Tell me how to conquer it!!!

[Disneylover79]

Tell me how to conquer INSOMNIA!!!!! Without meds!!!

 

[hanutedmansionmomma]

I know I sleep better when I get exercise...said the person up at 12:34 a.m.

 

[shortbun]

turn off the tv two hours prior to sleep. Write down all the things you are thinking about so you can give them up. relax beginning with your toes-flex then relax all the way up with each muscle group. self massage your face, you can not sleep until your face is relaxed. Go to bed and get up at the same time every day. no caffeine after 4pm. Don't eat less than two hours prior to desired sleep. Try melatonin, 3mg, 2 hours prior to sleep.

 

[DisneyScraps]

I find that I cant' think of problems just before bed or being creative. If I do that I am can be up all night.....look it's 3:57....I hear your pain!


Lisa

 

[JESW]

One of the things that has been helping dh & I lately is that we both use some lavender/chamomile lotion before bed - dh puts it on his legs and I put a small bit on my arms. Love the smell and it seems to calm us down to sleep.

I bought a package from Bed, Bath & Beyond for anti-stress and the lotion was inside - it is made by Earth Therapeutics.

My dh also had a problem with twitching arms & legs so I bought him some pills from Hyland with quinine and he hasn't had a problem since.

Hope you find something that works for you!

Jill

 

[Gigi22]

Get into a routine before you go to bed. Have the temperature in your bedroom slightly cool and make sure the room is dark (no lights or appliances shining in your face). I find it helps to eat a banana and have some warm milk about an hour before bed.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Tell me how to conquer INSOMNIA!!!!! Without meds!!!

You have to give yourself a bedtime routine and stick to it.

Eliminate caffeine from your diet.

Get up early everyday and do not allow yourself to sleep in.

If you are suffering from anxiety, see a counselor and get some coping skills in dealing with the excessive thoughts. That should probably be the first thing you do.

 

[Minnie_me]

I don't consider this to be "meds", since it is a supplement and not a drug. My life was absolutely changed by melatonin!!

I would fall asleep just fine, but then wake up between 1:00 and 4:00 a.m., and be unable to go back to sleep. After almost 15 months of this, I thought I was going to lose my mind!!! I didn't want to take any sort of drug......I'm a single parent and need to be able to be lucid if I get woken up in the night for any sort of reason.

So a friend suggested I try melatonin. I was highly skeptical. I took a 3mg tablet that night, back in October. I haven't had insomnia since!!

My younger DD is a sleepwalker, and I can still hear her if she gets up. I've been able to get up, take care of her and go RIGHT BACK TO SLEEP! Not groggy in the mornings, no side effects whatsoever.

My doctor told me that, as you get older, your body makes less melatonin, which helps to regulate your sleep cycle. Makes perfect sense to me!!!

Give it a try -- I hope it helps!

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Do you do shift work?

 

[LuvMickey36]

I second the melatonin. I take 2-3 of the 3mg (I think?? it is the higher mg available) I had a terrible time during my divorce. My ex was nice enough to break into the house a few times during the night and a few when no one was home. I was either not sleeping at all or sleeping about 2-4hrs and then up for the day by 2am. Once I moved, I was still not sleeping no matter what I tried. My employer (an md) gave me a weeks worth of Lunesta 3mg to try. They helped me fall asleep and stay asleep. I needed to "reset" my sleep schedule per say. Once the week was up, I started the melatonin for about a month or so. I now sleep pretty well. I occasionally still take the melatonin when needed. Good Luck!

 

[wvjules]

Tell me how to conquer INSOMNIA!!!!! Without meds!!!

Drink a glass of wine or have a beer before bed and take a warm bath with some soft music and lavender bath salts.

Actually, drink the wine in the tub.

 

[CKBear]

Thanks for this post OP, I have been having the same problems lately, I take melatonin 5mg a night but since I went back to school in January it hasn't seemed to have worked as well. I am going to try some of the other ideas listed on here and see if those combined with the melatonin are more effective.