I’ve had mild insomnia pretty much my whole life. Or maybe I just didn’t need as much sleep as everyone else. As far back as I can remember I was the first one up in my family every morning. Never slept late, never. Not as a teenager, not in college. But OTOH I never had any trouble falling asleep.
For the last several years I averaged about six to six and a half hours of sleep each night. But starting about six months ago I began losing about an hour every night before I planned to wake up. For instance I’d go to sleep at midnight and set the alarm for 6:30 AM, but I’d wake up at 5:30 and be unable to fall asleep again. About half the time I just lay there and daydream and it’s no big deal. But the other half the time I get into a lousy mood and kind of just waste the time being pissed off about the whole thing. And there are occasional nights when I sleep from 11 PM to 4 AM and that really sucks. I remember reading that early morning awakening is a symptom of depression, but I don’t have any of the other symptoms.
I’m really reluctant to take medications of any kind. I’m not expecting any good to come from sleeping pills for two reasons. First, if I take the pill at midnight and need it to work at 5:30 AM that doesn’t seem likely. Also, I’ve always had the sense that these pills do more harm than good. Possible addiction, loss of REM sleep, no long term cure.
What experiences have dopers had with insomnia, sleeping pills, etc? Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Everyone’s reaction to sleeping pills is different of course, but I’ll tell you mine.
If I don’t take the pill at least 8 hours before I have to wake up, I’ll be extremely groggy.
Also, if you’re not having any trouble falling asleep, I don’t know if sleeping pills are going to help you STAY asleep.
Just a suggestion, but try going to bed earlier and see if you continue to wake up an hour earlier than you’re comfortable with. Body clocks do change sometimes.
Why not invest the five bucks and give them a try on a Saturday.
I use them when I travel on business. Strange bed, strange city, strange noises - some yahoo next door who sleeps with the TV on (even the sleeping pill didn’t help there, they moved me at 1:00am).
If you’re concerned about the side effects sleeping pills, why not try melatonin instead? I’ve had insomnia off and on for years (caused by a combo of depression, light sleeping, and apartment living) and have found it works terrifically. You take it about an hour before you’re ready for bed and in my experience helps you into a normal, natural ~8 hour sleep cycle. I’ve found it especially helpful with early waking. I feel alert and rested in the morning without that “heavy” feeling sleeping pills can give you.
The only caution I would offer is what doctor told me: you can’t take it regularly for long periods or else your brain will come to rely on the outside source of melatonin and quit making its own. If you use it irregularly as a sleep booster, that is, as a way of retraining your body to sleep, you should be fine. I take it when I’m feeling very stressed or cranky because both of those things disrupt my sleep and leave me more stressed and cranky the next morning. I started out taking it almost every night and now am down to once or twice a month at most because my body has “remembered” how to sleep.
It’s also excellent for resetting the ol’ body clock when travelling.
IANAD, but I have had some serious insomnia – either very disturbed sleep or waking up every hour and having a very difficult time falling back to sleep (until 10 minutes before th alarm goes off, of course). I did not want to take a hypnotic.
My psychiatrist put me on a very low dose (50 mg) of trazodone, which is an antidepressant that also regulates sleep cycles. Worked like a charm for me and I’m now getting adequate amounts of REM sleep. It made me a little groggy on waking for the first couple of days but that side effect went away.
Get a prescription for Ambien and give it a try on nights you’re feeling sleepless. If I take it at 10pm, I wake up really refreshed exactly eight hours later. Melatonin has never worked for me; my doctor said that many people are unable to absorb melatonin in its OTC form.
Benadryl will more likely leave you with morning grogginess than Ambien will. Ambien works very well.
If you don’t like taking medication, look into the special full spectrum lamps that are designed to re-set your circadian rhythm. I have to get up much earlier than I want to, and I turn on this light when my alarm clock goes off. It works really well. If you have a “sleep center” at your local university or hospital, you might want to make an appointment and get evaluated. That’s where I found out about the lamp. I think the brand I have is “Apollo.”