Question:
I'm a 34 year old male from Sydney, Australia.
I have terrible sleeping habits. The worst thing
about them is that they are unpredictable.
Normally I will lie awake at night trying unsuccessfully
to sleep. I tend to think a lot, and I am constantly
thinking about something, e.g. pondering the best
strategy to get peacekeeping troops into Afghanistan
without turning them into "the enemy", and many, many
other things.
The one thing that seems to "cure" this is a medicine
called "Temazepam" aka "Temaze 10". I originally
thought this was a sleeping pill, but later was told it
was actually valium, which is actually a tranquilizer.
Basically I need to be knocked out like a wild animal!
There are some problems with this:
1. I can't take it more than 2 nights in a row in case it
becomes addictive.
2. With a warning like that I don't even want to take it
more than once/week anyway.
3. Trying to get a prescription for this medicine from the
doctors is like pulling hens teeth.
4. Because it is so valuable, I don't want to waste it.
5. It may only knock me out for 4 hours, instead of the
9.5 hours I normally naturally need.
Answer:
I hope it wasn't my crap advice because here comes crap part duo :)
You sound like a hard core night owl like me. Very, very tough to adjust a
sleep clock off as much as ours. You sound like your sleep hygiene is pretty
good but there are a few more things you can do. Bottom line is read the
chronotherapy section, it really works but requires a lot of effort and can
revert if you don't get up at the same time everyday no matter how tired. As
far as Temazepam, like most sleeping aids can actually make sleep worse and
cause depression. http://www.a1b2c3.com/drugs/benz10.htm but I know when you
are desperate
for sleep we grasp at anything. Some scary side effects.
copied the following from a HUGE site at
http://www.sleepfoundation.org/publications/sleepage.html
"DSPS patients may appear to be suffering from insomnia, especially if they
insist on trying to sleep at a "normal" bedtime. One distinguishing
characteristic is that in other types of insomnia, sleep problems include
that of maintaining sleep throughout the night. DSPS sufferers have no
problem sleeping...if they observe their own schedules. Another distinction
is that most chronic insomniacs experience a variability in their nighttime
experiences. This is not the case for DSPS patients. Treatment of DSPS
requires "resetting" the biological clock by using bright light exposure,
medication or chronotherapy. Chronotherapy involves delaying bedtime by
three hours progressively each day until the desired bedtime is reached.
Although difficult to accomplish, this approach can work if individuals can
alter their schedules daily and protect their sleep from interruptions.
Exposure to bright light early in the morning (six to nine a.m.) induces a
phase advance, leading to an earlier sleep onset that evening. However,
patients must avoid bright light exposure during the evening as this would
tend to delay sleep onset. Medication is another option: Hypnotics and
melatonin may help, but many questions remain about their duration of use
and the long-term safety of melatonin."
Lightbox works on some people also. Go's without saying that sleeping
pills/whatever depressant ain't goin work long term. Good luck. Mike
snipped from my older posts (sorry if this is old news)
"This may be a repeat for you (I delete all website messages about every
three days). Also, try www.google.com for a search on "insomnia" or "sleep
hygiene" or "delayed sleep phase syndrome" and you will find tons of info.
Combination of chronotherapy and a light box with RIGID adherence to sleep
hygiene may help you. Good luck, Mike
Sounds like classic Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome (DSPS) to me. You
should probably double check with your doctor although most docs have very
little knowledge about sleep disorders. Simple definition of DSPS is a
persons sleep clock (circadian rhythm) is too far from the standard 24 hour
world. Say 26 or 27 hours. One self test is to let your body dictate your
sleep pattern for a few days. Maybe take a couple days off and just go to
bed when you are sleepy. If you fall asleep at say 2 AM and wake up around
10/11 AM then it's probably DSPS. Takes more than a few days to try since
you are probably sleep deprived and you may sleep longer at first. Does that
make sense?
Then it gets tougher! DSPS is really difficult to adjust and then to keep at
some unnatural time. I had to quit my 9 to 5 job and work hours that fit my
particular sleep clock. That's the best way to handle it but if you have to
adjust to a "normal" workday you can try the following:
1) Wean yourself off of any sleeping pills. It's most likely a losing
battle. Since you have had trouble going to sleep your whole life, the pills
aren't going to work long term. They affect your sleep cycle and loosen
muscle tone (can worsen sleep apnea). I have read some articles that did say
DSPS could be hereditary.
2) Try http://www.helioshealth.com/sleep/sleep_01.html to start with but
read everything you can about insomnia. On the website, read "Nature of
Sleep" and especially check out "Sleep Hygiene". Another good site is
http://www.sleepdisorderchannel.com/insomnia/treatments.shtml In addition to
there suggestions; I don't have clocks where I can see them in the bedroom,
keep it a little cooler, and a warm bath before bed (not too hot) is great
for relaxing muscles. Try to darken the room and I run a plain old box type
fan to drown out noises (white noise). If your mind is racing get up and
write down everything that is bothering you, don't stay in bed as it
conditions your mind to wake up when you enter the bedroom.
3) Exercise can help you get to sleep faster and deeper but watch sleep
hygiene (no exercise within 3 hours of bedtime). Besides possibly losing
weight, exercise is a great stress reliever. Start off slow, even walking
helps.
4) There is a simple "Sleep Diary" on the above website (better ones if you
search) google but this one is a start. I'd fill one out for a few
weeks (not easy but be as accurate as you can) and then take it to your
doctor. Just to be on the safe side I would check with your doctor before
doing any of this stuff.
There are some other clock adjusters but results are mixed. One is
chronotherapy. You stay awake a few hours longer for seven days in a row.
Will reset your clock forward until you are getting sleepy at whatever time
you set it at. Apparently, it is more difficult to go backwards (no
kidding:). This worked for me but is tough to keep at the time you want. You
HAVE to get up at the same time everyday and helps to get some sunlight.
That brings up the next method, sunlight. Best is to get some sunlight when
you FIRST wake up. There are also light boxes that you stare at first thing
in the morning. This can work also but the boxes aren't cheap and you have
to do it everyday or your clock will go back to what is normal for you. I
did find a new light that looks like a desk lamp at
http://www.lighttherapyproducts.com/ My light box is older, bigger and more
expensive so this looks superior. I have never bought from this site so do
your homework. Maybe after seeing a doctor your insurance might pay for this
if you need it. The light did effect me, I sat in front of mine too long at
first and I got so hyper I thought I was going to explode.
I completely understand what you are going through. I am
having the same problems. In fact I tend to only get sleep
every other DAY (5am). I've tried everything and have found
nothing that works yet. I hope one of us can find a
solution.
You need to go to a stress management course or similar. I had those probs
back before I went to one in the 80s. Basically, they teach you how to stop
that by literally visualising a stop sign and yelling STOP in your mind and
then IMMEDIATELY start thinking about something serene that you love.
Possibly, if you love beaches, then picture a Hawaiian style beach with
no-one else around and gentle lapping waves over pure sea water, white sand
beaches etc.
In the end it becomes easy and when you hit the bed, you can instantly turn
off or redirect without the visualisation. In fact, in times of deep stress
about some urgent job or possibly a seriously ill relative or friend, when I
have to go to sleep or do something else, I can actually visualise the
problem as a golden mass floating in front of me. Because I am a Sci-Fi fan,
I also visualise the holodeck door off later Star Trek episodes and even
hear the door mechanisms as it opens. I can see myself push the mass behind
that door and then see and hear the door close and I feel great relief and
can do what I need to, from there. Only exceptions to this are the times
when I am VERY ill myself such as when I had pneumonia in both lungs. I have
a childhood fear of choking from being an asthmatic and I haven't overcome
that because I grew out of asthma before I learned to cope with that fear.
Those courses really help and so does serene very quiet music beside your
bed. Lets you concentrate on something else.
