zopiclone?

I think a lot of people don't really know the difference between benzos and Z- drugs, so we don't really know what the prescription was for. Also, many countries have decided that the research hasn't shown any reason to prefer Z- drugs like zopiclone over benzos for short-term use.

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#23

Post by ajb »

jerrre wrote: post #13
verytrivial wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you can, and haven't already, take up running/jogging/walking. I'd be a mental wreck without it and the quality of my sleep is inversly proportional to how regularly I'm running. No running means lying in bed for 60-90 minutes before sleep. Running means out-like-a-light in about 45 seconds. I might even be stressed about something but my brain in just like 'LOL no bye-bye.' This plus at least 10 mins of meditatio…

Do you mean just before bed, or in general during the day?

"According to this study[1], morning exercise might be more helpful; there is no sign that evening exercise disrupts sleep, but it might not help as much either."

From https://lorienpsych.com/2021/01/02/insomnia/ which also has other advice

[1] https://sci-hub.st/https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/art...

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#24

Post by sammorrowdrums »

globular-toast wrote: post #21
sammorrowdrums wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I really wanted to love this book, and I was if anything biased heavily towards believing it. I read it cover to cover in less than a week. Sadly, I found that book made my sleep worse. (A quick Google will show I'm not alone). Also there is a lot of debate around the quality of the research underpinning the book, this is the most prominent article: https://guzey.com/books/why-we-sleep/ Also I really do not love his…

I'm not familiar with the book but when you say "the book made my sleep worse", do you mean following the advice in the book made it worse, or simply reading the book made it worse?

The fear of the effects of not sleeping, which I believe are significantly overstated in the book, actually provoke some including myself into having a sleep interrupting fear of not sleeping.

The link above has a section on the possible negative effects.

So yes, just reading it had a negative impact. I'm over it now. Just don't recommend it.

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#25

Post by zero_iq »

antris wrote: post #6
HaoZeke wrote: post #2

Every time I read these things I'm surprised at how one sided and narrow minded these are! People in the nordics have existed for centuries with periods of 24 hours of daylight. The concept of natural light and sleeping with the sun is excessively stupid.

As a person who lives in the Nordic countries, the sun is a major problem in here when it comes to sleeping and seasonal mental health issues. Yes, we do get by, but not without a cost. It is a serious interference with grave consequences for some people, and minor consequences for others, but nearly everyone is affected at least in some way.

A few years ago, in the architecture and design museum in Stockholm, I saw an exhibit of a bus shelter that had been fitted with bright daylight lamps for use in a northern Swedish city. It apparently had a measurable impact on depression and suicide when they were deployed.

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#26

Post by piva00 »

HaoZeke wrote: post #2

Every time I read these things I'm surprised at how one sided and narrow minded these are! People in the nordics have existed for centuries with periods of 24 hours of daylight. The concept of natural light and sleeping with the sun is excessively stupid.

Just repeating all the other comments from people living in the Nordics: it's a hassle now during summer to sleep anywhere you don't have good blinds to get near-complete darkness.

Not only that but you feel that your body doesn't relax at night time, here in Stockholm right now there is sunlight up to 21-something, never getting completely dark after that until the sun is up again around 03.00, my body is still fully awake with energy until way past 23.00 when usually during winters I'll feel tired by 18.00 as it is dark since around 14.30-15.00.

I'm not Swedish but every Swede I know go through these cycles around the year, living here for 6 years hasn't changed much in terms of adaptation except that I just know that's how it works.

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#27

Post by capybara_2020 »

Clampower wrote: post #4

Since about three weeks ago I cannot sleep. It’s very strange. I know the feeling of anxiety and how it leads to not sleeping, it’s something I’ve had in the past at very stressful jobs. I’ve learned techniques to deal with this, like breathing and mindfulness. But right now this feels different. I’m tired, I’m lying in bed, and I don’t have any stressful thoughts. Yet somehow I just don’t fall asleep. It feels like…

That is weird, I have the exact same problem. Just that it has been going on for a few months. It became a little better in the middle but now I am back to the same problem. My eyes are burning,so tired but I cannot sleep. And even when I sleep it is not the deep sleep I used to have.

For me atleast it started like 5-6 months ago with VIVID dreams and then around 2-3 months ago the lack of sleep started. It started with an anxiety attack about a health scare.

Went to the doc, got some anti anxiety meds, got some tests done. Nothing looks wrong according to the doc. The meds made me drowsy constantly but did it for 2 weeks. Slight improvement. And now it feels like I am back to square 1

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#28

Post by dtech »

tallanvor wrote: post #11
Clampower wrote: post #4

Since about three weeks ago I cannot sleep. It’s very strange. I know the feeling of anxiety and how it leads to not sleeping, it’s something I’ve had in the past at very stressful jobs. I’ve learned techniques to deal with this, like breathing and mindfulness. But right now this feels different. I’m tired, I’m lying in bed, and I don’t have any stressful thoughts. Yet somehow I just don’t fall asleep. It feels like…

Don't discount the short-term use of sleeping pills to help you reset your rhythm a bit. Using them for a week isn't going to create a dependency, but it may be enough to help you get through whatever is making it difficult for you to fall asleep.

if it's just for rhythm trying Melatonin first is better, since it doesn't cause lower-quality sleep and has no addictive properties

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#29

Post by MaxBarraclough »

> Super-sleepers like Joanne Osmond inherited a preternatural ability to thrive on only a few hours of sleep. But this genetic trait is very, very rare, so if you regularly sleep less than 7½ hours a night and suspect you might fall into this category, think again; chances are much higher that you are not only sleep deprived but also so used to living this way you can’t even see the problem.

Interesting, I was under the impression that such people were just sleep deprived, deluded, and likely to far underperform as a result.

Margaret Thatcher was said to sleep just 4 hours a night. The same claim is made for Trump. Would be interesting to know if they're both super-sleepers.

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#30

Post by ivanovb »

Clampower wrote: post #4

Since about three weeks ago I cannot sleep. It’s very strange. I know the feeling of anxiety and how it leads to not sleeping, it’s something I’ve had in the past at very stressful jobs. I’ve learned techniques to deal with this, like breathing and mindfulness. But right now this feels different. I’m tired, I’m lying in bed, and I don’t have any stressful thoughts. Yet somehow I just don’t fall asleep. It feels like…

For a long time I had problems falling asleep, no matter how physically or mentally tired I was. And after some introspection I found out that I could not fall asleep because I kept thinking actively about the day that passed or making plans for the next day.

Now I can fall asleep in 10-15 minutes by focusing that mental energy into imagining a favorite place and once the image is established in my mind I let go of control. Then the image kind of comes alive on its own - I like to imagine a clearing in a forest so all kind of creatures appear randomly. I think all this random auto-generated sensory input overrides the real one allowing me to fall asleep.

Of course, it helps if there are no sudden changes in your real environment (loud sounds, sharp changes in lighting, etc.)

It sounds crazy, but it works for me.

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