LET'S TALK ABOUT CHRONIC FATIGUE AND INSOMNIA
Chronic insomnia affects an estimated that 10% of the population with as many as 50% having significant episodes of insomnia at some point in their lives. Studies show that women are up to 50% more likely to suffer from insomnia than their male peers.
Insomnia and Fatigue - Quick facts & stats
Types of Insomnia: ”Chronic Insomnia” a.k.a incessant, exaggerated, "worst case scenario" worry about everyday everythings, affects four million Americans. This is about 2.8% of the population. And, guess what? Women are twice as likely to be afflicted than men and most of those women are … moms. Yep, moms and me.
Insomnia & Fatigue: 8 Sleeping & Sanity Saving Tips for the Tired & Wired
It is cruel how insomnia AND fatigue seem to go hand in hand. No wonder so many of us feel tired and wired all the live-long-day (and night.) I don’t know about you but the worst part is I am haunted by memories of how I used to sleep …
First of all - I used to sleep anywhere, anytime. In bed I was asleep so fast I never remembered falling asleep. I slept with ease through blaring rock concerts, family emergencies and a typhoon in Mexico.
If it rocks I’d be “gone.” That goes for cars (unless I’m driving), boats, trains and elephant backs. (Did you know that elephants rock when they walk?) I’ve slept in dental chairs during root channels (escapism), during massages, and on planes no matter the duration or turbulence in the air or in the seat next to me.
I still do some of this with ease, HOWEVER there are two painful exceptions.
One - I can no longer sleep the flight away. Hormones, fear of blood clots, orange alerts, restless legs - hard to pinpoint what’s keeping me up, literally. Now I understand why people complain about feeling cramped, of noisy & nosy neighbors, and turbulence. I never noticed any of that when I was ASLEEP.
Two - When I put me down to sleep and that doesn't happen too often these days.
I could never understand how anyone was awake to watch Johnny Carson or Saturday Night Live. Awake after 11:00 p.m.? I never got why some people were counting sheep, counting backwards or creating elaborate sleep rituals.
I especially never understood how some people could fall asleep in front of the T.V. and wake up on and off to read the night away (Grandma, Mom, Me?)
Well. Being the proactive, sleep loving woman that I am, I could not take this new sleepless reality lying down. Neither should you. Here are my top 8, tried & true, sleep and sanity saving tips and rituals.
First of all - I used to sleep anywhere, anytime. In bed I was asleep so fast I never remembered falling asleep. I slept with ease through blaring rock concerts, family emergencies and a typhoon in Mexico.
If it rocks I’d be “gone.” That goes for cars (unless I’m driving), boats, trains and elephant backs. (Did you know that elephants rock when they walk?) I’ve slept in dental chairs during root channels (escapism), during massages, and on planes no matter the duration or turbulence in the air or in the seat next to me.
I still do some of this with ease, HOWEVER there are two painful exceptions.
One - I can no longer sleep the flight away. Hormones, fear of blood clots, orange alerts, restless legs - hard to pinpoint what’s keeping me up, literally. Now I understand why people complain about feeling cramped, of noisy & nosy neighbors, and turbulence. I never noticed any of that when I was ASLEEP.
Two - When I put me down to sleep and that doesn't happen too often these days.
I could never understand how anyone was awake to watch Johnny Carson or Saturday Night Live. Awake after 11:00 p.m.? I never got why some people were counting sheep, counting backwards or creating elaborate sleep rituals.
I especially never understood how some people could fall asleep in front of the T.V. and wake up on and off to read the night away (Grandma, Mom, Me?)
Well. Being the proactive, sleep loving woman that I am, I could not take this new sleepless reality lying down. Neither should you. Here are my top 8, tried & true, sleep and sanity saving tips and rituals.
First the Tips...
Tip #1. Get up and go to bed at the same time. My husband and I get up between 5:30 and 6:30 on workdays and were sleeping in till 9-10-11 on weekends. Not anymore! We are up by 7:30-8:00 a.m. on weekends and keeping a more consistent sleep schedule makes sleeping more consistent!
Tip #2. Buddy up and get more exercise. I started going back to the gym, no-matter-what. It is so easy to keep that butt planted in the easy chair, isn’t it? Bugging my husband to join me helps keep me motivated and/or sometimes I grab a girlfriend. Who’s your buddy gonna be?
Tip #3. Soothe yourself with Lavender essential oil. Just a little dab or splash will do you right all through the night. I put it on my pillow, nightgown or upper lip so that it wafts up my nostrils and into that hyperactive brain and slows it doooowwwwwwn. (Another great soothing scent is Jasmine essential oil.)
Tip #4. Supplement yourself with Magnesium. Take 400-800 mg before you go to bed OR keep them handy by your bedside to pop if you wake up. Most women are deficient in Magnesium due to diets high in processed foods, purified drinking water, excessive alcohol, caffeine and exercise, HRT and the Pill. And – Magnesium levels drop at night – not fair!
Tip #5. Be very, very comfortable in your bed. If you don't feel like you are sleeping on a cloud, you aren't comfortable enough. If your head doesn’t sink down into down that’s not a pillow, it’s a prop. Do what you gotta do to make your bed heaven on earth.
Tip #6. Pay attention to and follow your natural rhythm. Go to sleep with your first normal urge. Mine is between 9-10 P.M. If I miss it I am likely kicked into that dreaded ‘second wind’ which is great in the afternoon but agony at night.
And now for a couple of my favorite sleep rituals …
Tip #7. Start slowing down at least an hour before going to bed. Get off the internet, the tube, the phone and ease away from the day. Cuddle with your dog or cat or partner. Add in a little slow, deep breathing plus a hint of journaling.
This is when I “dump” out my day, to-do's, worries and gratitude onto a couple journal pages. My thoughts are the bed bugs that bite and keep me up and anxious all night.
Tip #8. Close down your day with a quiet, 20 minute inspirational read. This could be the Bible, an autobiography of a spiritual leader or a couple pages of a meditative self-discovery – spirit "un-covery" time.
Your objective is to fill your mind with love and peace AND erase the busy-ness and drama of the day. Goodbye to news, mayhem, mothering, politics, taxes and award-winning business ideas …
Bonus Tip. Laugh out loud as much as possible and take life lightly. Laughter feeds our adrenals (this is good) and reduces our stress hormones (this is excellent.) I make a point of watching 30 minutes of comedy every day or hunting it down on the Internet at JibJab or Ucomics or Uname it.
A recent LOL find is this quote from a kindred, sleepless entity.
Nothing cures insomnia like the realization that it's time to get up.
-Author Unknown
O.k. enough of me and my solutions. It’s your turn! Let me know how you do and please pass this on to a girlfriend in need. Yes indeed.
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Viveca Stone-Berry
©2016 Viveca Stone-Berry, former fatigue sufferer and author of the Fatigue Be Gone Guide and Log. She is also the author of the Adopt Foster Volunteer Pup and Purr Opportunities Planners and Co-Founder of Dog Caption Cards, a greeting card company dedicated to “raising FUN with friends and FUNDS for fur-friends.”
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