# Clair and people with sleep problems



## eric (Jul 8, 1999)

FYI for resources. http://www.users.cloud9.net/~thorpy/


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## plasmon (Sep 29, 2001)

Thanks Eric







Regarding the mailing lists that are mentioned on the link: although it is likely that they are sent by reputable person(s), the list of subscribed email addresses is available for all to see. Sadly, the addresses are frequently harvested by spammers.Something to bear in mind, before you subscribe with your main email address.....


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## Clair (Sep 16, 2000)

Eric,Thanks for this - although I must admit I was totally overwhelmed by all the links and information...I guess I'll take my time picking through it at leisure. On another semi-sleep related matter do you know if SAD sufferers experience physical tiredness (fatigue) or is it just mental tiredness from lack of sleep?This last week has been my worst by far so far with the SAD and at times its all I can do to climb into bed and collapse - can depressive conditions like SAD really do that?Clair


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## eric (Jul 8, 1999)

Clair, so you know I have never been diagnosed with SAD, I just no I have it.Reading this it sounds rare, which is a surprize to me really. I know I have had this since childhood. Some chemicals involed in SAD are also invovled in IBS and depression and Anxiety. Serotonin and melatonin are two of them. http://health.yahoo.com/health/dc/001532/0.html


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## Clair (Sep 16, 2000)

Eric,Thanks {{{{hugs}}}}.Right now I'm feeling pretty alone with this so its nice for me to be able to talk to someone who understands.I'm feeling just so exhausted all the time - even when I have a good night's sleep - I don't know if depressive conditions can have that affect or if its something else.My blood tests all came back fine no indication as to why I feel so tired all the time, so I guess I just have to soldier on and see how the light therapy goes when I get my lamp.Thanks for being there







Clair


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## Nikki (Jul 11, 2000)

Oh Clair,I'm really sorry things are so bad for you at the moment. I hope your new lightbox helps you! When will you get it. I read somewhere that you can feel effects from it in a few days. Which would be good.I got a frantic phone call from my trombone teacher this morning demanding to know where i was! Last night went to friends house to Watch "Top Gun" (woo woo-men in uniform!) and promptly fell asleep as soon as i sat down. about two hours later i woke up when she poked me. i missed the whole film! Grrr...My all nighters finishing coursework finally caught up with me. I'm in a permanment state of zombieness at the moment.


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## wanderingstar (Dec 1, 1999)

Clair, depression can cause a lot of physical as well as mental tiredness. This is why depression has to be ruled out (or, diagnosed and treated) before doctors will consider making a diagnosis of M.E (CFS).


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## eric (Jul 8, 1999)

Clair, you might want to cut out any alcohol for the moment as that can add to this.With that said, to bad you weren't closer and we could hit the pub and talk.







Increased excersise is also very helpful.Distraction (hobbies, reading, dancing, etc.) is also good and depending on the weather, if the sun comes out try to get at least fifteen minutes of it to your eye contact twice a day as this maybe some of where certain chemicals are created that effect SAD.


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## *Luna* (Nov 19, 2001)

I've been having lots of sleep problems and I've also thought I have SAD or a less severe but similar condition I remember reading about. I always get the blues in the winter, especially when the days first begin to shorten, then we turn the clocks back and I'm really bumming because it gets dark so early. I'm not really completely mentally awake, and it's already getting dark, it seems. Once the days start getting longer, I start to feel better.Clair, I'll be curious to hear how your lamp works for you.I've been having such problems with sleep at night. Mike's tapes helped me sleep the first 2-3 nights. They might help me relax a little now, but sleep is still a difficult thing. I try to sleep, and I'm just all twitchy, have itches, need to wipe my dripping nose, etc. Or I just lay there, and sleep does not happen. I think feeling miserable that I've been laying there for a good while and not sleeping makes it worse.I already practice "good bed etiquette"...bed is for sleeping and sex (and mike's tapes) only, and I don't use the bedroom for much else. I wait til I'm kind of sleepy to go to bed, and if I can't sleep after a while, I get up and do something else.I do wonder if lately I'm hovering between just the usual and some true depression. Sometimes I seem OK, sometimes I'm not so sure. And of course I don't have medical coverage right now, so if I don't know if I need help, I'm not paying to see! I also had some negative experiences with therapists many years ago, so I'm a bit reluctant to see one. Usually I'm able to recognize when I'm slipping into real bum behavior and do things to pull myself out of it. I'm doing better with that now, but this sleep thing is really getting to me. I'm not working, so I don't HAVE to get up and go to work, and I'm finding myself hitting snooze for as much as THREE HOURS while only remembering hitting it maybe 5 times, or even less. It takes me so long to fall asleep, but sometimes I try to not sleep as much as I'd like, so I can hopefully sleep earlier the next night. But a lot of times I sleep through the alarm into the afternoon. Then I need to eat something, which often prompts an urgent, soft BM. So I don't like to rush out of the house right away. Then it's getting dark before I know it!! Today it was rainy, so it got dark an hour earlier than usual







That's the other thing, we've had a lot of overcast weather lately, so not much light is outside, much less gets into the house.I'm up right now because I fell asleep earlier watching a movie I'd already seen, then woke up after about an hour and a half, and the stomach pain I'd felt earlier progressed to some getting to know my bathroom better time. And my rear is still sore from it, plus the stomach still hurts some. <sigh> Gotta remember to buy some hydrocortisone cream.I think indulging in some different foods lately might be part of the worsened stomach stuff...it's a little worse than it had been a couple of weeks ago.I feel a little more relaxed with all the side 2 listening I've been doing, but I'm looking forward to hearing the other sides too.Blah blah blah I can't sleep blah blah blah...


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## Michael Mahoney (Oct 11, 2001)

Hi All,A suggestion for when not sleeping.When sleeping becomes a problem for any length of time, you should talk to your medical doctor.As long as there are no obvious reasonit could be that the individuals body clock is out of sync. The expectation not to sleep becomes the norm.To get the process back to where it should be, doing the following for several nights might help.If you can't sleep after about 20minutes then get up and go into another room and do nothing.Just stand there, no TV, no eating, no reading.Just stand there, and it will be surprising at how tired you become again after 15-20 minutes or so. then go back to bed, if not asleep by 20 minutes, do the same again, and repeat this process for a few nights.While it is not an easy answer, the frustration insomnia brings is not easy either.Retrain, since usually we have developed the expectation not to sleep, we can re-introduce the expectation to sleep.Hope this helps and good luck







Best RegardsMike


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## Nikki (Jul 11, 2000)

Sounds like a brilliant way of getting to sleep. Like, how come i can sleep throught my boring lectures (no kidding) but i can't sleep whebn i want to? sODS LAW I BELIEVE IT IS CALLED. Grrr.I really do sleep through my lectures, in fact, its proving quite a problem! I just think, well, i'll rest my eyes for 2 seconds, then i get awoken by a friend poking me and informing me i have been asleep for an hour and i have begun to dribble on the table LOL!Good luck Clair.PS. HOws the wedding?


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## Michael Mahoney (Oct 11, 2001)

Hi Spliff,This made me laugh







Just imagening you snoring and dribbling







Perhaps you should secretly tape your lectures for nighttime listening - the ironic thing is that you woudl perhaps sleep and take in the lecture too







thanks too to you and clair for the e-card when I wasn't well last week







xx It was nice of you to think of it.Best RegardsMike


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## Nikki (Jul 11, 2000)

I know, it is quite amusing! I have been considering taping lectures! But, i have always had a problem with people that tape lectures. They tend to be the people that ask too many questions, and say Hmmm, yes, i agree loudly all through the lecture! Dammit, the lecture is for listening and the SEMINAR is for asking questions!I'd hate to turn into one of those people that bug me! (NO offence intended to anyone that does that BTW-just a generalisation!)


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## Nat (Sep 29, 2001)

Hi all!Sleep is also a problem for me. It does not seem to follow any pattern. When I first got my flare-up (4 months ago - will there ever be a break??), I was in pain most of the time but could easily sleep at night. About a month into it, I started waking up (I swear) every hour. Needless to say, it was hard to work during the day and I felt really tired. Called my GI and she prescribed Ativan. That was a big mistake. Got rid of it because I was so scared of needing it to got to bed for the rest of my life. Needless to say, it was vey hard to sleep afterwards. I know my sleep is connected to my anxiety, but my GP refuses to handle my "state of mind" until all my tests are done. Now, in Canada (particularly in smaller towns), it can take up to 6 months to carry out all the tests. I need restorative sleep - if I don't, I get headaches, back aches and simply can't function. I know exercizing might help but I just can't put my mind to it right now... Just needed to vent...







Nat


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