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Not getting quality sleep

spaceboots06

spaceboots06

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jun 13, 2009
968
1
The Rotten Apple
Good afternoon,

Well, it seems as if my entire sleeping schedule has been ruined. I'm not getting quality sleep. I get 8-9 hours of sleep every night, but when I wake up I have trouble getting my day started. At times I go back to sleep for another 2-3 hours. I used to operate on 6-7 hours of sleep and that sleep was fairly deep sleep. I have no idea what's causing this and plan on visiting my doctor and/or therapist, seeing that I don't know if this is a physical or mental problem.

Any comments or ideas? Thanks.
 
Try sleeping somewhere else, like a on a couch or in a different bed if you have a spare room. It sounds silly, but when I sleep on the couch at my house I feel so much more rested than when I sleep in my bed, often with less time devoted to sleep.
 
A really dark and cold room has always been the trick for me to get a solid nights rest.
 
For what its worth, my doctor suggested valerian root and its worked well for me. It's a natural supplement and you may want to try it before tackling ambien--at least ask your doctor about it. I hope you get some rest soon.
 
iGary said:
Have you been tested for sleep apnea?
Click to expand...

Yes, I have. Test came back negative and at the time my doctor didn't have any other useful information to give me.


I think I'm going to try sleeping on my couch more; I actually at times end up there in the middle of the night when I wake up and stumble over to my living room.

barkomatic said:
For what its worth, my doctor suggested valerian root and its worked well for me. It's a natural supplement and you may want to try it before tackling ambien--at least ask your doctor about it. I hope you get some rest soon.
Click to expand...

Do you know where I could pick this up?
 
A few ideas that have helped me in the past. (From cheap to expensive)

1. Only sleep in your bedroom. Even if for a little nap. If you sleep other places your body starts associating those places with sleep.
2. If you're having problems falling asleep, read a book.
3. Doing some sort of exercise for 30 everyday will help tire the body and desire deeper sleep, not to mention it reduces stress levels. (Never do it anytime close to sleep time, because it actually stimulates the body.)
4. In the morning, natural sunlight can help wake you up (not fall asleep for another hour or 2).
4. (My personal favorite although not generally recommended by doctors) A couple glasses of red wine before bed.
5. A new bed/mattress might help.

Best of luck, I know how much sleep/lack of it can affect the daily routine.
My wife and I are still trying to get back into a schedule after getting some new kittens.:eek:
 
I've been having the same problem too. I get a good 7-8 hours of sleep a night, but still have the hardest time getting up in the morning. I used to be able to work off of 5 hours of sleep and get up right when the alarm clock went off. Now I hit the snooze button three or four times before I even think of getting out of bed. I get tired a lot earlier in the day too, even though I'm not really doing much with my days.
 
Due to the nature of my job(truck driver) I can rarely maintain a regular sleep schedule for more than 2-3. I don't have too much choice about using my "bedroom" for other things than sleep either. Here are some of the things I do/did:

• I replaced the factory Kenworth mattress with a real one from Denver mattress. It is the same model as the one I have at home, just smaller and no box spring.

• I ONLY lay down on my bed when I want to sleep. I want my body to know when I'm trying to sleep. The rest of the time I'm in the sleeper I'm sitting on my bed.

• I never sleep sitting up or in the front seats. I don't want my body thinking it gets to sleep sitting up. This is mostly a safety thing so I don't fall asleep at the wheel though.

• Sometimes I have some very noisy equipment near me when I'm trying to sleep. I find that running my truck helps drown out the other noises, I don't like to do it due to the cost, but if it helps then it's worth it. I sleep much better with the truck off. You might try some ambient noise.

• I have found that listening to a TV show I am super familiar with helps me fall asleep. I have a VERY active mind and sometimes it can keep me from sleeping. Listening to a TV show gets me distracted from the task at hand (sleeping) just long enough to fall asleep. I often can't remember more than 5 minutes of a show, yet without a show I can toss and turn for hours. Listening to a show I'm not super familiar with only makes me watch it and not fall sleep.

• When I wake up I get out of bed immediately and get out of the truck. I find that the longer I lay in bed the harder it is to get my day started.
 
What worked for me, medication-wise, is Unison sleep tablets. Make sure the active ingredient is doxylamine succinate. Stuff is amazing.
 
Like someone mentioned exercise helps for me. I work at a camp (summers) and then at night 10ish i go to the driving range for about an hour or so and by the time i get home shower i'm half a sleep and once my head hits my pillow i'm out cold until 7:16 till my alarm rings :p
 
emt1 said:
What worked for me, medication-wise, is Unison sleep tablets. Make sure the active ingredient is doxylamine succinate. Stuff is amazing.
Click to expand...

If there's an underlying problem then that won't help.

spaceboots - Can you function normally during the day, once you've got going?
Do you exercise?
Does exercise make you feel much worse?
 
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