Posted by izybx:

And its driving me crazy. I work very irregular hours (6pm to 235am) that often change to a day shift (8am to 435pm). and then back to normal the next day, so I dont think that trying to have a consistent routine would help. Anybody have some family recipes? Warm milk? Triple shot of gin? Anything?

I have some math-related books that usually do it for me by page 3.

Posted by playa2:

read the bible, guaranteed you will fall asleep

LOL. Okay, I have to admit that that was a good one.

Posted by izybx:

And its driving me crazy. I work very irregular hours (6pm to 235am) that often change to a day shift (8am to 435pm). and then back to normal the next day, so I dont think that trying to have a consistent routine would help. Anybody have some family recipes? Warm milk? Triple shot of gin? Anything?

Make sure the room you sleep in is dark as night---put on a fan to block out any noise[fan is a favorite among many people with insomnia--it helps block out both noise not coming from your room and the noise going on inside of your head[which is usually worse]---- do not eat anything 2-3 hours before sleep drink very little--go to the bathroom before you hit the bed--find some kind of regular exercise routine that you can do daily to help your body tire out--do not think about sleep do not force sleep--do not use alarm clocks unless you live alone. When you hit the pillow think of something pleasant and go with it. Make sure your pillow and bed are comfortable for you. Spending money on either is no big deal--sleep is/

i would not use ambiem. IF you need any drug for a short period of time--get a prescription for ativan and only use a 1/2 mg under the tongue for a couple of days until your body gets back into a sleeping pattern--but only use a little ativan after all of the basic natural stuff fails. You can easily get rid of Insomnia--don't think about it--it will go away. Ive had it rough back nearly 20 years ago and everyone suffers from it from time to time---your body is just out of it's biorhythm--dont worry about it.

[Edited by - BRIGGS on 04-30-2008 12:32 AM]

Posted by playa2:

read the bible, guaranteed you will fall asleep

Trust me this will method will cost you nothing and will ggive you knowledge you didn't recieve in college.

READ THE BOOK OF JOHN.

I found a good thing to do is to have a strict routine or order of things to do before you go to bed- brushing the teeth, reading , whatever, and do it in the same exact order over and over again- after a while you do those things at any point and you get sleepy.

First, I agree about keeping the room dark. I usually go to sleep around 2:00 am and wake up around 9:30. make sure you block out that early light if you work weird hours. So, dark thick curtains are a must when you're not getting up early. Do what you have to do to block out the light. The light will awaken you every time.

Also, alcohol is often counter-productive. And don't drink too much caffeine, and particularly don't drink caffeine too late (I know you have to stay alert, so this could be tough).

Now, on falling to sleep - here's my trick: Audiobooks. That's right. Personally, I like stuff with a lot of logistical detail - non-fiction, political, military (but you might prefer something else) It's like having someone read you to sleep. I prefer CDs or something that is time limited - I don't like to wake up four hours later with someone still droning on. (You could even listen to the bible, just to placate Playa )
It's something you have to work on - you have to find something that works for you. By listening to something interesting (to me) I forget about other stuff and drift off to sleep. If you get a nice girlfriend, have her read you to sleep.

Good luck, and let us know how it's going. So long as you are doing a swing shift, it's gonna be tough.

I definitely want our law enforcement officers to get a good night sleep!



[Edited by - basketballjones on 05-02-2008 23:20]

Posted by izybx:

I actually bought blackout curtains which help, but way my windows are designed the light seeps through the cracks around the edges and right into my eyeball.

I have a problem with both falling asleep and staying asleep...as the hours go by Il start looking at the clock and counting down the possible hours of sleep I can get before I have to wake up..5..4 1/2...3..until I get so pissed off that I just give up. Also if something wakes me up Ill start thinking how I might not be able to go back to sleep and then Ill get mad until im wide awake. Yesterday my fiance farted at 8am, and it woke me up out of a dead sleep because of the smell...Im looking at her sleeping all peacefully and I got so mad I couldnt go back to bed.

Im trying a lot of the ideas tho, I just brought a fan into the room, so Ill try that tonight, and I might listen to some audio books, I think wifey has a bunch. Im going to see a DR too next time I get a chance.

Any sleep medication thats not habit forming?

One thing I found that really helps is getting some cardiovascular exercise. If I jog at least 20 minutes sometime during the day, I sleep much better. I also have less anxiety when I do this.

I think you have to find a way to block the light that's seeping around the edges of your curtains. If you need to sleep past sunrise, that is going to continue making it hard.

The hardest time for me is when I know I have to get up early - like when I'm traveling, and I know I have to get up at 6:00 am, I'll toss and turn, look at the clock etc. By the way, I don't like to see any clocks in my bedroom. I always cover any clock faces that glow.

There are a couple of herbal teas I've found to be helpful:

Yogi Tea - "Kava Stress Relief"
Yogi Tea - "Bedtime"

In pill form, there's something called "Silent Night" that I've found works pretty good as well. These are things you'd find at a health food store, or Vitamin Shoppe.

Can you tell I've had trouble with insomnia as well? I don't know what I'd do if I had to work a swing shift though. Probably go insane.



[Edited by - basketballjones on 05-03-2008 12:50]