I can usually fall asleep fine, and I generally sleep somewhat soundly for the first few hours, but I wake up every night at around 3 or 4 and from then on I toss and turn. If I do manage to fall back to sleep, the rest of the night I sleep very lightly and have anxiety nightmares.
It's the WORST. It's got to the point where I hate night, I hate beds, I hate having anything touch me while I try to sleep. Pretty much, I just hate everything. I haven't slept a whole night through for the last five years or so.
I feel like I've tried everything. I've tried eating dinner earlier in the evening, tried warm milk, tried white noise, tried a sleep mask, tried melatonin, tried herbal sleeping pills, tried regular sleeping pills. Right now my doctor has me on Imovane, which is a sleeping pill that is processed out of your system pretty quickly, so you're not drowsy in the morning. Which is great and all, because it helps me sleep more deeply those first few hours, but unfortunately doesn't stop the 3 am wake-ups.
I know sleeping pills are bad. And I know that my insomnia is probably at least partly due to stress. And I also know that I have a really lovely life compared to many people and, as someone who has quite a regular yoga practice, I should be better able to manage my stress.
Sadly, knowing all of these things does not make me sleep better.
If you have any fail-safe sleep-aids, please, please share them. Right now, I feel like I'm at my wits' end.
6 comments:
have you tried exercise? like maybe an hour or so before you want to sleep, maybe go out for a brisk walk?
ohhhh that sucks. I hear that there are some meditation-y type stuff that can help. what about melatonin (probably not as effective as sleeping pills?).
i get night terrors, so i can understand the nightmares part. :(
Drink some chalomile tea.
No tv or internet for 2 hours before bed to let your mind relax from all the electricity.
Have a hot bath and layer your bed with loads of blankets to keep you warm and stick some lavender or hops in your pillow.
No mobile phone by the bed
This works for me.
My heart goes out to you...when I am really stressed, I have bad 3am-4am wake ups. This usually means you have too much Vata in your system - here is what works for me: hot bath before bed, rub Vata soothing oil on your whole body afterwards, or at least your feet. A oil foot rub can really do wonders to help sleep through the night. I take the herb Valerian a half an hour before bed, it helps me sleep through the night with out any weird side effects. And Viparita Karani (legs up the wall) before bed helps insomnia. And yes, Chamomile tea is the best.
Good luck and sleep well, Aja
heya, I just found a new studio blog, had a peek and found a "yoga for insomnia" post!!
http://shaktiyogastudio.blogspot.com/2009/10/yoga-for-insomnia.html
very timely!
I hope this can add.
guided relaxation is supposed to be helpful as well....
Cassandra: I've tried yoga and meditation before going to bed and it does help relax me, but I still wake up in the middle of the night. Usually I don't have too much trouble falling asleep, it's the staying asleep that seems tricky.
Little Lotus: The hot bath and lavender sound divine. And I really do have to make an effort not to be on the computer/watch TV too soon before going to bed.
Aja: Thank you for the suggestions! I have to find some of that vata foot oil. I really do want to explore ayurvedic medicine more, so maybe this will be a good starting point.
Eco-Yogini: Ah! Thank you! This is amazing! And incredibly timely. I haven't had the chance to try this yet, but I am thinking maybe tonight or tomorrow night. I'll let you know what happens!
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