Insomnia!

Insomnia often leads to sleep deprivation, which causes you not only to be tired but also to feel irritable and lethargic and have difficulty focusing on tasks.

People with insomnia (that’s me) become anxious about sleeping. We worry about not getting enough rest; for some, and this describes me…. just getting ready for bed makes me tense and uneasy and that is exactly what I experience. I panic just walking into my bedroom knowing from experience, all the issues that lie ahead of me for the evening. And, not surprisingly, these feelings make falling asleep enormously difficult.

Everyone has an occasional sleepless night. And a mile-long to-do list makes getting a nightly 8 hours of sleep a challenge. However, for more than 40 million people in the U.S., their chronic lack of sleep is the result of a sleep disorder and poses bigger risks than dark circles under the eyes. Are you part of my group of tossers and turners? You may also suffer the effects of sleep deprivation.

I just recently went through a bout of 4 days of NO SLEEP at all and then finally last night I got some sleep with the aid of my nightly sleeping pill, they do not always work because I’ve been on them for so long. Walking around like a Zombie is not pleasant. It put a halt to my regular daily routine and I didn’t dare go behind the wheel until I finally achieved some very much needed rest…...sigh!

My husband was sound asleep the minute his head hit the pillow. Most men sleep just fine.

I recently viewed on Diane Sawyer’s segment on this topic for women regarding insomnia and a recent study for over 10 years is now completed making doctors aware of the seriousness of insomnia…previously, they would just ignore us or give us a script that after a while, it just stops working. Doctors don’t know too much about prescriptions. They rely on that big book in their office to look up a drug that describes the symptoms their patients are complaining about but they have no clue about the side effects or which one actually works best. I’ve personally seen them do this when I worked in an office of Cardiologists.

I recall once during lunchtime and the doctors were also seated in the lunch room, I asked out of curiosity, how to they select which drug to prescribe for their patients when there maybe four or five prescriptions to choose from. The doctor laughed and said, “do you really want to know”. Yeah, I really wanted to know…his reply was “It’s the Rep of the day”. Hmmmmmmmmmm! Have any of you noticed how extremely good looking these Reps are? The women are beautiful and the men are gorgeous! So, your script relies on the Rep of the day…that good looking person coming in pushing their drug from the Pharmaceutical Drug World!

For many, simply changing a few nighttime routines and lifestyle habits and practicing good sleep hygiene relieves sleep difficulties. But for those whose sleep problems are ongoing and disrupt daily life like me require more treatment. If you suffer from chronic sleep problems or aren't satisfied with how you're sleeping, hopefully your Primary Healthcare provider can help pinpoint the cause and work with you to find an appropriate sleep therapy. Good Luck, I’m been suffering like this for well over 11-12 years. No doctor has been able to help me so far.

I decided to revert to alternative medications from Health Food Stores. If any of you have any suggestions, please leave a comment. Keep in mind, I have tried just about everything out there, from old wives tales to doctor’s suggestions of sleeping in a dark room, keeping the room at 68 degrees, do this and not that, yatta, yatta, yatta.

I believe in the power of prayers. I also decided to bring God back into my life. We all stray away from church and it’s time I go back. I need to feel secure again and to stop letting problems rent space in my head. I need to be number one again and care about me again. So, that is on the top of my “To Do List”!

I'd also like to thank God for bringing good friends into my life!