i cannot sleep, what should i do?

Answer 1

The reasons for a sleeping disorder are many, but mostly they are due to stress. In my case it is Fibromyalgia, a chronic disease with no real treatment. One of its major hallmarks is difficulty sleeping. I have seen 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.

Trazadone is an excellent perscription sleep aid that can be used over a long period. If you have further questions you can contact me via my avatar.

Answer 2

Tips to Sleep Well
http://tips-to-sleep.blogspot.com/2006/09/tips-to-sleep-well.html

Answer 3

First of all you must know that insomnia (sleep disorder) is one of the commonest disease in the world. It has its several origins.
Sleep is affected by timing, place, surroundings. It decreases with age and you level of physical activities. Than there is a range for sleep duration. For person aged 50 with moderate activities,the normal range can be between 5 - 9 hours. I myself is victim of it
Few tips to induce sleep
Avoid sleep in in day
Go to sleep at fixed time and bed (even if you do not feel sleepy)
Have you meal at least 2 hours before.
Read some book (little boring one!) or listen to some soothing music but never watch TV
Wear loose comfortable clothes
Avoid taking medicine because either they will make you addict or their dose requirement will increase progressively. Moreover, you get a hang over sort in the morning. For this reason, use of alcohol to induce sleep is not advisable
Best sleep inducing agent is sex but use of sex for this purpose is also little unfair. Once a while it is OK.
Do some physical exercise regularly. It can be morning walk, jogging, swimming, some outdoor game. Regular means it should be vigorous (to your age) at least 30 minutes per day and at least 5 -6 days per week.
Good luck and good sleep

Answer 4

Routine is key. You may suffer from insomnia, it is a common sleeping disorder although there is no official diagnosis of it due to being a mental illness and having a massive variety of symptons. As mentionned, routine is the key factor. Try going to bed the same time each night, minimize fluids an hour before going to bed and make sure all white noise is gone. For example, make sure your television is switched off and not on standby as a TV on standby emits a very high frequency noise which CAN keep you awake. Also, try asking yourself a philosophical question in your head, philosophy is a great subject to have in mind when trying to sleep and you slowly drift into sleep. I have insomnia myself as I use all of the above, I still have issues, but they are majorly reduced.

Answer 5

Honestly, (medically proven) a glass of warm milk will help relax you. Then make sure you are very comfortable in bed. Then, think of things that relax you even further, or think of things that actually bore you. If this doesn't work, then get up out of bed and do something. When you start to feel tired, repeat what I said above (except the warm milk) and try again. If this persists for more than a week or two, I would suggest going to a doctor or trying melatonin. It's more of a natural remedy to help you sleep. (or if you are of age, a nice glass of wine does wonders). good luck.

Answer 6

I don't sleep well either. Especially at the moment becasue I'm REALLY STRESSED!!!
But, I have tried a sleep tea which has passionflower & chamomile in it which seems to help. Have some about an hour before you go to bed.
The only down side I have found is that I wake up feeling tired in the morning even though I've slept.

Answer 7

Wake up early and exercise during the day. Stay active and don't sleep during the day. You will be tired by night time and have a better sleep.

Answer 8

Try establishing a relaxing routine to follow every night. No TV, maybe some relaxing music, a nice cup of decaf tea, a hot bath, try meditation (I know it sounds kooky, but it really does help) Don't exercise in the evening closer to bed time, it gets you keyed up. Good luck to you, there is nothing worse than living life exhausted.

Answer 9

Try listening to some soothing music before you go to sleep, or read a book. I always do those when I know I should be asleep, but not tired.

Answer 10

I urge you to buy the following & use them:

L-tryptophan - 500 mg. 1 hr before bed.

Vitamin B-6 ( pyridoxine) 50 mg. along with the tryptophan

melatonin 1mg or 2 mg. l hr before bedtime

Valerian extract capsules - 2 capsules l hr before bed


If you use all of these natural & safe remedies you will feel nice & drowsy & sleep quite good. they really work. so let me hear back from you.

So what are you waiting for?????

Best wishes

Answer 11

Melatonin is a natural drug, and it works quite well. Also, try taking a hot soothing bath before bed time and make sure your bedroom is cool and comfortable. Don't exercise too close to bedtime and don't watch t.v in bed, if none of these things work, see your doctor