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I've been an insomniac most of my life. I've tried sleep studies, medication, herbs, acupuncture, etc. and nothing seems to help. I recently became a vegetarian and am considering becoming vegan. I stopped taking medication about two months ago, because my husband and I are trying to get pregnant. I've cut out refined sugars, and try not to eat after 7:00 pm. I'm still not sleeping. I'm wondering if any Kind Lifers out there have experienced similar issues and have found relief. I could really use some help/support! I'm willing to do almost anything to get a good night's sleep.
I'm sorry to hear your distress Wendy :( Sounds really frustrating. Do you know if you have any other emotional symptoms associated with it? For me I found that anxiety of having to get sleep actually kept me awake. For instance I would lie in bed and get anxious that I wasn't falling asleep and then I would look at the clock and see that I only have 3 hours left before i need to wake up! After I learned that just laying in bed and relaxing your mind and body actually has the same effect as sleep, the anxiety went away and I wasn't stressing my body out to fall asleep anymore.
Besides that, I found that lifting weights really REALLY helped me fall asleep. Not cardio, weights. It just really tires out my muscles and my body just falls asleep at night.
http://themacroveg.blogspot.com/
Yes, I do get anxiety before trying to go to sleep. I sleep so terribly, and have for so long, that I'm usually stressed about going to bed. I don't really have any outside stress that would be causing me additional anxiety, other than little day to day things. I have just started working out again, so hopefully that will help a bit. I will try to up my strength training, because my focus has been on cardio. Thanks so much for the response. I appreciate it!
I know when I swim laps before I go to bed I sleep SO well, but for many of my friends it takes them a while to wind down before they can sleep so that may not be a good idea.
When I have problems sleeping tho, it's usually just because I have too much going on in my head that I can't shut down. A few months ago I started listening to an audio book on my ipod before bed - lights off, sleep mask on, cozy under the covers - and when I notice I'm not actively listening anymore I shut it off and pass out. Many times when I start it the next evening I have to skip back several tracks to a point where I remember what's happening in the story (one night I'd actually slept through 4-5 chapters!!). When I ran out of new audiobooks I started listening to podcasts and they work just as well... for me it's just about forcing myself to stop thinking and when I'm listening to the story I can't think so it gives my body time to shut down.
I've also heard that you should quit any screen time 30-60 minutes before bed, so no tv and no computer... it helps your body to shut down for the night. I hope you find something that works for you!
Thank you for the input, ladies! I appreciate it! I'll put some of your suggestions in to practice! I already read in bed, but usually nonfiction, stimulating reading. I think I need to find something a little more brainless to relax. I've also heard that using a humidifier w/ lavendar helps!
Hi Wendy, how are things going? Hahaha that's funny about the reading, yea try find something super boring to read lol. The humidifier w/lavendar sounds great. Let me know if you find a good one out there that you recommend.
( www.themacroveg.blogspot.com) .
Even the slightest deficiency in magnesium can sometimes contribute to insomnia. Try taking a Calcium+Magnesium supplement after dinner. It works every time. Rainbow makes a great food-based one.
Thanks so much for all of the great ideas! I just bought a new mattress, which is helping me feel a bit better, even if I don't actually sleep. I've also increased my work outs a bit as per my doctor's rec, so we'll see if that helps! My mom recently recommended the calcium/magnesium idea (she's a retired nurse and swears by it), so it sounds like I'm on the right track! I have cut almost all coffee out of my life, but not completely yet. I'm drinking one cup at 7:30. I am going to try and transition to decaf soon. Thanks again for all of the great ideas! I really do appreciate it!
That's great to hear Wendy! My dad made transition from caffeinated coffee to decaf to grain coffee. Don't know if you've heard of it, it's macrobiotic and made from whole grains. It's in between a coffee and tea kind of consistency. My dad does not like drinking tea he loves his lattes. So now he makes this grain coffee latte at night :) The brand he uses is called Teeccino (http://www.teeccino.com/).
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