Sleep problems

[SoCalSupper]

42 years old now-no sleep problems really-except if Surfline turns Orange!

Been doing pretty gnarly Pilates Reformer sessions twice a week with wifey-butt kicker-on those days im asleep by 9.

Excercise is a big key-right on about no news!

Reading knocks me out-im studying for a work related test and that knocks me out.

HM have you tried popping in the ear buds on your ipod and listening to that new age instrumental stuff-water falls-night jungle sounds etc..?  

Or C-Span

[maui wave warrior]

HM,
First I would suggest you try to get off the pill as sleep aides are definitely addicting and can cause problems with your natural body clock.

Second, In case you have not done so already, try google (why do I wake up at 3am each morning) also research (sleep disorders). You will find many explanations and possible solutions. Hopefully one will work.
 
Best of luck as sleep problems can be a real bitch to deal with. See you on the water
MWW

[PonoBill]

MWW is right on, or I should say he's saying the same thing I was gonna, which makes him right as far as I'm concerned. Sleep is one thing that has been studied to death, and there's no lack of advice available.

here: http://bit.ly/VMMHDa

and more to the point, the idea of requiring eight hours of uninterrupted sleep is somewhat mythical. The typical un-coerced sleep pattern (no need to sleep or wake at a specific time) is in two blocks, generally about four hours each. So in other words if you go to sleep at 11:00, wake at 3:00, fall back to sleep at 4:00 and wake at 8:00 then your sleep is normal and adequate.  The old saw about not achieving REM or slow-wave sleep without 6 hours of uninterrupted sleep is bullshit.

here's some recent guidelines arising from a huge sleep study that put people in a light-less bunker to establish a natural sleep rhythm:

1. Abandon the idea of going to bed for six to eight hours of uninterrupted sleep at night (unless this happens to work for you).

2. Get a feel for what your sleep cycle looks like. If you wake up before you need to, get up. This is probably a natural cycle end. You will make up for lost nighttime sleep with a nap(s).

3. Napping Guidelines:
Timing: Afternoon (3-5 p.m.) -- proven to provide more sleep efficiency, more slow-wave sleep, and less time to fall asleep.
    Duration: Optimally 10-20 minutes. People experience greater cognitive impairment due to sluggishness after a nap of 30 or more minutes than that due to sleep deprivation.  The full benefits of naps comes with habitual napping. Stick with it!

4. If possible, when you feel like reaching for that afternoon caffeine fix, take a nap.

[headmount]

So I googled as instructed and they had this 'cocktail' i will try tonight.  1/2 cup of OJ, 1/2 teaspoon of cream of tartar, 1/2 teaspoon of 'old' salt (Himilayan, Celtic or Sea)  mix and drink before bed.

We'll see.

[pdxmike]

So I googled as instructed and they had this 'cocktail' i will try tonight.  1/2 cup of OJ, 1/2 teaspoon of cream of tartar, 1/2 teaspoon of 'old' salt (Himilayan, Celtic or Sea)  mix and drink before bed.

We'll see.

Remember that the objective is to eventually wake up again.

[colas]

The typical un-coerced sleep pattern (no need to sleep or wake at a specific time) is in two blocks, generally about four hours each

Yes, I was trying to post the same thing, e.g: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-16964783

When I wake up in the night (which is very often, we sleep, well we try to sleep... with 4 cats :-), I just grab the phone and check the buoys, then read an ebook on it, it tires you quite fast.

Also, I found out that what works best is let your imagination run wild and undirected, this brings you to sleep surprisingly fast, whereas trying to relax will keep you wide awake. Seems that you want to ty to put your mind in "dream" mode, and drown the day worries in the random noise of dream-like wild thoughts. This way I am always able to sleep in planes or for quick naps.

[Chilly]

Be careful trying to find a treatment for any condition on the internet. I met a French model on the internet.  She sent me a picture.  

[headmount]

Whoa Chilly, that was freaky.  Hope that doesn't infect my dreams.  Glad I saw that in the morning.

Success!  Hallelujah.  The cocktail works!  I love it when things work. 

Turns out that 3 AM isn't some arbitrary time that plagued only me.  Many have the same time deal when they wake up, that is based on their bio clock and the function of their liver.  The 'cocktail' provides the balance of potassium, sodium and glucose that carries the liver over the 3 AM hump.

I woke at 4:30 to pee, happy with that but groggy enough to try for more... and got it... 6:15, a personal record in the last several years.

I'm pretty damn happy right now.

[Chilly]

Sorry about that. I shouldn’t have posted that on a sleep problem post. 
I’m glad the cocktail worked.

[blackeye]

If the mind is spinning, get up and write it down, then physically put the note away.  The mind often puts it away too.

Make sure your room is dark, dark, dark

Don't turn on an electronic screen of any kind.  Through boingboing.net I saw a story about how blue light from screens suppresses melatonin production so the "don't watch the news" thing above might be right but for a different reason.  I am going to try the orange goggles thing for my teenagers who can't stay off their screens:  http://kk.org/cooltools/archives/10178

[pguidry]

Hey Chilly, that model is hot.  Does she have a sister?

[PonoBill]

Leave it to you to focus on the article that included Himalayan Salt and an explanation based on acupuncture. Once a hippie, always a hippie. I did, of course, read that article too. If it helps, it helps, but really the most important things are:
a. Don't worry about it.
and 2. Don't take Ambien to "fix" it.

and by the way, the 3 AM thing is pretty arbitrary--at least as far as web presence goes. If you google "why do I wake up at <<insert your choice of times here>> you'll get a similar result. Lots of hits.

The serious sleep research indicates that sleep blocks are the primary pattern. Even people who sleep through the night show different brain patterns within those blocks, and different reactions to noises and other stimuli. It's easier to wake someone up in between the blocks. Probably has a lot to do with Grok not getting eaten by a nocturnal predator.

Just don't wake up and grab a club.

Incidentally, some french researchers concluded that the waking period between blocks was optimal for sex. Why am I not surprised that french researchers would come up with that, so to speak. Personally I've found attempts at sex in those intervening times is a good way to get an elbow in the ribs, but perhaps I'm doing it wrong.

[pdxmike]

Incidentally, some french researchers concluded that the waking period between blocks was optimal for sex. Why am I not surprised that french researchers would come up with that, so to speak. Personally I've found attempts at sex in those intervening times is a good way to get an elbow in the ribs, but perhaps I'm doing it wrong.

At least probably more optimal than during the blocks when you're asleep.

[pdxmike]

Incidentally, some french researchers concluded that the waking period between blocks was optimal for sex. Why am I not surprised that french researchers would come up with that, so to speak. Personally I've found attempts at sex in those intervening times is a good way to get an elbow in the ribs, but perhaps I'm doing it wrong.

I guess all the times in the past I've heard "in your dreams" just proves those women weren't French researchers. 

[UKRiverSurfers]

Four stage breathing!

When you wake... Breath..

Pause halfway between your inbreath and halfway betweenyour out breath!

That's it!

Not only will you fall back to sleep, but you may get enlightened as well