Issues with sleep - multiple nighttime awakenings

sleep
#21

The graphic that @CarlKeller posted is great! The one thing that I wish were on there is the other side of the light question: bright light in the morning is so important! I think it’s the single most helpful thing I’ve personally done to re-set my internal clock. I try to get outside within a few minutes of waking up every day, even if it’s just for a few minutes. Bonus if I can get my face directly into sunlight (in the US with daylight savings time, I actually have to wait for the sun these days…).
I don’t know if this will help anyone with night wakings, but it can really help if you feel like your sleeping/waking rhythm is off.

(Lori Rimmer) #22

I started taking prescription sleeping pills and supplements way before I started keto for my insomnia (trazodone and supplements called Best Rest Formula) which helped me a lot. I am not advocating these because part of why I wanted to get on keto was to be healthier and get off of these. My insomnia flared up again after about 6 weeks on keto (I am still taking these pills). I added a magnesium and zinc supplements and it has helped me.

I think sometimes when your body is going through a metabolic shift, it can temporarily (for a few weeks) cause sleep disturbances. I think these may get better once your body adapts. At least I am hoping so, because I don’t like the insomnia either.

#23

Yeah I honestly do all of those which is what I tried to get across in my first post. I definitely agree that sunshine helps sleep so much. I have always slept the best when I’ve been exposed to lots of sunshine.

(traci simpson) #24

Same here. No trouble falling asleep, just can’t stay asleep. Middle aged, menopausal also. I take melatonin lozenges, magnesium, eye mask so that it’s completely dark, medication sleep app, cool room (floor fans, ceiling fan and air/or open windows depending on time of year) tried Ambien; crazy dreams so NO! sleepy time tea, black tea etc.

(Jennibc) #25

Resist the urge for sleeping pills as the body become dependent on them. I note that you wrote ‘black tea’ at the end of the list. But black tea contains caffeine. If I have even the tiniest amount of caffeine past noon, I just don’t sleep that night. As we get older our bodies are more sensitive to caffeine.

(traci simpson) #26

I don’t take sleeping pills and the black tea is decaf.

(Scott) #27

The past two nights I have been waking at 2:00 am and try to get back to sleep but end up giving up. I pick up my tablet and check the news and this forum. I have decided to move wake up time to between 4:00 and 4:30 to get a longer workout in.

(Jennibc) #28

You’d mentioned Ambien. Decaf tea, still has some caffeine in it. Not much, but some and if you are sensitive even decaf can interfere with sleep quality.

(traci simpson) #29

I tried Ambien and let me tell you - the dreams I was having!!! scary, scary so I stopped after about two weeks! Doesn’t tea in general have more caffeine than coffee??? I think I read that somewhere.

(Jennibc) #30

I used Ambien one night, maybe 12-13 years ago and it was not good. I had a very bad reaction to it.

I think tea has less caffeine than coffee with black tea having the most caffeine and white tea having the least. I think green is in the middle of the two.

(traci simpson) #31

Update: The last three nights or so I’ve been sleeping better. I recently got black cohosh and I take two in the morning and two in the evening and it seems to be curbing the “hotness” so I’m not waking up just by turning over, however, I wake up tired and hit the snooze like one or two times. It’s almost like my body is trying to make up for the years of not sleeping deeply enough. I hope this lasts because I’d rather get a great nights sleep and hit the snooze then not. Stay tuned…!