Sleeping Issues

[kbuska]

So I've been having a bit of Insomnia lately. Going to bed at 10:00 waking up at 1:00 and not being able to go back to sleep till 6:00 or so. Needless to say, I've been grumpy and tired for a while. Not that you all are my shrink but I think my Insomnia is caused by stress of unemployment and all the "stuff" that accompanies such life altering events.

I started using my CPAP machine again and wow what a difference a couple days on it has made. I feel much less tired then usual and I don't feel like I have to take a nap mid-day. I'm still grumpy but I think thats due to the fact that the kids aren't back in school yet and this holiday break seems to be lasting FOREVER!!! GO BACK TO SCHOOL ALREADY!!!

So if you have a CPAP and you aren't using it, I recommend starting to use it again.

I hope you all had a great holiday season and I will you all the best in the New Year.

Cheers,
Ken

 

[Healinya]

Lol, I saw the title 'sleeping issues' and I thought 'ya need a cpap machine'... Those things are life changers...

 

[Relle]

Dh has one and doesn't ever not use it.

 

[Maythorn]

What is a CPAP machine? I have insomnia and take pills for it. I try not to but if I've been laying there trying to sleep for more than 2 hours I give in and take them.

 

[ChrissyB]

I'd like to know what this thing is also?
As for insomnia, ugh don't get me started. Every night...awake all night. My ideal time to sleep is late afternoon...that's when my body wants to rest, of course that is not at all practical.

 

[Deda]

Try living at my house. I've had a house full of rowdy young men, no less than 4 and as many as 7 each night since 12/14. The last one left this morning.

They don't sleep at night - they drink beer, play cards, watch movies, pretend to be elephants. Of course they sleep all day.

I can't wait to get back into a normal sleep rhythm. I'm going to use SleepyTime tea, warm baths and a white noise app.

 

[Healinya]

Cpap stands for continuous positive airway pressure. Sleep apnea is one of the most underdiagnosed conditions in the US.. its when your heart stops while sleep (different factors cause it, from genetics, to obstrustion in he nose, to being overweight... Not everyone will need the machine - there's a 'magic number' ) When your sleeping and stop breathing, it interrupts the REM cycle.. so u never feel rested.... Basically, anyone who snores, or if u feel like you could fall asleep at a stop light most likely has it... The machine keeps the airflow so you don't break REM cycles...

Insomnia isn't the same thing (I don think).... but if your insurance covers the machine you should get tested... I can't explain how amazing it is to understand what a restful night sleep feels like after a lifetime of feeling more tired when I wake up than went to bed.

 

[carebear]

CPAP is a machine that helps people with sleep apnea breathe at night.

sleep apnea is pauses in breathing at night (loooooong pauses) or very shallow breathing. often related to weak or fatty tissue in the throat (yes, weight loss helps a lot of people) or enlarged adenoids, but there are other reasons too.

you might have it and not even know - tho snoring is a huge symptom (related causes) and the pauses are noticeable if someone is listening. But one of the most obvious symptoms are waking often during the night, and waking up exhausted.

 

[SoapyD]

My nephew was diagnosed with sleep apnea a year ago, got a cpap machine, and it literally changed his life.

He has a young wife and two little kiddos, a steady job, good house, life was grand, and he was feeling suicidal. Turns out he wasn't depressed. He's been functioning with serious sleep deprivation for so long it was making him half nuts, and he thought it was normal.

Fast forward a year, and he's lost weight, quit smoking, and is a very happy man. He attributes the huge change in his outlook and health to his machine.

 

[kbuska]

I don't think its because the heart stops but because either your air closes because of a few reasons or your brain simply doesn't send signals to breath. I think they call it obstructive and central or something like that.

Anyways it constantly puts pressure in your airways to keep everything open. I'm not sure how it helps if your brain just forgets to breath though.

-Ken

 

[ChrissyB]

Very interesting.
I don't think I have that (apnea), my mind just doesn't let me sleep, it's at night that my mind goes a million miles a minute. I really need to learn and engage some (perhaps) meditation techniques, and I'm going to look for the sleepy time tea that Deda mentioned, I'm pretty sure I have seen it somewhere.

 

[kbuska]

Have you tried Melatonin?

 

[carebear]

sleepytime tea is just celestial seasonings, I think.

we have relaxation aps on the ipods, which my son finds helpful.

 

[kbuska]

I recommend heavy muscle relaxers

 

[ChrissyB]

LOL @ Kbuska
I'm sure they would work great but I don't think I'd like to deal with the drug hangover the next day. I suffer from really bad allergies and when it gets really bad I have to use phenergan...wow that stuff knocks me out but for the whole next day I feel like a walking dead zombie that's been hit by a train, it's like I am in a fog and can't see through it, it's really not pleasant!
I think I'll try to tea first!!

 

[kbuska]

nice.. I take that for nausea from Migraines and its nice!

I hope the tea works well for you. I take Melatonin every night and will often give it to my kids if they are having trouble sleeping.

-Ken

 

[Relle]

Don't forget its not only the people with CPAPS who haven't got any sleep for years, what about the partners :roll: . Thats how dh found out he needed to be tested with me nagging about the noise.

 

[kbuska]

Very True... now my DW says she has to get used to the machine instead of my snoring.. lol

 

[Soapy Gurl]

ChrissyB - you might want to try Ambien (prescription only). It basically knocks you out and is for people who have trouble falling asleep, not staying asleep. I have taken it for years, no hang over issues. It lasts 5 hours max. I unfortunately have Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome. My body is just on a different clock. Not really treatable, I wasn't happy when the Dr told me that!

 

[ChrissyB]

Thanks Soapy Gurl, I will ask the dr about it next time I go. I am usually loathe to take a pill if I dont need to, but some sleep would be really really nice Lol