Do you get a good night's sleep?

[ihearyou2]

I am unsure what exactly is causing it but somewhere around the switch to DST I stopped sleeping a full night. Most nights I wake up at about two and just sit around for a hour until I can fall back asleep. Recently I've moved from the 2-3 hour and now waken about five and nap/wake until I get out of bed. It's a bit frustrating but the flip side is I'm not really tired when I get up out of bed, it seems to be more of a nuisance then a lack of sleep. Is this something due to time change, getting older, stress..? I'm thinking it's a combination of all of them, maybe a solution is to go to bed very late so I force my body to sleep all the way through. It is definitely a rhthym that I've lost.

[Deleted]

When I wake up at night I turn on Coast to Coast AM. Usually puts to me sleep pretty quickly, unless it is a spooky topic like ghosts.

[Deleted]

not lately as I am sick, have a sick DH, and have a sick DS.  But normally I get a decent night's sleep if DS decides not to wake up in the middle of the night.

[Sam_2.0]

No, I don't sleep well. Mainly due to: 1) snoring DH, 2) snoring dog, 3) DD fussing sometimes, 4) being pregnant. Thankfully I've learned to sleep through the police sirens & helicopters But in our next house I have already told DH that the guest room is mine so I can get a good night's sleep.

[steph08]

I usually sleep pretty soundly.  1-2 nights a week, one of the dogs decides to puke at 1 a.m. or decides they have to pee at 3 a.m., so I get up and clean up or let them out. It really sucks when they wake up 5 minutes before my alarm - I wanted that 5 minutes!

[Tiny]

Have you increased your caffiene or alcohol consumption after dinner time?    That could be responsible for you waking up around 2 or 3 am....  Yeah, it sounds hokey that a hit of caffiene at 7:00pm could mess with your sleep hours later - but it does.

Did anything in your routine change?  More excercise/movement in the the evening or less?  Change in eating habits?


I usually wake up during the night but since I'm still kinda 3/4th asleep  I cycle back to sleep right away.   I don't ever wake up 'bright eye'd and bushy tailed' - wether it's in the middle of the night OR when the alarm clock rings.  I also cannot be trained to wake up automatically at a specific time (say 6:30am cause that's when the alarm goes off - even though the alarm has gone off at 6:30am for 10 years (and I'm out of bed by 6:45am) - if the alarm doesn't go off - I'll sleep til sometime between 9:00am and 10:00am depending on the silly time change thing.

I purchased an electric heated blanket this winter and it's really helped me get better sleep.  I think my thyroid's going... I'm cold often... more so than I feel I should be. 

Sleeping is one of my favorite hobbies!

[shanendoah]

I sleep fairly well. Old Man Howie usually gets me up once during the night, but I can do that on autopilot. The problem comes when Junebug decides she needs out in the middle of the night, because then Larry wants to go too, and if Howie hasn't woken me up yet, he needs to. I cannot sleep if the dogs aren't settled.

It's funny, if you're not feeling extra tired in the morning or during the day, I wouldn't worry about it much. I actually function much better for 16 hours on 6 hours of sleep. 6 hours of sleep is a much better time in my sleep cycle for me to wake up than 8 hours. But you don't want to be around me the final 2 hours I have to try and remain awake at the end of the day to have 6 hours of sleep.

I tend to use any time I'm in bed but not sleeping as "writing" time, as I work on stories in my head, trying to figure out the next step or the plot twist or whatever.

[movingforward]

In general I wake-up 2-3 times during the night.  Most times I go back to sleep so no biggie.  It is quite annoying though if I can't.  I have found that exercise definitely helps me sleep better.  I also don't drink coffee and rarely drink soft drinks so I have found that any type of caffeine past about 4PM will keep me up.  I once took an Excerdrin Migraine at 6PM and was bouncing off the walls until about 2AM.


ETA:  Every now and then (about twice a month) I take an over the counter sleep aid on a night when I have no commitments the next morning (generally a Friday or Saturday night) and will catch up on some sleep if needed.   I tried the melatonin like others have suggested and it made me feel weird, or perhaps I am just weird

[muttleynfelix]

Ummm... i have a 2 month old. Do you have to ask?      I don't sleep bad for having a 2 month old - usually "up" once a night and by up I mean roll over and stick the boob in her mouth and let her eat and then roll back over. I usually don't get out of bed. But some nights are worse.  I've been fighting a cold so that hasn't helped.  DH use to take the 10pm to 2am shift and give her a bottle if she woke up then. But I was stupid this weekend and told him to go ahead and sleep on the couch because it is easier on his back thinking it would just be for the weekend. Apparently not.  Now, I'm stuck with the baby all night long no matter how she sleeps. 

[giramomma]

I'm to the point where I think getting a good night's sleep is mythical.

As long as I can get 5 hours of sleep with one interruption, I'm good. I have me a high-needs baby that finds it prudent to have 4 teeth come in at the same time.

[Phoenix84]

I've always had a touche of insomnia.  It's gotten a bit better lately in that I'll usually manage about 5-6 hours a night.  Not ideal, but a heck of a lot better than the 2-3 I was getting.  At least I can function. 

But anyway, Once I go to sleep I usually don't have problems staying asleep.  My problem is getting to sleep in the first place. 

I started taking melentonin and avoiding naps during the day.  That helped. 

[steph08]

Mar 19, 2013 14:08:13 GMT -5 Ratchets said:

My only suggestion is not to worry about what time you go to bed, but make sure you go to bed tired.

I am the opposite - I always go to bed at the same time whether I am tired or not; whether I have to get up for work the next day or not, etc. I think it is good to have a schedule.

[Shooby]

I have suffered from insomnia for YEARS.  It is extremely annoying.  I have just accepted that it is what it is and some days i am going to feel drop dead tired but just keep going.    You can try all the advice from cutting caffeine and on and on and see if any of that helps.  Hopefully it is a temporary situation for you.

[alabamagal]

I think in general, the older you are, the harder it is to get a good night's sleep (not counting of times that you have babies in the house. I'm not sure where you fit in on the age scale.

When I hit 40 I started having a lot more sleep problems. Sometimes I would wake in the middle of the night and not be able to get back to sleep for 2-3 hours. I also felt like I could get up and run a marathon (I am not a runner in real life!). I went through a bad period, then got better, but now getting worse again (and approaching the big 50).

I started melatonin a couple weeks ago, and seem to be doing better.

[constanz22]

NO!  I don't sleep well, at all.  I go through major periods of insomnia.  Both not being able to fall asleep and not staying asleep, waking up a ton in the night.  Ugh, it sucks.  I've had insomnia for years, but it's gotten worse as I've gotten older and think I'm probably perimenopausal, which doesn't help.  My neurologist wants me to do a sleep study and said my throat structure looks like that of someone who would have sleep apnea.  First time anyone has suggested that, but, ok...

[Sum Dum Gai]

I haven't had a good night sleep since my surgery on the 1st.  It's been seriously kicking my ass.  Normally I'm a really deep sleeper that falls asleep quickly and stays that way all night.  I really don't function well without at least six solid hours of sleep a night.

[Shooby]

If i could sleep about 4 hours that would be AWESOME!

[ihearyou2]

I think it may also be sleep position because I wake up sometimes with a dry throat that never used to happen.

[Phoenix84]

Mar 19, 2013 15:26:41 GMT -5 ihearyou2 said:

I think it may also be sleep position because I wake up sometimes with a dry throat that never used to happen.

That happens to me too.  I don't wake up in the middle of the night, but almost every morning when I wake up my throat is totally dry.  It's annoying because sometimes I'll wake up like 2 hours before it's time to get up and have to get a drink of water. 

I could keep bottled water near my bed, but I'm afraid if I start drinking too much at night I'll need to get up again to use the bathroom. 

[Deleted]

Mar 19, 2013 15:26:41 GMT -5 ihearyou2 said:

I think it may also be sleep position because I wake up sometimes with a dry throat that never used to happen.

Use a humidifier at night. 

[973beachbum]

Mar 19, 2013 14:58:41 GMT -5 alabamagal said:

I think in general, the older you are, the harder it is to get a good night's sleep (not counting of times that you have babies in the house. I'm not sure where you fit in on the age scale.

When I hit 40 I started having a lot more sleep problems. Sometimes I would wake in the middle of the night and not be able to get back to sleep for 2-3 hours. I also felt like I could get up and run a marathon (I am not a runner in real life!). I went through a bad period, then got better, but now getting worse again (and approaching the big 50).

I started melatonin a couple weeks ago, and seem to be doing better.

I did the same thing when I hit 40.  And now that I am getting close to 50 it is getting worse.  Between the not sleeping, my eye sight going downhill and eating less but gaining weight, getting older sucks!  I guess it still beats the alternative but it still sucks!  

[Peace Of Mind]

LOL, 97!  Ain't that the truth!  I get a good night's sleep most nights ONLY because I don't have to get up to go to work or be anywhere.  I'm a night owl but as I get older I'm turning into an early morning owl because I don't feel like going to bed until 3:00 a.m. now.  I'm not sure what that's about but I guess that's when I get tired and my best sleep is in the mornings.  If I worked I'd probably be tired earlier because I'd be forced to get up earlier but sometimes I wonder if that would even change my pattern.  I feel best at night for some reason.  But I also love days.  So I just split them up.   

[Deleted]

Most nights I do, but this job is faster-paced than the last one (where I was bored) and sometimes my brain won't shut down, either when I'm trying to get to sleep, or when I wake up at 2 AM.  If I can't get back to sleep for an hour or so, I get my iPod and turn on my "Mellow music" playlist and listen through earphones so I dont' wake DH up.  It works most of the time although it's a heck of a lot slower than pills.

[mmhmm]

I sleep like a brick.  However, there is something that might help.  Blood sugar tends to drop at night and that can be the cause of the middle-of-the-night wake-ups.  Eating a little protein snack before sleep can help with that.  Peanut butter crackers, or something similar can make the difference.  It's something you might try.

[mmhmm]

Mar 19, 2013 17:18:39 GMT -5 Peace Of Mind said:

LOL, 97!  Ain't that the truth!  I get a good night's sleep most nights ONLY because I don't have to get up to go to work or be anywhere.  I'm a night owl but as I get older I'm turning into an early morning owl because I don't feel like going to bed until 3:00 a.m. now.  I'm not sure what that's about but I guess that's when I get tired and my best sleep is in the mornings.  If I worked I'd probably be tired earlier because I'd be forced to get up earlier but sometimes I wonder if that would even change my pattern.  I feel best at night for some reason.  But I also love days.  So I just split them up.   

I'm much the same, POM.  I worked nights for so many years it's natural to me to be awake at night and sleep during the daytime.  I've always been a night-owl.

[tcu2003]

I have a 9-month old who is teething and still night-nursing, so no. That said, he generally eats and goes right back to sleep, so I can't complain too much.

[Otto the Orange]

Sleep is for the weak.  Luckily clay people don't need sleep.

[InsertCoolName]

No I am getting about 3 hours a night. But I know why. I just don't know how long it will last.

Too scared to take anything, I need to be able to hear if the kids wake up.

Just like everything else in life, I will just deal with it and hope it doesn't last too long.

[ihearyou2]

Last night couldn't fall asleep, fell asleep about 12, wife woke me up coughing at 5 and was up the rest of the night. Got a great shower in there, though.

[Deleted]

IHOP, have you been getting enough sex lately?