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What helps you sleep?

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Digz

MyPTSD Pro
Just wondering what people have found works to help them sleep when going through a triggered time?

My sleep is better than it was a couple of weeks ago. At the moment I'm usually going to sleep okay now, but waking most mornings by 4:00-4:30am. I mean, I'm getting heaps of work done in a day, but just wondering if anybody has got any tips I might try? I generally do soft-belly breathing etc to get to sleep, but find that doesn't help when I wake in the early hours. I do have some medication that helps with sleep, but all these medications tend to knock me out for way too long no matter what I take (I don't have much of a tolerance for any drugs, really).
 
Different breathing patterns, different hours.

Getting up, doing low key activities, waiting till hyper head decides to drop back asleep, not fighting it from that point.

Doing art in the wee hours if sleep is not coming. Just so I disturb my usual hypervig ;) Art is very Air's clear, stop with that combat readiness, go the f*ck to sleep ;), to me.

Showeers or baths. Usually makes me sleepier and I'd rather sleep in or around a bed, not in water :eek: , so move it, sleep like a baby.

Changing scents & lighting around. Softer lights do wonders in trusting environs to not pull shenanigans to my sense of things.

Aiming for chill, not for sleep. If I aim for sleep it's guaranteed awake.

Some times exercise, but super lazy style, in which flopping down is an aim. ;) Might find the flop is comfy, grab a coat or two as pillow / blankie respectively, and sleep till noon.

Muuusic.

Plenty more things but I still took the Q as indoors sleeping, not outdoors or on the move naps tips. They'd differ.
 
Sorry this is happening to you...waking like that is just so awful. I have to do something to calm myself like breathing exercises....5.5 seconds in and out through your nose to maintain as the base...7 seconds out to relax or 7 seconds or inhalation follo9wed by the base of 5.5 exaltations. Shower is really good...then it's all about distraction. Realizing that I am stronger than my thoughts, I can choose to ignore some...just let the bad shit go by. TV, movies, music computer...after I relax a little.

I hope you find something that works for you.
 
I generally do soft-belly breathing etc to get to sleep, but find that doesn't help when I wake in the early hours. I do have some medication that helps with sleep, but all these medications tend to knock me out for way too long no matter what I take (I don't have much of a tolerance for any drugs, really).

Oh wow. I feel for you! I can fall asleep fine and sleep rather deeply, but almost always wake early. Often that's because my cat doesn't think I should be asleep, but even when she doesn't wake me, I am up. Probably related to pain.

Only thing that helps me sleep a bit longer is an OTC painkiller. But I have the same issue in that I feel very drugged - it takes me an hour or more to get going in the morning after I've taken it.

Others have given you some good suggestions to try - hope maybe they can help. Once I'm awake, I just can't get back to sleep anymore. I'm wondering how you are feeling when you wake up...anxious...wide awake...?
 
The quality of sleep I get each night is influenced by a lot of things: how well I exercised and ate that day being big ones (I don't drink, which obviously helps).

I recently got over my traumatic fear of guided relaxations, and have been experimenting with those. They have been a huge game changer for my sleep. Some? Just don't work for me. Others? Often the left of field surprising ones, like the yoga nidra ones? Amazing sleep those nights.

That's a half hour investment I make at the start of the night, which pays off in those early hours when I wake up continuously. I get back to sleep much easier.
 
I listen to a meditation called transforming fear every night. I take melatonin 10mg. My physicians know and it does not interact with anything else. A hot bath helps.

Plus if I may add my fiancee
 
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sorry that sleep is such an ordeal for you. I have struggled with sleep my whole life and only now finding things that really do help after my experimenting. my go-to things are:

A weighted blanket can be a bit pricey but I have found it to be so worth it. By far helped more than anything else. I move around less in my sleep, it is really comforting, feels like a massive nice cuddle.

sleeping with a very dim night light. a salt lamp is my preference as the glow is very soft. it helps when I wake up in the night for me to quickly work out where I am after a nightmare.

sleep meditations or hypnosis. I use youtube there are thousands. sometimes I go for the sleep music other times spoke guided meditations.

Hope you manage to get some decent nights.
 
Aiming for chill, not for sleep. If I aim for sleep it's guaranteed awake.
Me too. I must be "watching tv" "reading a book" (without my reading glasses half the time) .. not actively "trying to go to sleep". That's just a disaster. I like to pretend through the night, that my disordered sleep is completely unrelated to my waking life. What a mess. Nightmares most every night. Much sympathy to the insomniacs!
 
Nothing short of utter exhaustion... both mental and physical. Only one or the other, or neither, and I’ll still be up for 36-72 hours.
 
Just wondering what people have found works to help them sleep when going through a triggered time?

My sleep is better than it was a couple of weeks ago. At the moment I'm usually going to sleep okay now, but waking most mornings by 4:00-4:30am. I mean, I'm getting heaps of work done in a day, but just wondering if anybody has got any tips I might try? I generally do soft-belly breathing etc to get to sleep, but find that doesn't help when I wake in the early hours. I do have some medication that helps with sleep, but all these medications tend to knock me out for way too long no matter what I take (I don't have much of a tolerance for any drugs, really).
With my therapist's and general practitioner doctor, I've started taking taking 3 mg Melatonin and 25 mg 5-HTP an hour before bedtime. Previously, I'd had vivid dreams or nightmares every night, often waking up screaming and exhausted at about 4 AM and needing to sleep to recover from that. Since the 5-HTP comes in 50 mg capsules and I woke up groggy the next morning, I learned to open the capsules onto the downward crease of a folded sheet of paper to divide the innards with a knife. So far, so good. The situation may change for me, but this is what I have presently. Cheers!
 
With my therapist's and general practitioner doctor, I've started taking taking 3 mg Melatonin and 25 mg 5-HTP an hour before bedtime. Previously, I'd had vivid dreams or nightmares every night, often waking up screaming and exhausted at about 4 AM and needing to sleep to recover from that. Since the 5-HTP comes in 50 mg capsules and I woke up groggy the next morning, I learned to open the capsules onto the downward crease of a folded sheet of paper to divide the innards with a knife. So far, so good. The situation may change for me, but this is what I have presently. Cheers!
I've just started taking Melatonin too, suggested by my T. It is really good. Only problem is it is not sold commercially here, so have to order it in internationally.
 
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