Sleep Problems – The World As I See It

Sleep . . . Or No Sleep

March 16, 2016

This was one of the prompts from last week’s writer’s workshop, and I wanted to write about it for the previous week, but I didn’t have the time, so I figured I would write about it today. The prompt was to write a post about sleep, and I have tons I would love to say on sleep because for a long time readers you will know that I don’t sleep much.

I will take just about anything so that I can sleep but even doing that some nights I only end up sleeping for two hours and then I am up rest of the night. On nights like that I usually just end up taking a nap at night and then tossing and turning rest of the night. If I don’t take anything for sleep, I can promise you that I just won’t sleep, and that can go for days and days.

There was one sleeping pill that I used to get that did work but my insurance refuses to pay for it, and I don’t have over two hundred dollars laying around to pay for it each month. I do take a muscle relaxer at night that knocks me out of a few hours, and that is pretty much all the sleep I get.

This has been going on for so long that I have run out of things to do or try. At this point and instead of getting better it is only getting worse. I have had sleep problems for as long as I can remember and the older I am not dealing with it as well as I used to. It gets even worse because no doctor can tell me what is wrong and why I have this problem. I have to wonder if it is because of the Multiple Sclerosis but then again I have never heard of anyone else having this problem.

I often have people ask me how I deal with not getting much sleep at night, and I tell them I don’t have a choice but to deal with it because nothing seems to change it. All I can do is chalk it up to my weird body and hope that it will get better at some point. I don’t know how long I can deal with everything that comes along with not sleeping and what not.

Do you have problems sleeping and if so what do you do to help you sleep?

Best Thinking. . .

January 8, 2014

I got the idea for this post from the blog Daily Post and the topic is:

When and where do you do your best thinking? In the bathroom? While running? Just before bed, or first thing in the morning? On the bus? Why do you think that is?

I chose this prompt because everyone has different places where they do their best thinking and I think it would be fun to find out where other people feel that they do their best thinking. I have to be honest this post took me awhile to write because I wasn’t really sure where I did my best thinking until I stopped and really thought about it.

After thinking about it I came to see that I do my best thinking at night when I am should be sleeping which is probably one of the many reasons that I can’t sleep. The minute I lay down my head starts going and I always get such great ideas for blog posts or other things I want/need to do.

I also find that for some reason I write the best blog posts while I am on my lunch break at work. I am sure that is because my brain is already in work mode so it is easy to switch from doing work and writing a blog post pretty easily. I am also lucky that my job doesn’t mind that I blog as long as all my work is done.

So that is when I do my best thinking. When and where do you do your best thinking?

My Sleeping Problems

October 7, 2013

Sleeping Problems

So I haven’t ever written about my problems with sleeping on this blog but I feel I need to write about it because there may be other people out there struggling with the same things. I also hope that someone out there may have some suggestions for things I have tried yet to try to help me sleep. I have always had problems sleeping but in the last few years it has gotten 100 times worse.

I first really started to notice my sleeping problems when I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis when I was 15 or 16. I have always had problems sleeping but I really started to notice them in high school and college. From the age of about 16 I was given prescriptions for Ambien and Sonata which are both sleeping pills. So at this point those two no longer work for me. When I was in my mid twenties they prescribed me Lunesta which for me was a wonder drug because for the first time I was able to sleep and I didn’t seem to get used to them.

I took those on and off for years. The insurance I know have through work refuses to pay for them and there is no way I can afford to pay over $200 a month for them so I haven’t been able to get them. Since I haven’t been able to get them I have had to start trying all the over the counter sleeping medications and I haven’t had much luck with them.

I have tried taking Melatonin and I will still take it sometimes but I have found that I have to take so much of it to get me to sleep that I end up with a huge headache the next morning. The only thing I have found that works is taking a combination if Tylenol PM & Ibuprofen PM along with a time released Melatonin pill to help me stay asleep longer because lately I manage to take enough stuff to fall asleep but I can’t stay asleep to save me life.

I have also stopped watching TV after work and I try not to use my cell phone once I am home so that I can try to wind down from the day but no matter what I try nothing seems to be working for me.

Does anyone know of anything else I can try to use for sleep? I will take any and all suggestions at this point!