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My Sleeping Disorder Information |
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I
have to preface this information by saying that I am not a
doctor, but rather one of the many people on this planet trying
to get a good night's sleep. I have a history of sleep
issues in my family and perhaps reading my story will give you
some insight into your own sleeping problems.
I am a first generation American and periodically, I
will travel to India with my father to visit relatives. My
first issues with sleep occurred during these visits as we both
had vivid dreams and experienced restlessness which led to lack
of sleep. At some point, I got sick with unrelated stomach
issues and became so preoccupied with myself that I didn't see
that my father hadn't been sleeping more than 2 hours per night.
Upon waking one night, I observed my father, turning
switches on and off in the hotek and generally acting
'agitated'. He was running over chess games in his head
and was consumed with anxiety to the point of insanity. I
eventually took him to the emergency room where they gave him a
shot which put him to sleep instantly. After 20+ hours of
catching up on his sleep, he was back to his old self.
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My Sleeping Disorder Tips
Don't let worrying
about sleep keep you up - If I can't sleep, worrying about it
never helps. I usually read a book and am asleep before I know
it. Counting sheep is designed to do the same thing...get your
mind off your problems!
Know Yourself -
Universities do studies to determine what helps most people, but you
don't care about 'most' people. Only you have the attention
and ability to find out what works in YOUR case.
Consider your life
as a whole - There is no single cause for most anything.
While you may have a chemical imbalance or genetic factor which
leads you to sleep problems, these things are often triggered by
environmental factors like job stress, lack of excercise, or too
much caffeine.
Control the drugs,
don't let them control you - Learn about every substance
before you use it and if your Doctor won't answer your questions,
perhaps you need to find a Doctor who will. |
This marked the beginning of many years of sleep disorder
awareness in my family, as my father has required great care to prevent
similar episodes. He has had relapses, and as someone who shares his
genetic makeup, I can "feel" some of the issues he complains about in my
body. For example, when he talks about anxiety and how it relates to
his sleep, it reminds me of my compulsive need to place a chair in front of
the front door when I go to bed, to alert me of intruders. Our
similarity has to be related to genetics, but I do not believe
this means I am cursed to repeat his problems as I get older. Instead,
I have learned a number of lessons from these experiences which will
hopefully keep me a balanced, well rested, person as I get older.
One is that sleep and your mental balance are intrinsically
related. My father is older and not sleeping for anyone of his age is
probably going to have serious mental health consequences. I am
younger, but I understand that sometimes I'm irritable when I don't sleep
and that understanding when I am irritable is key to preventing cycles of
anxiety. For instance, I used to fight with my girlfriend and let
replays of these fights keep me up at night. One sure fire cure for
this is to stop these fights altogether. Sleep, moodiness, and your
life's situation are all related and it's entirely possible to get into
downward spirals where no one area is the problem. Recognizing these
cycles is key.
I discovered the importance of one's surroundings.
Before, I just assumed that when one was tired, one would sleep. On
future trips, I made sure that a separate room was available for receiving
relatives, so that our bedrooms were reserved for sleeping. Being over
stimulated by the presence of so many relatives made both of us excited and
unable to sleep well, and the 'ghosts' of these relatives were all around
our room, long after they left. I also would move my father to a
better hotel which more closely resembled his sleeping experience in the US.
Awareness and being proactive, without creating more anxiety, is key.
Know yourself, learn what relaxes you and what doesn't, and apply what you
learn.
I also discovered how anxiety about sleep can be a further insomnia
cause. Stressing about sleep has led to many sleepless nights for my
father and I continually try to maintain a sense of humor about his
problems. While they are serious, there is only so much one can do.
Do what you can and don't stress about what you can't do.
I learned about the place of drugs (ie. Trazodone, ambien, mood
stabilizers), at least for our situation. I learned to trust doctors,
but to make my own decisions. When my father had his episode in India,
he needed to sleep and the doctor's use of a tranquilizer was certainly the
right call. But years later, when he had a relapse upon return from
India, he was given Haldol, an anti-psychotic drug which caused side effects
far worse than his current problems. Eventually, we found the right
cure through a mixture of simple relaxation and occasional use of more mild
mood stabilizers, but it is important to realize that doctors, by necessity,
apply their trade on the basis of statistics. They'll do what helps
most people, and rarely did they tailor their treatments enough to our
specific situations. It was up to us to find out what worked for us
and not the general case. I learned to look up every medication on the
internet and not to be shy about asking questions. Find out the
'softer' issues of a drug's side effects from the personal stories of
others.
Finally, I learned that every drug has consequences
(addiction, withdrawal, side effects) and so it paid off to try milder
solutions relating to diet and lifestyle before resorting to them. This site
is littered with links (see side bars) to alternative products which I use
to promote sleep. I am just one person with one experience, so I don't
claim to know more than your physician, but I would encourage anyone to be
aware of ALL the options that are out there and not to blindly
follow the advice of anyone.
Disclaimer
I am not a physician and any information gleaned from this site is
solely my layman's opinion based on my experience. One thing I
absolutely believe is that people should take responsibility for their
medical decisions rather than relying solely on the advice of others.
Do not rely on my advice, but rather take it for what it's worth and
evaluate it along with your experience, your physician's experience,
and your accumulated wisdom. |
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