How do you break the early morning awakening cycle?

Signs and symptoms
1

Hello everyone,

I've written about this before, but after last night I just have to do it again in hopes some of you actually managed to break a vivious cycle like this.

I've never been a great sleeper, I would in the course of my life often have trouble falling asleep, but the silver lining of that kind of insomnia would be that once I would fall asleep, I would stay asleep as long as I needed.

Now my insomnia completely changed its M.O. and has made a 180° turn in the last two years. I now FALL asleep mostly without a problem (since I'm exhausted), but no matter what SOMETHING wakes me up early in the morning and I can't STAY asleep. I used to fix this with Valium, but lately it's not been working as well, which isn't a surprise after one uses it for two years instead of two weeks.

I'm desperate. When I had trouble falling asleep in the past, I realised I was mostly doing it to myself, worrying about sleep and what would happen if I missed my chance to sleep at night, but I BEAT that insomnia by changing my mindset, not caring what happens if I don't sleep and KNOWING that things will correct themselves after I got a couple of "good nights" in a row. And it worked!

But this? These sneaky subconscious awakenings once I'm already sleeping, how do I fight that? How do I beat that? Night after night I sleep for 5 or 6 hours, and if I understand sleep restriction correctly things should improve after a while, but I'm stuck at this "limit" , and it isn't enough for me to function properly in my daily life.

I'm sorry for the rant , but please if you have ANY suggestions, share them with me. I'll try anything, is there a sleeping pill designed specifically for returning to sleep? When I fall asleep at night I can feel how my brain is tired and how it lulles me into sleep, but whencI wake up that feeling is gone, like I've used up the melatonin for that day and now I have nothing to initiate sleep on.

Once again, if anyone experienced this particular type of insomnia, this sneaky early awakening kind, and especially if you beat it, either through chemicals or some other way, let me know .

Eddy

2

Hi, since no one seems to have an answer for you, I'll try to write something,  I want you to know I really hope you'll find a way to improve your sleep pattern! I know it's difficult to go back to sleep when you are anxious! 

I'm not a doctor, so you should ask your doctor or a specialist for help, especially if you are  a minor. (You could try a doctor who uses both drugs and omeopatic remedies and ask) This said, 

Do you point your alarm before sleeping? I realized, I probably got up hours before the right time because I wasn't using an alarm and my mind was worried of sleeping too much . 

Things you probably know: no coffee no tea, no chocolate, no internet a few hours before sleeping, drink something relaxing instead I think you could have sleep anxiety and fear of not sleeping , try yoga and calming  videos, they are  useful , search for ' anxiety relief ' or for 

breathing exercises. Voices who help you to stay calm before sleeping.

Trying something  that is not Valium? ( I don 't know what) I 'd say melatonin but I don't know if it's recommended at that hour of the day, if not, maybe magnesium? ( choose a reliable and safe brand) 

25 mg Seroquel 

and immediately trying to sleep after a few minutes, helped me a few times but it is not recommended at that time of the day as an everyday drug and it needs to be prescribed by a doctor. 

Milk and cookies?  Sometimes they helped me, sometimes not.

I really hope you'll find a way to sleep more ! Hugs! 

3

Thanks for the thoughtful reply,

You've hit the nail on the head with "but I'm not sure it's recommended at that time of day". That's the core of the problem, yes. Which drug to use to prolong sleep for an hour or two... probably doesn't exist.

I'm not a minor, I'm 30, but I suffer from multiple sclerosis and that illness doesn't go well with sleep in many cases, mine obviously included. I don't think I'm anxious because I fall asleep every night without a problem, but when I wake up neither sleepy nor rested, that's a different matter. Does anxiety wake people up, too? I thought it only prevented people from fallinf asleep in the first place, but perhaps it can wake you up as well, I don't know. I still suspect MS more.

Seroquel 25 mg, not a bad idea, I just hope it won't make me sleep through my alarm ( I get up at 6:30 for work, but wake up around 4:30).

Anyway, thanks for answering. I think I will ask my neuro for advice (once I get ahold of him, I only get one visit a year).

I hope you sleep well. Thanks again.

4

Hi, I think sleep anxiety can wake you up, when I was very anxious about my sleep pattern sometimes I woke up after only two hours of sleep . When anxiety started to vanish it stopped. I started to unwind a few hours before sleep , It was what I called my hour of ‘nothing’. I just in bed doing nothing, just thinking , for a hour , realizing how slow time is if you do nothing calmed me down.

It could be also that something wakes you up like light, or else that we don’t know.

hope you 'll be able to sleep better. I f you can’t see your doctor soon try asking an online advice to some online doctor they usually tell you to go see someone in person but they may help.

:slight_smile:

5

Hi,

yeah, you could be right, it could be anxiety, since I really can’t see anything else being the culprit. When I wake up, the world is still asleep, no noise or light to wake me up.
It’s so annoying, I can’t describe.

I’m still on Valium, it worked the last few times, but I will ask my doctor for something else so I can switch between different pills and hopefully postpone dependency.

Thank you for your answer.