I’ve been zero alcohol for 6 weeks. Low carb for a couple of months and ketogenic borderline for about a month (can’t be sure my keto strips are out of date and I’m too tight to buy any more).
Anyway, I’m having a bit of problem shutting off at the end of the day. I don’t know if this is flu symptoms but I’m having to resort to nibbling on some cheese or something as I have read that carb deficit can cause sleeplessness- at least early on. I never had this issue last time I went full monty.
Self meditation doesn’t really work.
Anyone got any ideas for nodding off?
Bad sleep
roop298
#1
roop298
#3
Ok, I’ve been on a work sabbatical for a few months so, I have been trying to get up by 05:30 for a month at least. That means being asleep by 21:30. I try to be in bed by 20:30-21:00.
I have video going on in the background (I have for years and I’ve watched the same thing so often I don’t need to see it- and I don’t ‘watch it’ anyway. I am just used to it being in the background.
I am a bit overweight and have had obstructive breathing for years also. So I sleep on one side or the other.
These are not the issue. It’s the winding down. Like I’ve been drinking too much caffeine (and I know what that’s like).
I did keep a diary with my times and a few weeks ago everything worked to wards getting up no problem. Now, I seem to have gone backwards again- I just seem to be having to crawl out of bed again and the only thing I can think of is the change of diet.
I need my 8 hours so I suspect I’m not dropping off early enough.
I could really do with getting it sorted as I’m slated for work again in the next couple of weeks and that usually entails 06:00 starts.
PaulL
(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?)
#4
If you are waking refreshed, that’s one thing. But if you’re waking and still tired, that’s a different situation. Some people who are early on a keto diet get confused because they need less sleep than they did, and assume it’s a problem. But if your sleep is not restful, then it is a problem.
Firstly, though, this will probably sort itself out as you go along. Secondly, yes, a bit of glucose will help you get to sleep. Try a mug of warm milk, if you can’t get to sleep, and see if it helps. I don’t know if it’s the lactose and galactose it contains, or if there are other things that help as well, but it generally works for me.
Something to cling to is a study in which people’s brains were scanned while they slept, and it turned out that a lot of the people who thought they were awake all night were actually asleep most of the night, and a lot of the people who thought they were asleep all night were actually awake a lot of the time. So perceptions are not always a good guide to what’s really happening.
Check out the various recommendations for sleep hygiene on the Net. For instance, you may want that video off, because of the blue light. Other things to check are breathing (sometimes a C-PAP machine can be of great help), not taking too much liquid before bedtime, and there are plenty of other recommendations, many of which might help you.
roop298
#5
Many thanks for the suggestions. Some I’ve already got covered but I think I might have to cure any insomnia by reading up on some recommendations:)
KetoSue
(Susan)
#6
If you’re interested in trying a supplement, I can recommend you try Relaxium Sleep, available online. It’s a combination of melatonin (which by itself works only sometimes for me) and ashwaganda, chamomile, GABA, and a few other ingredients I can’t recall atm. I started taking it in March, it’s helping me greatly; unfortunately was no help to a friend and my sister-in-law, they said it made no difference for them.
lfod14
#7
Keep in mind, even with people (like me) that totally abuse caffeine as well as have a good tolerance hit the too much part way before we feel it, when we can tell we’ve done that, that’s when it’s at overdose level.
Do you know if you’re a fast or slow caffeine metabolizer? If you can drink caffeine all day long like many and not climb walls and jump through a ceiling, you’re on the slow side, which is the bad side, because that means you need to cut it off WAY earlier or you’ll drip feed it all night long.
roop298
#8
No, I don’t know what I am but I might have two mugs and a decaff later on that’s it. I like a coffee but i’m not a ‘coffee drinker’. I drink more green tea by volume and that’s not that much more.
Shortstuff
(Allie)
#9
Sounds to me like your body is just getting itself used to running on ketones and needs time to adapt. Many of us find great benefit in magnesium before bed.
roop298
#10
I don’t think I’m helping myself as I’m not in keto. A bit too much meat and not enough fat. When I do go back to work it’ll be a bit easier as I can fast and omad.
Shortstuff
(Allie)
#11
It’s a lack of carbs that puts you in ketosis, don’t get caught up in the gluconeogenesis hysteria. If your carbs are low enough, you’ll be in ketosis. Higher fats can help with hunger / energy levels, but not essential.
VirginiaEdie
(Edith)
#12
Green tea does have caffeine and if you are having it later in the day, it could be enough caffeine to cause your sleep issues. There were discussions on the forum years ago with members noticing they seemed to be much more caffeine sensitive once they started keto.
Chocolate also has caffeine and another stimulant called theobromine. I recently discovered my little bit of dark chocolate after dinner was contributing to my sleep issues. I’m sleeping much better since I stopped eating chocolate, which wasn’t that much, but it has made a difference.
VirginiaEdie
(Edith)
#14
Yeah, I was only having maybe a half ounce after dinner, but I kept waking up agitated around 3 or 3:30 AM. That has mostly stopped with the cessation of the chocolate. 
And, I would much rather have good sleep than chocolate.