:`( sleep deprivation effects?

Question

i tried searching for answers to how to recover from 5 yrs of sleep deprivation and found someone who has the same problem as me! i am experiencing horrible effects of fragmented speech and delayed reactions. although i can type okay, when it comes to writing more complex things, my memory sucks and i can't write at all. No one gave any good answers to the guy below, and I hope someone else out there may have something?

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=ArlHrEAf9_T0saSj5MHD2H4jzKIX?qid=1006030302620

So basically, how do i work on memory and speech now? am i able to undo the effects on my adolescent years? or is it impossible

i started not sleeping well in 5th grade. im in 11th now. i almost never exercise but when i do, i get tired easily and cant go on. i need at least an hour's worth of movement to help me sleep, but it's a catch-22 b/c i am too tired to move and my muscles get sore easily.

Answer 1

I have suffered from insomnia since 1993. Currently I am disabled because when I don't get sleep I have memory problems and I make stupid mistakes.

Read this and if it doesn't help they you can contact me via my Avatar for more advice:

The reasons for a sleeping disorder are many, but mostly they are due to stress. In my case it is Fybermaliga, a chronic disease with no real treatment. One of its major hallmarks is difficulty sleeping. I have seen hundreds and hundreds of doctors about this. I saw the VA Sleep Clinic twice. The head of the clinic told me that normal sleep assistance and sleep hygiene would not work for me. My case is way too advanced for that.

However, I do have some tips: possible Medications, and good sleep hygiene.
When you go to sleep make sure you do it in a dark room, a room that should only be used for sleeping, pull the TV out. Make sure it is a relaxing place to sleep as well. Hold off on any caffeine at least 6 hours before bed, and the exercise as well. One-half hour before you go to bed dim the lights a little, this will increase the body’s natural production of a sleep hormone called Melatoin. A glass of warm milk will do the same. When you go to bed compose yourself for sleep, relax and push out all thoughts of the day. If you cannot do this then think of something else, something that you like, even a sexual fantasy. If you don’t fall asleep in 20 minutes then get out of bed. Then do something quiet, like watch the TV on low volume or read, but don’t do this in the bedroom. After 20 minutes try to go back to sleep again. If it still doesn’t work then get up and do something quiet, and try it again in 20 minutes.

I run a fan all night in my bedroom. The mind gets used to the white noise, and it covers up the noise around you. Don’t put the fan on oscillate, where it blows over you and then elsewhere, that will distract you. If it gets too cold then point the fan into a corner. I have blocked my shade with a few posters, and made sure that as little light as possible enters my room. Put your alarm clock where you cannot see it, or just turn it away. If you track time then you will only get mad at yourself for not falling asleep. You might try playing some music, use a CD, not a radio. You want a constant level of music. Try something soothing like easy listening or classical. If classical music bores you then that would be the best to use.

If all this doesn’t work then you need more help. The sleep medications that you can buy over the counter are really a sham, and won’t do you any good. You can pick up Melatoin in the drug store or any major supermarket. It is fairly cheap and comes in 1 mg to 3 mg doses. Start at 1 mg a night and work your way up to a maximum of 4 mg, after that any more is a waste.

If you are still having trouble then a doctor visit is in order. Drugs like Ambien and Lunesta may not be what you want. They are good for a week or two, but they are habit forming. I don’t mean that you will get a craving; I mean that after taking these medications for a long time you will acquire a need to take the drug just to get to sleep. A good drug to take is called Trazodone. As prescription medications go this is a fairly cheap one. It is an antidepressant normally used for treating Cocaine treatment. It has a major side effect of causing sleepiness. It is a safe drug to take over the long term, it is not habit forming, and it has few other effects. It is a pretty poor antidepressant, but a good sleep aid. It is also available in a range of doses so your doctor can keep increasing it several times until you find a dose that works well for you. I took it for over 6 years. After that the ringing in my ears got to be a minor problem, so I switched to another drug. I am back on it, and have been for almost 2 years, and I have had no problems. There are stronger medications you can take, but if you need them, then you have a real problem: much more than just stress.
I recommend going to the Melatoin right away. It won’t give you any hangover and its effects will wear off after 4-6 hours, but by that time you should be sound asleep. Find a way to reduce your stress. Some things you just have to accept. Oddly enough it is the everyday worries that cause more stress. When you worry about doing something and just don’t get it done then that can create stress. You know that when you go to work you are going to face traffic. So get a book on CD or something that will let you use the time better; that way you will stress less about the traffic. Expect the idiots on the road to try and cut you off. They are out there and they are just hunting for guys like you to make angry. So don’t play their game. Remember that a traffic light is only 3 minutes long. I heard of a race once, it was held between an aggressive driver, and a law-abiding driver, over a 30-minute commute. The aggressive driver stacked up a dozen traffic violations and he only beat the law-abiding driver by only 8 minutes.

Sleep is very important to your body and mind. It is the time for the body to heal and for the mind to go over the things of the day. If you do not get enough sleep after a while (well over a week) it can cause hallucinations and later even result in death.

Tips for a Good Night's Sleep
Provided by: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
http://us.lrd.yahoo.com/_ylt=Am2PMUriLj07OYvu6mao5zTDtcUF/SIG=1179t4bbp/**http%3a//www.ninds.nih.gov/index.htm

Last Updated: July 1, 2001
Adapted from "When You Can't Sleep: The ABCs of ZZZs," by the National Sleep Foundation.
Set a schedule
Go to bed at a set time each night and get up at the same time each morning. Disrupting this schedule may lead to insomnia. "Sleeping in" on weekends also makes it harder to wake up early on Monday morning because it re-sets your sleep cycles for a later awakening.
Exercise
Try to exercise 20 to 30 minutes a day. Daily exercise often helps people sleep, although a workout soon before bedtime may interfere with sleep. For maximum benefit, try to get your exercise about 5 to 6 hours before going to bed.
Avoid caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol
Avoid drinks that contain caffeine, which acts as a stimulant and keeps people awake. Sources of caffeine include coffee, chocolate, soft drinks, non-herbal teas, diet drugs, and some pain relievers. Smokers tend to sleep very lightly and often wake up in the early morning due to nicotine withdrawal. Alcohol robs people of deep sleep and REM sleep and keeps them in the lighter stages of sleep.
Relax before bed
A warm bath, reading, or another relaxing routine can make it easier to fall sleep. You can train yourself to associate certain restful activities with sleep and make them part of your bedtime ritual.
Sleep until sunlight
If possible, wake up with the sun, or use very bright lights in the morning. Sunlight helps the body's internal biological clock reset itself each day. Sleep experts recommend exposure to an hour of morning sunlight for people having problems falling asleep.
Don't lie in bed awake
If you can't get to sleep, don't just lie in bed. Do something else, like reading, watching television, or listening to music, until you feel tired. The anxiety of being unable to fall asleep can actually contribute to insomnia.
Control your room temperature
Maintain a comfortable temperature in the bedroom. Extreme temperatures may disrupt sleep or prevent you from falling asleep.
See a doctor if your sleeping problem continues
If you have trouble falling asleep night after night, or if you always feel tired the next day, then you may have a sleep disorder and should see a physician. Your primary care physician may be able to help you; if not, you can probably find a sleep specialist at a major hospital near you. Most sleep disorders can be treated effectively, so you can finally get that good night's sleep you need.

Answer 2

The common effects = fatigue/excessive tiredness, difficulties thinking straight, problems balancing, tension, dark circles under the eyes, skin and whole body don't get the chance to fully revitalise in a night's sleep, hence making people tired, and often looking pale or washed out. I have rather bad sleep deprivation problems, and I have had all these problems above that I listed, and the following = extremely bad posture, back problems, muscle problems, mood swings at times, depression, anger, negative mindset, and the inability to focus during school classes and even during conversations. It's an absolute nightmare to have sleep deprivation, and it's a cycle that I've been trying to get out of for a very long time now, with very limited success.

Answer 3

Have you ever considered that you have sleep apnea? My friend was alway tired during the day and when I went on a trip with him his snoring was so bad that he would actually stop breathing for a few seconds. When I confronted him with it, he had no clue. He went to a sleep clinic and got a special machine and his sleep and energy level is so much better.

Also, you should be checked for asthma.

Answer 4

To discover what damage is done and to see if there is treatment you need to go in for diagnostic tests. A sleep test for sleep apnea, wanna make sure you don't stop breathing in the middle of the night plus to see brain activity. You will also need an EEG and a MRI of the brain. The EEG and MRI will rule out masses and the EEG will rule out irregular brain activity. Without these tests the doctors cannot have a clear picture to see if you have any kind of brain injury.

Answer 5

Invest in a nutritionist. He might suggest you to take some seratonin which will numb your nerves. Eat alot of carbs and junk to fuel your body and chock up on caffeine. Then exercise, when you come down from your caffeine high you will be asleep. Also benadryl works well and keeps the sniffles away.