What are your go-to remedies when you can't sleep?

[SquidBaby]

Lately I've been having trouble sleeping for more than a few hour stretches. Tonight I slept 2 hours before waking up in a panic from having a flashback. So here I am trying to fall back asleep to no avail. I took some melatonin and I am hoping that will kick in pretty soon. However, there's times it doesn't work. My question for yall is this: what do you like to do when you can't fall back asleep? I prefer to stay in bed to at least rest my body but when melatonin doesn't cut it,what do you guys do? I have a busy day ahead of me and won't have much time to nap.

 

[Sideways]

I break out the guided relaxations. A good 30 minute session, to really take my mind off the fact that I can’t sleep, and get my body to relax properly again.

Sometimes whether or not we get back to sleep is a roll of the dice. If my head is at “but tomorrow I’ve got to…”, or the “there’s only x many hours till I have to get up…” - the anxiety about not being asleep - I gotta fair and square get my head out of that headspace, because it’s the quickest way to guaranteeing I won’t get back to sleep!

 

[beaneeboo]

I get my body up for a bit, like 20 minutes... make a warm tea or have a bowl of cereal or something...I think breaking away from the monotony of not being able to sleep helps as well as having something in my stomach.. seems to make me more sleepy.... sometimes it doesn't work, but often it does... just have to be patient..I hope you find something which works for you

Oh, just thought, I've got into making sage tea when I can't sleep. It's supposed to be very calming. You just get dried sage, put a tea spoon in boiling water for 5 mins, strain it, add a bit of honey for sweetness if you want... it's really nice and it may just be a placebo but works for me !

 

[arfie]

hello squid baby. welcome to the forum.

what do you like to do when you can't fall back asleep?

my broad stroke go-to is to find restful activity. my insomnia inducers are as variable as life and what qualifies as, "restful activity" is as variable as the stress inducers. for hyper-vigilance i am typically physically hyper, as well, and will rest easier if i go for a walk or mop a floor. if i am "merely" anxious about life events, working a jigsaw puzzle or crafting might fit the bill better. creativity allowed. restful activity is no replacement for restorative sleep, but it is better than the anxious lather i work myself into while tossing and turning.

for what it's worth
early into my recovery (70's/80's/90's) i suffered sleep deprivation levels of insomnia. i am happy to report that i can't remember the last time i suffered that problem. now i kinda miss all those extra hours in the day and often stay awake, just to enjoy the quiet alone time.

 

[Friday]

If I WAKE UP in a panic? I take a shower & strip my sheets (I have multiple sets of sheets on my bed, so I don’t have to remake it, just strip off the set full of adrenaline & fight/flight pheromones, and will wash/remake tomorrow). Total elapsed time? 30seconds to a couple of minutes max.

If I can’t GET to sleep, I go burn off some of the chemicals swirling around in my blood (exercise), take a shower, & then use my brain for a bit if my body is tired but my mind wants to run (reading, studying, music, language, whatever).

 

[SquidBaby]

I get my body up for a bit, like 20 minutes... make a warm tea or have a bowl of cereal or something...I think breaking away from the monotony of not being able to sleep helps as well as having something in my stomach.. seems to make me more sleepy.... sometimes it doesn't work, but often it does... just have to be patient..I hope you find something which works for you

Oh, just thought, I've got into making sage tea when I can't sleep. It's supposed to be very calming. You just get dried sage, put a tea spoon in boiling water for 5 mins, strain it, add a bit of honey for sweetness if you want... it's really nice and it may just be a placebo but works for me !

The tea idea sounds wonderful. I'll have to give that a try. I might have some sleepy time tea laying around somewhere. Thanks for the suggestions.

I break out the guided relaxations. A good 30 minute session, to really take my mind off the fact that I can’t sleep, and get my body to relax properly again.

Sometimes whether or not we get back to sleep is a roll of the dice. If my head is at “but tomorrow I’ve got to…”, or the “there’s only x many hours till I have to get up…” - the anxiety about not being asleep - I gotta fair and square get my head out of that headspace, because it’s the quickest way to guaranteeing I won’t get back to sleep!

This is something I would like to try. I will have to look into guided relaxations and see how that all works. Thanks for the suggestions

 

[KayW]

I get up and make a cup of tea and a slice of toast and then dit I. Bed to eat/ during them.

If I've had a dream that's on my mind, I sometimes write it down so I'm not laying awake thinking about it. But then use distraction - play a game or scroll through rubbish on my phone.

I always listen to sleep music when falling asleep too.

 

[Ocean147]

If I can't sleep, I'll read for like 10 mins or journal my thoughts. Also, maybe try Yellow Brick Cinema Deep Sleep on YouTube. They have long clips that address insomina (8 to 10 hours) and I sometimes put them on a loop to help if I'm having issues sleeping. Another trick that might help, try making a playlist of your favorite relaxing/sleeping music and set it to private on YouTube.

 

[FFnerd]

I second a lot of the same go-to's that others have shared : especially the tailoring how I address my insomnia to whatever's keeping me awake, or woke me up in the first place.
Also I've learned to be more mindful of whatever medication/supplements I've taken and how they affect my sleep/anxiety at night. That and different experiences/stressors throughout the day/week. It's helped me keep track of what keeps me up, or might trigger some sleeplessness - so I can be more proactive and try to nip the insomnia spell before it gets to be my bedtime.

 

[Freddyt]

The real thing - is if you can't get back to sleep. I find changing venue - if I lie in bed wishing for sleep for hours I end up more tired. So - grab a blanket pillow cushion whatever, find a movie or something - I use the Appendices disks from Lord of the Rings - no crazy loud noises - no excitement, hours of documentary, and settle in. What it does? Stops ruminating about not sleeping......and I can just get warm and bored (sort of) and usually get back to sleep for a bit.

So yeah, my number one rule is - don't worry about sleep. Because when you worry about sleep - you don't sleep. Cut that thinking off.

....and change what you say from "I only slept......" to "I got 40 minutes of sleep - yeah!!" It sounds crazy - but it takes the stress we create when we can't sleep and your head goes "I already got 4 hours sleep" instead of "why can't I sleep?, what time is it?, I need some sleep" (repeat over and over....) The difference is telling your brain you can sleep - not you cant sleep.......

 

[jsstjohn]

Lately I've been having trouble sleeping for more than a few hour stretches. Tonight I slept 2 hours before waking up in a panic from having a flashback. So here I am trying to fall back asleep to no avail. I took some melatonin and I am hoping that will kick in pretty soon. However, there's times it doesn't work. My question for yall is this: what do you like to do when you can't fall back asleep? I prefer to stay in bed to at least rest my body but when melatonin doesn't cut it,what do you guys do? I have a busy day ahead of me and won't have much time to nap.

Try Trazodone. Off label will put u to sleep. Google it, and Dr's giv them like tic tacs cuz they're harmless. Unless u wanna fall asleep so careful if ur n a "vivid dream" state as well. Take care & good luck.

 

[Sideways]

cuz they're harmless.

Factually incorrect.

Headaches, dizziness, vomiting.

It increases both serotonin and noradrenaline (aka norepinephrine).

Lots of folks here will be familiar with the delicate chemical dance involved in trying to normalise serotonin levels in the brain. Serotonin also influences sex drive, hunger, body temperature (feel like getting stuck with hot flushes and sweating profusely all the time, anyone!?), learning and memory. And if you bump it up high enough, hello Serotonin Syndrome. I can personally vouch for just how fun SS-psychosis is. That shit will put you in hospital without evening blinking!

Noradrenaline? Even more powerful. It’s the one that increases the heart rate (among a myriad of other effects). Which is obviously awesome for people with ptsd who have their sympathetic nervous system on speed dial - let’s throw in a few unnecessary panic attacks because we we’re in short supply round these parts! Noradrenaline is the hormone that keeps sending you into fight/flight episodes when you have ptsd, so it would be a brilliant idea to start messing with that and dropping traz ‘like tic-tacs’.

Next time, don’t Google, ask a doctor or pharmacist.