Making Insomnia Useful

Yep. It’s back. Once again, I sit here every night, waiting to be sleepy. And, there’s nothing for it but to ride it out. Trust me, I’ve tried everything. I’ve even gone to a sleep specialist for it. It ain’t happenin’.

A man I once knew told me that he thought insomniacs secretly enjoyed losing sleep. And there is something to that. There’s something wonderful about sitting here awake, while the rest of the world (my half of it, anyway) sleeps around me, oblivious. The clarity of thought that sometimes comes with insomnia is addictive, in a way…I wouldn’t trade these hours to myself for anything. It’s when seven am rolls around that I deeply regret my problem. But during these hours I feel almost elated.

However. I’ve decided to make this bout with insomnia productive. Last night I made cookies. Tons of them. Snickerdoodles, chocolate chunk macadamia nut, and oatmeal. It occurred, round about 2:30, that it was probably not a good idea to make all kinds of yummy fattening treats and I wasn’t doing myself any favors. So. Anyone else do the insomnia thing? How do you get through it?

Maureen, sorry to hijack right from the outset, but have you tried melatonin? I’ve had pretty bad insomnia in the past where I simply couldn’t fall asleep and it’s really helped me. You need the sublingual melatonin (they sell it in 1 mg tablets at GNC), and I’d take 2-3 mg about 30 minutes before you want to fall asleep. The pills you just swallow don’t really work for me. Also, it’s not a sleeping pill, it just helps strengthen your brain’s natural 24 hour clock. So it may take a few nights to get you back on track, and you really can’t take it once it’s 3am – it’ll just throw your body further out of whack.

Lest you assume I’m just another yahoo, I’ll note that I’m a physicist, and normally highly skeptical of anything herbal or alternative. However, I read the original studies published in Science and it’s been tested rather rigorously. Moreover, they’ve done extensive tests with good results – people taking 50 and 500 mg doses had no negative effects.

It’s really helped me (and it’s great for jet lag) – I used to have terrible insomnia and now I almost never do. It helps just knowing it’s there – for me a big part of insomnia was the “performance anxiety” aspect. As soon as I start thinking about falling asleep, I’m up for the night.

I actually have. And, when I took it, I slept. For about 2 hours, and was back up, dammit. But thanks for the suggestion. :slight_smile: And I know you’re not just another yahoo. You’re a yahoo with an 18" … um… anyway.

I’ve been having this battle with insomnia since I was about 5 or 6. I just feel like I’m missing something if I sleep too long. I think naps are a waste. I’ve never really gotten more than 5 hours of sleep at a time.

You could start a fight club.

Same here, never slept from age 5 or 6. Lack of sleep messes with your body in so many ways. At age 35 my doctor gave me Ambien. 5mg was useless. 10 mg did the trick. For the last few years, I sleep every night unless I’m extra stressed out

Sleeping like a normal person during normal sleeping hours was just a dream. Now I live that dream. I’ve replaced it with a new dream… a really nice, good man. Maybe in another 30 years or so I’ll atttain that one.

Egad. That really sucks.

Well, then, to actually answer the original question: I’ve never been able to make insomnia useful. I’m always tired, so I never feel like doing anything. I usually end up watching TV or videos and feeling like a zombie.

I have no idea what you’re talking about.

I don’t really like insomnia, because I know I’m going to pay for it the next day, but I sure get a lot of reading done. At night, I don’t feel like I should be doing housework or homework; I feel like I should do something quiet and relaxing in the hopes it will soothe me to sleep. It feels good to rip though those pages. I wish I had the time to sit down for a few hours of uninterrupted reading during the day! Also, I love to read until I can barely keep my eyes open. It reminds me of when I was a kid, and I’d read two books a day all summer long by staying up until three in the morning.

Podkayne, that’s what I usually end up doing. Well. That and listening to MP3’s, switching through all 125 channels on my cable box, and playing yeti-lympics (thanks, dannyv). I actually enjoy being awake in the middle of the night. But damn, I hate 6am

I don’t know that I’m actually an insomniac, but I’m usually up till 5 or 6 am due a combination of work schedule and husband whose snores make cattle restless 40 miles away. On nights that I work, I generally don’t get a whole lot done, I just piddle around on the computer or read, and maybe straighten up the house a very little bit.

Nights like tonight, though, I tend to work on stuff. I’m making lap blankets for Christmas presents, and most of my cutting and sewing and designing gets done in the middle of the night. Sometimes I read, or watch tv, or work puzzles, or play with the dogs. One night I painted the bathroom.