Posted by sleepygirl on January 19, 2006, at 14:50:55
In reply to Re: Is my need for sleep normal or a problem?, posted by babybear on January 18, 2006, at 17:38:48
> Sleepygirl,
>
> Thank you so much for sharing some of your story, and for the good wishes. Can I ask some additional questions (you can always tell me to buzz off).You don't have to buzz off, now would I be on this crazy site if I minded reading and responding to posts? :-)
answer: uh-uh no way> Do you find that you have to almost 'bank' the sleep? Like if you don't get enough for a couple of days that you have to sleep extra to make up for it? Or that if you have an extra-anxious day that you require additional sleep time because of it?
yes, I absolutely have to make up for it.
If I have an extra anxious day it takes a while to wind down enough to sleep, so then I lose sleep and must sleep more later
>
> In reviewing my own situation, it does seem that I use the sleep as an escape or a regeneration or something like that after having a stressful time. My t has said that I tend to disassociate as a coping mechanism, and I guess maybe sleep is a form of disassociation.yeah I guess I've used it a lot to. I've had this lovely ability to "space out"
>
> I wish I could sleep at night, but I seem to be my most 'alert' at night, probably because of my past trauma history, so I tend to lay awake half the night and then finally get exhausted enough to sleep when the sun comes up.
>
> I liked being on the Seroquel from the prospective of regulating the sleeping time, but the nightmares were just too much for me to take. Well, and too much for my husband to take too, since I'd often be "defending myself" during them, which resulted in punching and kicking him on quite a number of occasions. Poor guy. I probably gave him some permanent sleep phobias of his own. ;-)I seem to yell at people in my sleep, it's so strange to wake up that way!
>
> I sometimes take Ambien when I can't get to sleep at night and know that my sleep-bank is overdrawn, but I don't want to take it very often, so I really limit it. It seems so odd to need sleep so badly, and then not be able to sleep at night, but that's how it is.That flight/fight response sounds like it's got you in it's clutches- like you're stuck in the trauma response. I know I've got a lot of this myself, but I can really appreciate it in you.
I've used sonata - it was nice
Well sometimes for me the events of the day and pressing issues go round and round my head when I try to go to sleep. Sleep can be a really difficult thing to come by when you just can't relax. It takes comfortability after all, and the ability to resign yourself to sleep - a bit of a surrender if you will. If things feel at all unsafe or unpredictable or whatever, sleep can be hard. I have had some success with slow deep breathing - it's just ONE good focus instead of a million, and a nice self soothing thing.
Is therapy helping at all?
>
> Thanks again for sharing, it has really meant the world to me.It's not a problem at all. I'm around here quite often. I hope you can tackle some of this stuff. Keep hope alive :-)
-sleepygirl(aka Sharon)
poster:sleepygirl
thread:599851
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/health/20051214/msgs/600764.html