Question about difficulty sleeping

[emom]

I've researched the threads but haven't found an answer (probably didn't look hard enough) so I'm taking the easy way out and asking up front.

I am finding it difficult to sleep.  Now, I did read that this can be a problem...but mine seems to be that I could sleep all day long with no problem whatsoever.  But let it be time to sleep, and I can't.  I have been getting more active, and walking and such, and it doesn't seem to make a difference.  I get really tired, both physically and mentally, and I can't get to sleep til around 2 or 3 am.  Yet I have to fight not to take naps during the day.

Did anyone else have this problem and did your 'circadian' rythems finally get turned around???

Thanks for any info.

emom

[kathleen anna]

Hi emom.......I am 3 1/2 months post surgery and I do also remember not being able to fall asleep at night.  I also could sleep during the day, but I found that nighttime was an issue. I am not sure why that was.  I just thought that my sleep cycle was out of wack. It took a little while, but now I seem to have no problem falling asleep.   I have had changes in my sleep patterns also.  Before my surgery, I had to fall asleep with the tv on and it usually stayed on all night.  Even throughout the night, I would wake up and fall back to sleep with the tv.  Now, I need complete silence!!!  I think my brain just likes the quiet...it doesnt have to process anything!  I think that this is another of one of "this takes time" issues for your body to work thru.  Hang in there.........Kathleen Anna

[emom]

Thanks!  I was really thrown by the fact that daytime sleeping felt good but I couldn't at night.  Makes me feel better that I'm not imagining it.

A friend suggested that I try melatonin and magnesium.  I'm going to do that tonight.  Also, this has been my most active day since surgery - I've done two loads of laundry, stripped and made my bed, heated and served dinner and had a friend over to visit for about 5 hours.  I hope to be completely ready for bed and to sleep well.  Here's hoping.

It's funny what you said about tv.  We sleep with movies on.  I'm ok as long as it's playing in the background, but wake up if it's off.  However, it has to be a series or movie I know by heart (there are several, like the Lord Peter Whimsey trilogy).  If it's something I don't know, it keeps me up or I can't handle it.  Kind of my brain's equivalent of having peace and quiet, I guess, to have something totally familiar.

Thanks again for the response.

emom

[leapyrtwins]

emom -

are you on steroids?  They can really mess up your sleeping.

Jan

[lori67]

I have a similar problem.  I have a hard time falling and staying asleep at night, but if I stop moving and actually get to sit down during the day, I can fall asleep in a flash!  Lucky for me, I rarely get the change to sit down during the day.  I don't know if this is a post-op thing or not - I've had trouble sleeping at night for years, but I've never really felt the need to nap during the day until after my AN surgery.

And I used to have to fall asleep with the tv on also.  Now, I have to have quiet.

I always think "wow, I did a lot today and I should sleep well tonight", but it doesn't always work out that way.

Good luck - I hope you sleep well tonight!
Lori

[Mark241]

Guess I'm sort of the opposite, the only way I find myself able to fall asleep is with the TV on, really helps' wash out the tinnitus, of course I find the most boring programs to watch. 

[emom]

leaprytwins - nope, not on stearoids anymore, except for my normal Symbacort, which gave me no problem pre-surgery. 

I used a melatonin last night, and it helped tremendously.  Only trouble is that a 3mg tablet is too much, and I'm sleepwalking today!!  I'm going to try half a dose tonight.  Still need my boring, know-it-by-heart video to sleep well, too. 

But the best thing of all is that, since I've been reading the forum the last few days, and talking with you guys and other friends, the depression has lightened considerably.  It's still an uphill/downhill take what you get day by day, but my heart feels lighter.

Thank goodness for the AN discussion board and the good people on it.

A good day to you all.

Love, emom

[Syl]

Emom:

After my surgery I had trouble sleeping straight through the night. Most nights I was woken up by a headache. The rest of the nights, I just couldn't sleep straight through. It was well over 1.5 yrs post-op & after I began taking calcium supplements before bedtime that I began to sleep straight through.

Before the surgery I used to nap during the day. Since the surgery, it had been impossible to nap. I would lay there tired as can be, but couldn't sleep. You'd think that the weeks right after surgery would have been filled with day naps. I tried & tried, but couldn't. As time passes it does get easier. On weekends, I love to nap because I can now.

All the RXs that we as AN patients need to take to deal with the side-effects of surgery can certainly affect how we rest at night. I don't know if this has any effect either way, but I keep away from alcoholic beverages. There are herbal teas that help relax the body, such as chamomille. I always keep it handy. I also make it a point to take vitamins. I keep away from medications as much as I can, RX or over the counter. I take Tylenol for headaches but try to keep that to a minimum. I know that if I didn't drink coffee, I might rest better at night.

I hope this helps.

Syl

[Kaybo]

Just curious Syl, what all Rx's are you referring to that AN patients take?  I have never taken anything since I had surgery (until I had my thyroid removed) and that really seems to surprise people - I guess they think since you had brain surgery/stroke, you now need a lot of medicines??

K

[GramaSuby]

As an adult I have slept through the night w/o waking only 5x, that's 36 years!  I can fall asleep OK but wake 4-6x a night.  But after surgery I lay awake each night going through the trauma from the complications of the surgery.  Now, 3 mos later it is much much better
as far as being able to get to sleep quicker. No change in the wakefulness.  Sleeping pills are no help except to make me more tired when I do wake.

[Syl]

K:

I'm referring to meds such as those that went home with me from the hospital post-surgery. Meds such as stool softener, Codeine w/ Tylenol though I didn't take any of them. I have taken Tylenol & still do. For my headaches, I took Pamelor for almost a year, but stopped taking that after it stopped helping.

It's great that you didn't have to take any meds. There are many of us who have & I'm sure those must have some effect on how well we rest or get by during the day. Pamelor was supposed to help me rest, but it made me very groggy & getting up in the morning was so darn difficult.

Syl

[Kaybo]

Ohhh...I see now...I did leave the hospital with a whole slew of meds...including one that I had alrady received in shot form.  YIKES!!

K 

[keithk]

Walgreens sells Melatonin in 1mg doses.

[leapyrtwins]

I didn't bring home any meds - except for Colace which is an OTC stool softener.

Doc gave me a Rx for vicodin, but I had no pain so I never had it filled.

Melatonin does wonders for sleepless nights.  My son who has ADHD takes it sometimes and it really helps him sleep.

Jan

[Syl]

When I was in the hospital, I remember sleeping for 20 mins at time, then 2 hrs other times. This went on throughout the day & throughout the night. The nurse would come by to check my vitals. I'd sleep some more. Then voices of nurses chatting or patients yelling or screaming would wake me. It was so hard to get any rest. The nurse with the graveyard shift was the one who would change my sheets & wash me. It doesn't help that I've always been a light sleeper. You think I could just lay on the pillow so my good ear would tune out the noise. Unfortunately I couldn't move much. Even at night, the nurses would chat. For some reason it was harder to tune them out at night. Then I'd be woken up to get my vitals checked again. This went on for 5 days. I'm sure all this inconsistentcy with my sleep cycle also contributed to the difficulty I had sleeping straight thru the night for over a year after surgery.

Syl