Does anyone sleet? !!

 I'm actually finding that I'm sleeping too much since having surgery a little more than 2 months ago because the weight loss stopped my snoring. However, I've had so much trouble over the years with either not being able to go to sleep or waking up in the middle of the night, that I now have a whole arsenal that I used faithfully:
 - socks to keep my feet warm (cold toes keep me awake)
 - light-blocking sleep mask (even the tiny light on the alarm clock kept me from sleeping deeply)
 - wrist support (my hand falls asleep otherwise, which wakes me up!)
 - white noise of some kind (ceiling fan, usually)
 - soothing music (my favorite CD is titled "Sleep" - go figure. I bought it at Target years ago)
 - warm shower or bath before bed
 - no loud or violent tv before bed
 - an exhaustive "do list" on my computer (so I don't worry about forgetting something the next day)
 - a heating pad or plain Tylenol if I have any aches and pains that night
 - no fluids after 9PM (to avoid middle of the night bathroom trips)
 - make sure my husband takes his RLS meds (his disorder was keeping me awake)

I haven't done this for awhile, but yoga before bed really helps, too.
Best of luck - lack of sleep is miserable.

Marcy

I've done a lot of the environmental stuff and some of it helps.  I know that light bothers me even small amounts.  I used a mask but it is shot.  I need to get a new one that fits tighter.  I used to go to the spare bedroom because it is quiet and dark.  Then we had a few break-ins in the neighorhood and DH insists on leaving the outside lights on at night.  SOOOO my dark room is no longer dark.  Even with black out curtains there is an edge of light that keeps me awake.  If I ever build my dream house I will have a room with no windows that I can keep at about 68 degrees. 

I had a massage therapist that does reflexology tell me to put vicks salve on the balls of my feet.  That point has something to do with sinuses.  She said I would breathe better and also sleep better.  Sometimes I did sometimes not.  I have allergies that keeps me congested if my meds aren't working. 

I did not have a sleep study before surgery because it was deemed unnessasary .  I do not have sleep apnea.  I either can't get to sleep or wake up mutiple times.

I decided to take a tylenot pm last night.  I took it a 8:00pm hoping i would not wake up groggy.  I guess it helped in the sense that I slept between wake ups.  Usually I wake up and take hours to get back to sleep.  Last night I fell asleep about 10 pm woke up every two hours but looked at the clock and went back to sleep.  This morning I didn't want to get up but once I did I was awake and not groggy.  I guess that is an improvement.  Would like to go to sleep and stay asleep but at least I was able to fall asleep each time I woke up.  I take even small blessings with gratitude.

I take Ativan. It's an anti-anxiety med. I take 1mg during the day and 3mg in the evening.  I have terrible anxiety that prevents me from getting to sleep and/or staying asleep and the Ativan helps quite a bit.

You know, we have a long term board that is 10 yrs old and we've noticed disturbed sleep patterns among us for years.

We tried to make it nutritional, but adjusting all the obvious didn't help.

I use a very, very high MG of Melatonin, 200mg of 5-htp and ambien. I can GET to sleep, but don't always STAY asleep. I split the ambien in half. If I wake up and can't go back to sleep, I take part B.

The melatonin and 5-htp give me a more restful sleep--i wake more refreshed than I ever did.

I was an insomniac as a kid, as an adult, any age, any weight. But the waking up at 4-6 hrs was added after WLS. For years I struggled and tried all OTC sleep aids. Of course, the HUGE dose of melatonin I take isn't easy to find, so the smaller doses didn't work as well. Ambien was considered "scary" when it first came out and was, of course, hideously expensive. That's when I caught the trick of making it "timed release" myself, using the rx dose, but in 2 stages AND only as needed.

Now I get it by rx, but it's generic and I get it OFF insurance, 90 pills for $22 at Costco. WITH insurance, I get 14 pills for $20. Nice, huh?

Addictive? hmm, in the way that being able to turn OFF your lights at a set time and have them come back ON again when you want, then I spose. I spent most of my life staring at the ceiling or clock. I LIKE putting my head down, thinking about how I'd be comfortable and then waking up when a cat jumps onto my bladder! OK, maybe not the cat part so much. But at least I'm awake when it's time to be awake.

Things that didn't work:
trazadone, even small dose left me with a headache that didn't let me lift my head!

xanax, no sleep aid, just anti-anxiety

Valerian, nothing

Lunesta, nasty taste in my mouth, still the 4-6 hrs and part B didn't work

Ambien CR, forget it. I need to be the timed release myself

Melatonin 3mg or 5mg or even 10mg, tho I was more rested with the two 5's.

Michelle, Ah yes so many of us are sleep deprived. I fall asleep easily but usually wake up every hour or two. Restless legs are treated, but often have "pressure points" and joint pains. Curious, what is the name of the generic form of Ambien? I'd like to ask my doctor about it. I'd absolutely love to sleep 4-6 hours solid! I currently take 1 Tylenol Pm, listen to instrumental CDS. Two Tylenol PM leave me with a headache in the morning.

Yes, Tylenol PM make me feel drugged senseless!

Zolpidem, I think without checking. Might be missing a letter. But you can google it. Ambien. NOT the CR, since we get no benefit from the CR part of it, why pay?

So, where are your iron levels?

Do you take magnesium citrate?

I also take mega doses of Melatonin AND I take 5 htp, 200mg at night, 200 mg in the morning. Both are OTC. Melatonin usually comes in 3mg or 5mg. I take a 20mg, but you won't find that just anywhere and that is certainly NOT a starter dose!

Thanks Michelle, I'll take these ideas to my PCP when I next see her. I've just started taking magnisium citrate. I've tried melatonin before but gave it up when the dose I was taking didn't seem to help. It was recommened OTC dose and before I had WLS.

Mag citrate for cramping/spasms. Doesn't help you sleep, but if you finally GOT to sleep, I hate waking up "dancing". Hyland's makes a product called "Leg Cramps". It'll be in the vitamin aisle at Wal*mart, prolly on the very bottom shelf. They also make a Sleep thing, but I haven't test driven that one. They are very much into homeopathic type remedies.

I had to start thinking outside the box with some of my inconveniences. Once I accepted that any of my docs is a product of:
his schooling
his experience
PLUS (or MINUS) his OPINION

Then I did much better in the way I phrase my questions and how I then respond to the answers. My PCP is just suspicious of all "natural" things (opinion)

ND is nervous around any rx meds (schooling + opinion)

I have to figure things out, factor in all MD's in my picture, shuffle a coupla ND's in, divide by malabsorption, combine with MY OPINION & EXPERIENCE and then try various pathways to reach well being.

I don't expect anyone else to follow what I do. I just report my findings, so to speak. Many people don't know that melatonin is sold (not widely) in 20mg pills. But of course, you can use 2,3,5 and find the formula that works.

5-htp is an interesting one. I'm not sure I can explain it, but hydroxy TRYPTOPHAN is what it is. It doesn't make me sleepy. It seems to "seek" whichever I need, rest or alert and provide it. Mind you, I always kinda roll my eyes at my ND until I get confirmation elsewhere. LOL

Thanks Michelle. I too think we need to take control of our health issues and keep pressing til we get help or find things that help.  As far as I know all precscriptions come from things that were at one time from nature. . . .

Hi Linda, I was hoping you didn't mean "Fleet!" I know that stuff too well from my colonoscopy. I listen to instrumental CDS. That allows me to clear my head and fall asleep. Unfortunately it's not a deep sleep and I wake up within an hour or two. Thanks for posting this. Hopefully, we'll get some good suggestions.