This insomnia thing is getting old really fast.

[lightningandsnow]

I mostly have the wake-up-five-times-a-night variety, as well as the sleep-9-hours-a-night-and-feel-like-I-haven't-slept variety. The kicker is I was actually on a very effective sleep aid (Trazodone), but I'm no longer on it because I was on a sedating mood stabilizer for a while. I'm no longer on the sedating mood stabilizer, but my psychiatrist doesn't want me on more than two psych meds at once (I'm on lithium and zoloft for bipolar disorder), so I doubt I'd be able to go back on Trazodone even though it helped me a lot.

And I feel like an asshole because I've had this tendency to fall asleep in the middle of the day (including during classes and the like) for a few years ago. No, really, I'm trying to be rude. I can't stay awake!

I'm not asking for medical advice. Merely venting.

[nolabear]

1. I feel your pain.

Mine's menopausal but it's plagued me for several years. Same as you; I fall asleep fine but wake up often and sometimes spend the whole night just below the level of consciousness. I hate sleeping aids so only now and then take something like benadryl or melatonin, which can be surprisingly helpful. If I have three nights in a row with little sleep I'm not a happy camper.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

2. Have you tried Benedryl?

Makes me sleep like a baby.

[BlueIris]

4. I was just going to post this.

I don't think it's a long term solution, because it can work like a stimulant, too, but it's helped me get temporary relief from insomnia.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

3. Have you been checked for sleep apnea?

That can cause your symptoms.

Low thyroid can also cause the distressing combination of being tired all the time and yet unable to sleep.

[gvstn]

5. Benadryl can give just enough of a push.

I personally am very responsive to Valerian since this stuff works for me. Sleepytime Xtra: http://www.amazon.com/Celestial-Seasonings-Sleepytime-Extra-20-Count/product-reviews/B000E65OQA

I drink Sleepytime tea all the time in the evenings as just something hot to drink. A few years ago I bought a box of the Sleepytime Extra to try it out but mixed it together with the regular Sleepytime in a canister and forgot about it. Some nights I was ready for bed at 8:30p.m. I kept thinking what is going on? After a week or two I realized I must have been drinking the Sleepytime Xtra and that it actually made me sleepy rather than just calm.

It might be worth trying a cup or two, for a night or two, to see if you see any results.

Good Luck! :)

[siligut]

6. Insomnia can just make everything irritating.

If you don't sleep, you don't have any energy or fight in you and everyday type things take so much effort. So sorry, I went through it. I found relief with Sleepytime Tea and Doxylamine Succinate...the sleep aid in Nyquil. Costco has it but it has a brand name, and you can buy that at drugstores, it doesn't have the paradoxical effect Benadryl can have sometimes.

[dawg]

7. Call me on the phone ....

I'll tell you all about my life. Then I'll tell you about all the documentaries I've been watching on Netflix. Pretty soon, you'll be out like a light.

[Primitive Mind]

8. I feel ya.

When I was about twenty I took to working two jobs, nearly forty hours a week at both, just to try and support myself through full-time college. I haven't been able to sleep more than eight hours in a night more than once a week since then, and it is usually more like four. I can only sleep when I physically exhaust out.