Insomnia
I haven’t had a sober or non-medicated full 8 hour night of sleep since 2007.
Supposedly the way we’re supposed to sleep when we’re locked underground for several months is from 2000-0000 and then up for a few hours of productive thought and then sleep for another few hours until sunrise. I fell asleep at around 1920 and woke at around 2240. Going to try to fall back asleep soon and hopefully be productive at work tomorrow.
More to follow. -Kilo
https://pc.tedcdn.com/talk/podcast/2010G/None/JessaGamble_2010G.mp3
*EDIT*
I should have included my list of prescribed medications and supplements now that I’m no longer self medicating and listening to my doctors. I’ve got a great Primary Care doctor here in Hawaii (12 hour split between day and night like the Ted Talk mentions) who is also prior AF and did her residency at Offut AFB in Omaha where my daughter EV lives. She’s helping me work towards my goal of joining the Air National Guard and finishing the career I started.
Listen to the doctors. Despite medical mistakes being the 6th leading cause of preventable death in this country, there are very few, if any dumb doctors running around. Several ignorant ones, but not many dumb ones.
Pay attention to the doctors and understand that their time with you is very limited. Be succinct and let them know what you’re expectations are of them. Be polite but firm if you disagree, it’s your body. Research the meds like you should be researching your foods in your diet. Know the side effects and if you have questions; ask!!! It’s your body and you need to know what’s going into it. Good shit in, good shit out.
I work through my PCM, Psychiatrist, Endocrinoligist, and allergist to treat my current symptoms and work towards my goal of being healthy and happy. I go to every appointment with the goal of being a good patient and acting as my own advocate. I research the medications and consult a friend who has his PhD in Pharmacology as needed.
Current medications and nightime supplements include:
1000mg l-tryptophan
50mg melatonin
25mg Atenolol
15mg Mirtazapine
500mg DLPA DL-Phenylalanine
A cortisol manager
3 Optimimum Nutrion ZMA capsules
Daytime Supplements:
B Complex
B6 controlled release
Carnitine
L-Taurine
Nature’s Life Multivitamin
Omega 3 and 6 Supplement Gummy
Probiotic Gummy (will be switching next month to one with at least 4 strands of cultures)
Glutamine Supplement
Current issues of concern:
Glucose spiking, Estradiol wayyy too high, night sweats, night terrors, ADD.
Appointments have been set with the above specialists to address these issues.
I quit drinking for 5 months and my sleep was literally cut in half from 5 hours to about 2.5 every night. I’ve had a few glasses of wine since I was taken off the steroid for my Eosinophilic Esophagitis, always leaving some in the glass as an exercise of self control. My health is improving and I’m working out and getting stronger every day. I’m right on track to accomplishing my goals and my doctors are happy to help because it’s clear that I give a damn about my health. I can’t expect someone else to if I clearly don’t…
More to follow. -Kilo
Category: Veteran Health Care
Kilo, glad to hear from you! Have you tried Melitonin? It is over the counter and is very good for sleep. I have the same trouble, I haven’t had 8 hours of sleep in 20 years! I at least get in a few short naps with this stuff. Thank you for your service and welcome home!
a full night’s sleep? That is a challenge. I’m usually out by 2100 and wide awake by 0230. Concur with WW on melatonin though.
Hit report instead of reply… my bad. I updated to include the melatonin and other supplements i’m taking. Humble brag but I’ve lost 56 lbs this year and have maintained my current weight for the last two months.
Absolutely, we MUST be our own health advocates … and that necessarily REQUIRES that we do our homework. I thank the Good Lord for the Internet which makes researching so much more time efficient.
A full nights sleep?…Not since 1991…..every 3rd or 4th night, I do get a restful sleep…then the cycle renews itself…constant fatigue as a result…..
Be careful with the mirtazapine, brother. I took Remeron for a bit back in 05-06(prescribed) made me loopy/dizzy at random points throughout the day.
Otherwise, good to hear to you are getting help. Ive got an ear or two(wifey will tell you they are big) if you ever need to chat.
Cheers and heres to a healthy recovery/sustained mental health,
MrFace
Exercise ( thank you elliptical ) and marital activity in the evening help me. I sleep like a baby six hours a night.
Remember what Lou Holtz said about how he slept at night with the team he had that year: “Me? I sleep like a baby…I wake up every two hours and cry.”
While I sort of agree with kilo’s statement about most doctors being OK, I also always remember that half the doctors you ever meet graduated in the bottom half of their class.
I only sleep for about 4 hrs before being awaken by my neighbors. I have a book called self massage for athletes. I learned to give myself a full body self massage in about 20 minutes. Then I some basic tai chi for about 10 minutes. Then I lay down and do a breathing exercise. I breath in and out my mouth 5 minutes, then breath in through my nose and out my mouth 5 minutes, and finish by breathing in and out my mouth 5 minutes. I may have sleep apnea so I think it helps to get more oxygen in my system.
Also psychologically I can’t try to force myself to go to sleep. I have to tell myself that I don’t have to go to sleep right now.
Depending on how liquid I drink during the day affects my sleep a lot too.
Exercise can help. If you have fatigue problems I just keep it light. I walk for 15 minutes multiple times a day to get exercise.
That’s what I do, not sure if it would help you though.
Wishing you the best. Blessings.
Be careful with supplements/over-the-counter meds/vitamins/herbs. Just because they’re OTC doesn’t mean you can’t have a reaction or drug interaction.
Learn the ‘Seven drug’ rule. It seems to be some kind of magical number in pharmacology. If you take seven or more drugs together, you are more likely to be experiencing a drug interaction that is causing side-effects requiring treatment. Make sure to go over everything you are taking with your doctor AND pharmacist to prevent that from happening.
And I find that yoga helps with sleep. I do a relaxation routine about an hour before bed.
Especially when dealing with stress and feelings, I like the Psalms.
Honest, forthright statements of the struggles we have in this world – and not sugar-coated.
Look at some good quality, tart cherry juice. It is a natural source of melatonin. We find it at Trader Joe’s for around $5 a bottle. A small (8oz) glass before bed helps a lot with sleep and seems to help combat dry mouth /throat from my CPAP.
Might take a bit to get used to the taste. Be sure to get as pure as possible. Tart Dark Cherry Juice. It works.
Cake
For those with gout, it also helps keep uric acid levels down in your blood. And since gout is a form of arthritis, a gout control diet with daily cherry juice can help alleviate some arthritis pain. BTDT
Great advice folks! I definitely prefer to get my nutritional needs met through food vice supplements but I can only consume so much sugar and calories a day. Fortunately I have a fast metabolism and a Basal Metabolic Rate of 1930cal
So anything I eat beyond 1930 is consumed by activity. I don’t count calories but I could quite easily.
Having a few years experience with a situation near to yours, I haven’t heard anyone suggest probably the simplest and quite possibly most life saving thing out there. You have to maintain a good spiritual condition to recover from what you have. You have a spiritual condition and you can’t think your way into better behavior. You can, however, act your way into better thinking. Try prayer, I was on a heart transplant list six years ago after recovering from another life threatening condition that included emergency abdominal surgery my 50’th birthday in the ICU and several close touches with the Grim Reaper… I prayed the Rosary about twenty times a day. It probably didn’t save my life, the VA Heart Failure Clinic, a very beautiful NP and a string of physicians, technicians, nurses, a grief counselor, a victim abuse coordinator, a Bishop and a host of other people that sat and listened to me. Like I said, it probably didn’t save my life, but it did, save my soul, and for that I am grateful to all those that walked me through it. The hardest part of the whole thing was to surrender to it. But with six months to live, I really had no choice… You are at the edge of the abyss right now Kilo, whether you realize it or not. Why fight with the self control thing, you said you haven’t had a sober breath for several years and now you want to beat it back into submission? I got news for you, it’s still there, with you, waiting for you to slip up. Just don’t do the wine thing, it can’t help your psyche to get a taste of what put you in the situation that you are in. Prayer works Kilo. You may laugh, call me an idiot or think whatever you want about me, it works, God listens whether you want him to or not. You didn’t give up on yourself Kilo, you gave up on God. You’re still with us and it would appear to any believers out here that God hasn’t… Read more »
Kilo, good on you, good on you.
Couple questions…
What is your potassium and magnesium levels? Low, or fluctuating, levels of either or both are showing connections to ADD, sleep disorders, and a host of other imbalances including glucose.
I say ‘showing connections’ because anecdotal evidence is piling up with good science behind it, but sufficient studies have yet to be done to prove it.
I highly recommend two things, the first was suggested to me by my GP.
Himalayan Sea Salt. It is pink because of the higher concentration of trace minerals. It’s a better delivery system for potassium than bananas. Put a crystal or two on your tongue, let it dissolve and chase it with a glass of water. It cured my night leg cramps and night sweats, as well as overall body temperature regulation (no, I’m not menopausal) and I seem to be sleeping better and a little longer.
Next is Garcinia Cambogia. No, it is not for weight loss. But, it does actually lower blood lipids and glucose according to the NIH. My cholesterol dropped over 100 points in 6 weeks with no other change in diet or exercise. You’ll probably need to get it on the internet because the dosing is 1550mcg twice a day, as that is the dose tested by the NIH as required to affect lipids and glucose.
Neither of these have known contraindications, at least the last I checked, but it may be worth some research and conversation with your docs.
Good luck to you and let us know how it’s going.