What you all do to get to sleep???

[unclrob]

For years now no matter what time I have to get up {and get up I do} I find that I just can't fall asleep before 4 or 5am.I have tried drinking booze,sleeping pills,warm milk,reading,watching really bad tv,hot coco with whiskey and other methods of altering or shutting down my brain.I have tried just going to bed in the hope's that I'll fall asleep to no avail.It wouldn't bother me if I could work but our bedroom is off a converted garage with no door and this is were my shop is and I fear that any work I might door would disturb the boss.Leveling the frets sounds really loud when all is quit.Any suggestion from the loonie bin.

[jeremy3220]

You might ask your doctor about trazodone. It's an anti-depressant that's been around a long time but these days it's probably prescribed more for sleep(it doesn't do much on the AD side). It usually works really well and it doesn't cause dependency. Maybe that would help where traditional sleeping pills haven't.

You could also try a supplement called melatonin. It works but I don't know if it will well enough for your situation.

[broKen]

Rob, giving up caffeine entirely is hard and could have repercussions. Try limiting it to 5-6 cups (1/2 pot) in the morn and none past 10:00 AM. Get some physical activity, not much, just a 15-20 min brisk walk will suffice. A routine is a must too. Hope you can work something out. Sleep deprivation ain't good. And limit sugar too. None past 4-5 o'clock. Hope this helps.

[unclrob]

Jeremy I'm trying to stay away from any more meds I do enough of those twice a day.

Broken I walk or rather hoble 2 mile's a day.I have dropped my coffee intake to 5 cups a day,ok maybe 6 cups on Saturday,I gave up soda a year ago,I'm diabatic so I already limit my sugar intake which is really hard as I have a major sweet tooth and one of the meds I'm on doesn't help.

I can't shower after 5pm as hot shower's wake me up,something to do with being a late night musician or something.I have also tried varies tea's to no avail also.I'm thinking that I'm just going to have to deal with this until the boy starts going to college.

[JOYCEfromNS]

I'm thinking that I'm just going to have to deal with this until the boy starts going to college.

Rob I am with you on the Meds approach  

I think what TTP is proposing above is pretty sage advice tho none of which is a magic bullet. It is more of a life-style change as is your dealing with diabetes. ( EDIT not sure where TTP's comment went I am sure I saw it earlier)

Following the suggestions he provided you will find your sleep returning to "normal" while at the same time your energy levels increasing. A person in your situation would be wise to eliminate completely IMO sugar, alcohol and caffeine. May sound somewhat shocking at first but your quality of life will increase and you will likely get to enjoy your Larrivees' well into retirement.

[WPete]

Good advice re: dietary, limiting meds and exercise - tho for me an occasional  "it makes you drowsy"  otc Benedryl little pink pill or the walmart/target equiv is a pretty inexpensive and very safe, as far as side effects/interactions, option. 
It's effect is not dramatic but helpful about a half hour/to an hour after you take it.

Try avoiding anything like TV news, politics, good murder mysteries etc. that get yer dander up before bedtime too.
Maybe reading a book on gardening - that'd get me nodding easily.  Good Luck   

[dr.underhill]

unclrob, we are in the same boat. my only sleep of any quality occurs from about 4am on. and i tried (under advice from my physician) a litany of sleep aids. the only ones that seem to work basically made me pass out. in case of emergencies and such being pretty much dead to the world didn't seem like a great idea (the notion of having the house burn down with me in a catatonic state comes to mind). i have used the benedyl before, and if used only a night or two it works. but, after a couple of days it's effectiveness seems to dwindle to nothing- well, i can breath a little better
i guess it's just one more aspect of reaching the "golden years"- or as i put it, the "metallic years"- gold in my mouth, silver in my hair, and lead in my -CENSORED-.

[Mr_LV19E]

I'm thinking that I'm just going to have to deal with this until the boy starts going to college.

Yeah, then you won't get any sleep at all.  Have you seen what they're getting for tuition now? 

[ewalling]

If I can't go to sleep one night, I accept it and just wait till I finally drop off, even if it means I get just a few hours sleep. I'll be tired the next day, but I'll get through it, and the following night I'll sleep like a baby.

There is no way I would take any kind of pill to induce sleep. I believe that my mind and body will regain their equilibrium soon enough without my punishing them for the greater glory of the pharmaceutical industry.  

One thing I find makes me nicely tired is if I do some form of exercise early evening. A good swim between 7:00-8:00 will have me winding down jsut right by 11:00, when I go to bed.

[carruth]

Rob my advice is give up caffine. Start drinking decaffinated coffee. I had my last cup of real coffee 10 years ago,on Doctors advice. My sleep patterns returned to normal gradually over about three weeks after I gave up the caffine.

[prof_stack]

Rob my advice is give up caffine. Start drinking decaffinated coffee. I had my last cup of real coffee 10 years ago,on Doctors advice. My sleep patterns returned to normal gradually over about three weeks after I gave up the caffine.

+1

Gradually work your way to no caffeine.  Not easy, but if you REALLY want to, it won't be as hard as you think.

[unclrob]

Some great advice.Thanks.I talked to one of my clients while working on his guitar{He's a srink} and he just say's it my life style."You play with three differant groups of people,rehearsh what 3-4 time's a week until 11 or 12.You play or do sound 3 nights a week until well after 1am and at least one Sunday a month.Then you tell people like me that its ok to drop off our instrument before going to work and those drop offs will start what at 8 am.On top of that your up with the boy before school.You don't have a sleep problem at all ,your just "NUTS" and need to see me at least twice a week.We can work out a trade thing towards repairs,RIGHT" 

I have desided that 4-5 hours a night is enough for me.So I will no longer go to bed at 1am and just lye there thinking until I fall asleep at 4am.Now I'll just wait till 3:58am  before getting into the bed.

[ducktrapper]

Rob, some of us are just more tightly wound than others. Sleep is for wusses anyway. I've also figured that if the world is out to get me, I'm going down swinging.  

She went down swingin'
Like Glenn Miller
Yeah, she went down swingin'
Like Tommy Dorsey
Yeah, she went down swingin'
Like Sammy Davis
She went down swingin'
Like Sonny Liston

- Tom Petty

[unclrob]

Rob, some of us are just more tightly wound than others. Sleep is for wusses anyway. I've also figured that if the world is out to get me, I'm going down swinging. 

She went down swingin'
Like Glenn Miller
Yeah, she went down swingin'
Like Tommy Dorsey
Yeah, she went down swingin'
Like Sammy Davis
She went down swingin'
Like Sonny Liston

- Tom Petty

I needed that.

[funkstarfish]

I suppose my method isn't strictly accepted... but it makes Pink Floyd sound better...

[Mr_LV19E]

Try laying down, clear your mind (I know, that's the hardest part but at least think of something peaceful) then take several deep breaths, breathing in through your nose and exhaling slowly through your mouth. I know it sounds weird but it works.

If that doesn't work hire an anaesthesiologist.

[GGBB]

In addition to all the advice so far (there are sooo many things you can try), a few things to try to manipulate your circadian rhythm back to a normal schedule.  Note that if you are out of whack for physical/chemical/emotional/psychological reasons, these won't work as well but they are good habits nonetheless.

Start by going to bed whenever you're tired.  Then get up a bit earlier than you should.  You should feel tired a little earlier the next night, so go to bed then and get up at the same time.  Keep getting up at the same time - eventually your body will figure out that's when you get up and it will tell you when to go to bed accordingly.

The key is to get up at the same time each day and don't form a habit of sleeping in even when you go to sleep late.  You are better off getting up as usual and going to bed earlier the next night to make up for lost sleep.  Sleeping in once in a while is okay if your patterns are good and as long as it's not excessive.  Whenever I get to bed late and decide to sleep in I don't let myself sleep in any more than about half of what I think I've lost.  That way I will still be able to get to sleep on time the next night and maybe earlier.

Napping can also kill your sleep patterns if you do it too often, too late, or for too long. A short power nap can work wonders in the mid afternoon, but too late or too long and you'll never get to sleep on time that night.

If you still find you're only getting a few hours, but otherwise you don't struggle with nodding off, energy, concentration etc. then maybe you're just one of the lucky few who can get by on far less than the standard 8.

[ducktrapper]

Meh. I'll sleep when I'm dead. 

[unclrob]

Try laying down, clear your mind (I know, that's the hardest part but at least think of something peaceful) then take several deep breaths, breathing in through your nose and exhaling slowly through your mouth. I know it sounds weird but it works.

If that doesn't work hire an anaesthesiologist.

I've tried this method which included starting at the toe's and relaxing each body part as you go.

As for the anaesthesiologist I use to have a med I used but due to new goverment rule's if I get caught with it in my system I would lose my health care and my doctor would be fined $6000 and put on probation for 1 year.Ya small go************t.

GGBB I do now go to bed when I'm tired its just at 3:58am,I hate nap's as when I wake from them I feel like I've been drinking for 5 days with no sleep.

Meh. I'll sleep when I'm dead. 

Duck I've heard that said of you.

[Caleb]

Rob, your mileage may vary, but I write in a journal each night before bed.  I try and empty my head of the day's thoughts and get them on a page.  I used to use a large composition book but ended up finding the large blank page too intimidating as I'd try to fill it up.  So I got a smaller, calendar style journal that only allows for five or six lines of writing.  This forces me to think hard about what I want to write and how I want to use that small space.  It's a totally achievable goal and I've found that as I lie down in bed, my brain is ready to slow down and stop thinking so much.  I've gone to sleep much sooner since doing this.  Either way, I hope you find the thing that will work for you.  

Side note: Should you decide to journal, your children would love to read your midnight ramblings someday, long after you're gone.