Posted by
ryuzaki0
on from the because-ms.-right-pursues-me dept.
An anonymous reader writes "Slate has a story about the guy who registered tired.com in 1997 and put up on the home page "Are you tired? Tell us why." He's collected 32,000 emails from tired people, including an one from a Navy ship at sea that's too good to be fake."
Navy ship email
by
phalse+phace
·
· Score: 4, Informative
"Tired of being in the navy and on a fucking ship in the middle of the god damn ocean with 400 of my not so closest friends who dont bathe as regular as normal folk should. Tired of my ugly little toe. Tired of wonderring why my bellybutton smells like cheese. Tired of masturbating into a pack of bologna. Tired of wondering what my man chowder tastes like and if I did taste it, would anyone think differently of me? Tired of you."
Okay. Now that's just disgusting.
Re:Agreed, insomnia is not a joke
by
peterwilm
·
· Score: 5, Informative
Just to make really sure: Have you tried
*totally* abstaining form caffeine (including coffee, tea, soft drinks)?
totally abstaining from alcohol
totally abstaining from sleeping aids(!)
doing some light to medium cardio activity in the morning or early afternoon (but not in the evening)
refraining from taking naps during the day (only one sleep interval -- at night)
getting up at 7 a.m. (or even earlier), no matter what
Have you followed the above hints together and religiously for at least four weeks?
Many insomniacs are "cured" with the above mentioned measurements.
Additionally, has a psychiatric doctor checked you whether you suffer from clinical depression? Really severe insomnia often is a symptom of clinical depression.
Re:Agreed, insomnia is not a joke
by
merdark
·
· Score: 4, Informative
I have had the exact same problem for most of my life. Drinking is not a good solution in the long run. I tried it, and while it does work, it also causes other problems as I'm sure you've found.
If it helps any, here is what I've done to combat it. First, I don't drink coffee or caffine in general past 12 noon. Second, I try to keep a regular schedule. Sadly that schedule is often sleeping 1 am to 10 am, or 2 am to 11 am, but it's better than the completely random schedule I had before. Most important though, is that I can't do ANYTHING that requires significant thought after dinner (or at least 2 hours before sleeping).
Most times I can now get to sleep within an hour, sometimes I can even sleep the whole night without waking up. Of course, occasionally I am still hit with a bout of insomnia where I lie awake for 6 hours. But all in all, I'm doing better than I used to. I guess I'm lucky to have the flexability to choose my own timetable though.
Anyways, try to get off the chemical sleep aids, and see if you can somehow restore your circadian rythem (sleeping pattern) via repatition. Just go to sleep at a fixed time each night regardless of if you're tired, and get up 8-9 hours later, regardless of if you're tired.
Good luck. You are not alone.
Re:Agreed, insomnia is not a joke
by
wfberg
·
· Score: 4, Informative
My doctors tried a number of things but option number 1 was always Prozac. What nonsense, they hand that out without thinking about it (in Britain anyway) and it really bugs me. No I won't take Prozac.
Actually, Prozac is a selective serotonic re-uptake inhibitor. So taking it causes more serotonin to be present in the brain. Serotonin plays a very big role in your sleep patterns. In fact, one commonly marketed sleeping drug (which actually works) is L-tryptophan (a chemical also present in milk - momma told you, didn't she?), which is converted into serotonin in the body. Unfortunately it is now banned from over-the-counter sale, because of a tainted batch causing a nasty illness. You can still get it as a prescribed drug (Tryptan).
The other thing that helped was making a routine of going to bed - always doing the same things in the same order (now it's feed the fish, go to bathroom for a wash etc, then go to straight to bed). If after 20-30 mins I'm not asleep then get up, read/do something (not video games that get adrenalin pumping) for a further 20 mins and then go through the entire routine again.
Okay. Now that's just disgusting.
- *totally* abstaining form caffeine (including coffee, tea, soft drinks)?
- totally abstaining from alcohol
- totally abstaining from sleeping aids(!)
- doing some light to medium cardio activity in the morning or early afternoon (but not in the evening)
- refraining from taking naps during the day (only one sleep interval -- at night)
- getting up at 7 a.m. (or even earlier), no matter what
Have you followed the above hints together and religiously for at least four weeks?Many insomniacs are "cured" with the above mentioned measurements.
Additionally, has a psychiatric doctor checked you whether you suffer from clinical depression? Really severe insomnia often is a symptom of clinical depression.
I have had the exact same problem for most of my life. Drinking is not a good solution in the long run. I tried it, and while it does work, it also causes other problems as I'm sure you've found.
If it helps any, here is what I've done to combat it. First, I don't drink coffee or caffine in general past 12 noon. Second, I try to keep a regular schedule. Sadly that schedule is often sleeping 1 am to 10 am, or 2 am to 11 am, but it's better than the completely random schedule I had before. Most important though, is that I can't do ANYTHING that requires significant thought after dinner (or at least 2 hours before sleeping).
Most times I can now get to sleep within an hour, sometimes I can even sleep the whole night without waking up. Of course, occasionally I am still hit with a bout of insomnia where I lie awake for 6 hours. But all in all, I'm doing better than I used to. I guess I'm lucky to have the flexability to choose my own timetable though.
Anyways, try to get off the chemical sleep aids, and see if you can somehow restore your circadian rythem (sleeping pattern) via repatition. Just go to sleep at a fixed time each night regardless of if you're tired, and get up 8-9 hours later, regardless of if you're tired.
Good luck. You are not alone.
My doctors tried a number of things but option number 1 was always Prozac. What nonsense, they hand that out without thinking about it (in Britain anyway) and it really bugs me. No I won't take Prozac.
;-)
Actually, Prozac is a selective serotonic re-uptake inhibitor. So taking it causes more serotonin to be present in the brain. Serotonin plays a very big role in your sleep patterns. In fact, one commonly marketed sleeping drug (which actually works) is L-tryptophan (a chemical also present in milk - momma told you, didn't she?), which is converted into serotonin in the body. Unfortunately it is now banned from over-the-counter sale, because of a tainted batch causing a nasty illness. You can still get it as a prescribed drug (Tryptan).
The other thing that helped was making a routine of going to bed - always doing the same things in the same order (now it's feed the fish, go to bathroom for a wash etc, then go to straight to bed). If after 20-30 mins I'm not asleep then get up, read/do something (not video games that get adrenalin pumping) for a further 20 mins and then go through the entire routine again.
DO NOT OVERFEED FISH. Thanks.
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