I. Can. Not. Sleep!!!!

dxdmma06 · 22-Feb-06, 06:59 AM

I'm a chronic insomniac and its been killing me ever since I can remember!!!! I need to get to sleep, the joke is I'm running on european time! Jet lag would probably benefit me, that's how bad it is!! I need to sleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep!!!!!!!! But I'm awake all night! Need advice. Help!

**midgetcop** · 22-Feb-06, 08:14 AM

I'm not sure what kind of advice you're going to get here. If you haven't already, you should see your doctor.

**Gooseneck** · 22-Feb-06, 11:19 AM

I've been suffering from a bout of insomnia now for awhile and its pissin me off. I took some Nyquil last night just so I could pass out and sleep.

**cursor** · 22-Feb-06, 12:53 PM

Do you drink alcohol?
Do you drink sodas?
Do you drink coffee?
Do you drink tea?
Do you exercise?
Do you watch TV for hours on end?

DanH84 · 22-Feb-06, 02:12 PM

Consider a move to europe.

Dins_PR · 22-Feb-06, 04:18 PM

get tanked every night, that'll get you out. Though I did read an article about a Vietnamese man who hasn't slept in 13 years. Seriously, 13 years, he takes it quite well instead of growing lethargic and depressed like many cronic insomniacs. He lives a very productive life with the extra hours of the day.

My advice to you is to look into lunesta, that new drug they are advertising on TV, I find I can't sleep cause my mind is too busy and I'm so busy thinking about things I dont' calm down and sleep. Lunesta is supposed to calm the busy mind so you can shut down and sleep.

dxdmma06 · 22-Feb-06, 05:08 PM

I don't drink alchohol, seriously
I don't drink soda
I don't have cable
coffee makes me sick
I should start drinking tea
I do exercise
I have seen a doctor

For a while, I was on Ambien, the strongest tranq on the market approved by the FDA, and even THAT didn't work. Honestly, it had no effect and that's about when everyone just gave up and said I might be a vampire.

The problem with moving to europe would be that once I get adjusted to the time, I'd have to move back to the US, and I don't know if I can afford going back and forth every week.

KayakJones · 22-Feb-06, 05:13 PM

Ambien is not a "tranq". Ask your doc to up your dose. If they won't, try Lunesta and a glass of warm milk.

SNPiccolo5 · 22-Feb-06, 05:50 PM

How much sunlight do you get during an average day? They have special lamps that help simulate sunlight and make you go to sleep earlier!

-Tim

Gearloose · 22-Feb-06, 07:05 PM

Just a shot, but have you tried Melatonin?

I took it for a while a few years back and found it quite helpful.

http://www.melatonin.com/melatonin-faq.php#SIDE

Martin A. · 22-Feb-06, 08:32 PM

Working in the airline business I deal with JetLag all the time.

Many people benefit from Melatonin. I can recommend the Melatonin sold by (can I say this??) GNC.

Melatonin is all natural and unlike sleeping medication, you will not become dependent of it.

Look it up on the internet and see how you can benefit from it.

Maxgain · 23-Feb-06, 08:45 AM

I have never seen any evidence to show melatonin to be benificial despite claims.
Sleep is a psychological process so a placebo effect would be very prominent

Klinger · 23-Feb-06, 12:44 PM

Look at your stress levels. Is work hard to leave at the office? Are you a chronic worrier?

I had this problem a while back and my doctor figured out I needed to be treated for depression. I wasn't sad or angry or outwardly down on myself, but my seratonin (sp?) levels were all out of whack, messing with my sleep cycle.

A low-level ant-depressant (5-10 mg) might do the trick in conjunction with addressing the underlying stressors in your life.

Martin A. · 23-Feb-06, 08:32 PM

Melatonin will help your body to differentiate between night and day, check it out and try it. It won't do you any harm. If it doesn't work for you than at least you've given it a shot.

Also try to get in to the sun during the day for at least 15 minutes and try to get into a routine before going to bed. Take a hot bath and/or drink some milk. If there's anything on your mind before bed time, write it down and forget about it until the next morning.

dxdmma06 · 24-Feb-06, 03:17 AM

All the medications I've been on

Ritalin
Dexostat
Imipermeme
Clonodine
Haladol (that was a horrible experience)
Paxil
Ambien
Trazadone
Diphenhydramine (really strong benadrill)
Melatonin

I'm 18 and have been med free for 3 years. After I was on 1000mg of Diphenhydramine (yes, around 8 benadrill a night) to get the drowsiness side-effect, and it sapped all the water out of my system making it so I couldn't do anything athletic, I quit. No more meds for me. I tried Melatonin and got great results for a about a month until my body built up a tolerance to it, and my docs uped the dose of Ambien once and wanted to up it one more time but I said no because I'd been there before. I've had a sleep study done at UCLA and they pretty much said "well, you're a chronic insomniac, good luck." (great thanx for nothing). This sucks, I've tried staying up all night to trick my body into sleeping the next night, but I even built up a tolerance to that too!!! I would stay up all night, struggle through the day and then try to sleep the next night, not be able to, and finally pass out the next morning. Aaarrrggggg!!!! I'm pretty much desperate to find some way to get to sleep.