Sleep Products that I use

["Melyssa K" Kennedy]

Same thing for me. I ignored my insomnia because it was just a part of my life, until I stopped sleeping altogether. The hallucinations after several days of no sleep...not recommended. Don't let it get that far!

Melyssa, I did the same thing when I was a kid. When I was 4, my mom didn't know what to do with me because I kept getting out of bed so she let me watch Twin Peaks with her. Probably explains a lot.

Oh, Ambien...I took it twice. Made crazy phone calls and tried walking out of my dorm both times. I have no memory of any of it. I take Lyrica for fibromyalgia and a muscle relaxant every night for 8 or 9 years and I've slept pretty regularly every since.

That's so cool that your mom let you stay up!
Insomnia isn't my problem, that's when you fall asleep but can't stay asleep. Mine is sleep on-set disorder. Can't fall asleep.
Yeah, Ambien's no joke. First time I took it, I ended up slowly kicking my feet under the covers because I thought I was swimming in water and I would forget some IM chat conversations I had because, like a dumbass, I didn't go to bed RIGHT after taking it. To this day, I see my TV and computer screen in 3D when it hits me.

[Llamas]

That's so cool that your mom let you stay up!
Insomnia isn't my problem, that's when you fall asleep but can't stay asleep. Mine is sleep on-set disorder. Can't fall asleep.
Yeah, Ambien's no joke. First time I took it, I ended up slowly kicking my feet under the covers because I thought I was swimming in water and I would forget some IM chat conversations I had because, like a dumbass, I didn't go to bed RIGHT after taking it. To this day, I see my TV and computer screen in 3D when it hits me.

Nah, another name for sleep onset disorder is initial insomnia. I have (more in the past than now, but still) that disorder, as well. In college, I'd have zero problem staying awake for 40+ hours, and then sleeping for 19. Nowadays, I still have a whacked out sleep "schedule", but I teach only afternoons and evenings so it works out. But if I ever have to wake up in the morning, my insomnia kicks in a bit - I have a difficult time falling asleep if I'm not dead exhausted and ready for it, and then the stress of having to wake up and the time ticking down keeps me awake even more, until when I do finally pass out, it's nearly impossible to wake up. It was a SERIOUS problem in college. I went to three doctors, and they all threw sleeping pills at me. One even nervously suggested I go get my eyes checked and go to the mental health clinic. Seriously, that woman pissed me off. She clearly didn't know what was wrong with me, so she just tried to dump me off on someone else. My vision was fine and I had no signs of depression or anything, plus I've had the disorder since I was 13 or even younger. Finally, I found out about Disability Services and went there. They knew about my condition and I was SO RELIEVED because most people treated me like a loser who was just fucking lazy and didn't want to get out of bed in the morning. I actually started to believe them until I went to DS.

I made some changes in my lifestyle, though, and now it's not nearly so bad - even when I do have to wake up in the mornings. I can actually manage to get 5-6 hours of sleep in those cases (depending on how early... if I have to get up before 9am, I have to take a Melatonin to get to sleep in time). But finding the right apartment, making sure I don't do any work or computer or anything like that in bed (my bedroom is now only for sleeping and I do all my work and computer surfing and everything else in the living room), some small changes to my diet, getting more exercise, drinking a lot more water, massively cutting down coffee... these all played roles in helping me. Melissa, I definitely suggest first going to the doctor if you haven't already. If it doesn't turn out to be a symptom of something medical, then I suggest finding some disability services center where you live. They helped me a lot. And if you need any advice on dealing with initial insomnia, you can message me. I know how hard it is to deal with, and the way people treat you, etc. I don't think there are any known ways to overcome it completely, but there are ways to improve it and make it easier to deal with (besides those fucking sleeping pills...)

["Melyssa K" Kennedy]

I know how that is. My doctor told me that my type of sleeping problem isn't looked into my a sleep study, just instances where people can't stay asleep. The doctors like to say, oh, just change your habits. It's not that simple, bitch! >,<
By the way, I don't mean to nick-pick, but my name is spelled with a y, not an i. I'm not mad or anything, I just hate when my name gets misspelled. I'm sure Dexter goes through the same thing when people think his name is Brian. That's something I thought of when I first learned his real name. :P

[Llamas]

I know how that is. My doctor told me that my type of sleeping problem isn't looked into my a sleep study, just instances where people can't stay asleep. The doctors like to say, oh, just change your habits. It's not that simple, bitch! >,<

Yeah, my doctors didn't tell me about sleep studies, either. They had no fucking clue about the condition. But I found out at disability services that there are TOTALLY studies for this. One day I'd love to participate in a sleep study for this, but I don't have the time or money for that right now, and I'm not sure they exist in Slovenia...

And yes, doctors always just tell you to change your habits. So do friends! It was always like, "Have you tried reading/going for a run/drinking warm milk/etc etc before bed?" I'd have to fight the urge to not be mad at my friends because they just didn't know, but doctors... ugh. No, I've had this problem for over 10 years and I've NEVER TRIED READING BEFORE BED!!! Genius!! :P But I can tell you that lifestyle changes *are* a part of it... they're just not the only thing. They basically make it easier to work on things, but again, there's no actual cure for the condition, and the lifestyle changes are totally trial and error. What works for someone doesn't work for someone else. I messed around with tons of changes (in addition to other stuff, of course) for years until I found some things that actually helped. But there is hope of improvement, and that's what's important I always felt so deflated and like I was gonna have to deal with this so badly for the rest of my life until I went to DS. I hope I'll improve even more over the years, but we'll see.

By the way, I don't mean to nick-pick, but my name is spelled with a y, not an i. I'm not mad or anything, I just hate when my name gets misspelled. I'm sure Dexter goes through the same thing when people think his name is Brian. That's something I thought of when I first learned his real name. :P

Sorry, I noticed that after I posted, but I couldn't be arsed to edit

["Melyssa K" Kennedy]

Haha, I meant to say "nit-pick," not "nick-pick." I've been watching too much CSI.

I agree with you. I try changing some habits, like not lying horizontal or having my light off at night unless I'm trying to go to sleep. This helps slightly, but I still rely on sleeping pills.

[personal_loans_1]

Few months ago I discovered f.lux http://stereopsis.com/flux/ some of you might find it useful so check it out. Might feel weird at the beginning but it passes.

Even if your sleep won't improve spectacularly, your eyes will be thankful.

[Llamas]

Haha, I meant to say "nit-pick," not "nick-pick." I've been watching too much CSI.

I agree with you. I try changing some habits, like not lying horizontal or having my light off at night unless I'm trying to go to sleep. This helps slightly, but I still rely on sleeping pills.

Not lying horizontally? How do you lie when sleeping? And the light thing is HUGE. Keep experimenting. It took me YEARS before I wasn't dependent on sleeping pills, but it can get better! And research should be improving... but doctors are idiots about this kind of stuff. Ignore them

["Melyssa K" Kennedy]

Not lying horizontally? How do you lie when sleeping? And the light thing is HUGE. Keep experimenting. It took me YEARS before I wasn't dependent on sleeping pills, but it can get better! And research should be improving... but doctors are idiots about this kind of stuff. Ignore them

I mean when I'm doing homework, I lie kind of diagonal, with my head above the rest of my body. I only lie down completely with my head on my pillow when I'm ready for sleep so my brain associates being in that position with sleeping.

[Llamas]

I mean when I'm doing homework, I lie kind of diagonal, with my head above the rest of my body. I only lie down completely with my head on my pillow when I'm ready for sleep so my brain associates being in that position with sleeping.

Oh, yeah, that's also really huge. If you do homework in bed, you shouldn't. You should only use your bed for sleeping (or sex of course) so that your bed becomes associated with sleep/positivity/comfort. Even better if you can do your homework in another room and limit your room for sleeping only, but not everyone has that option. I used to use my computer in bed every day, slept with the computer a meter or two away. Now my computer is permanently banned to the living room. At first, it was hard to not just get up and bring the computer to bed... but now I get up and go to the living room. Made a drastic difference.

["Melyssa K" Kennedy]

Oh, yeah, that's also really huge. If you do homework in bed, you shouldn't. You should only use your bed for sleeping (or sex of course) so that your bed becomes associated with sleep/positivity/comfort. Even better if you can do your homework in another room and limit your room for sleeping only, but not everyone has that option. I used to use my computer in bed every day, slept with the computer a meter or two away. Now my computer is permanently banned to the living room. At first, it was hard to not just get up and bring the computer to bed... but now I get up and go to the living room. Made a drastic difference.

I don't do sex. I have no interest in it and I'm a weirdo because of it. :P

I wish I could, but I have such bad knees and a bad back and stuff that my bed is the only place I can do my homework in relative physical comfort.