Anxiety and insomnia

[jdlap]

So I just came off of night shifts a few days ago and I have a few weeks off before school starts. Trying to switch to a normal sleeping pattern has been brutal for me. I tried to go to sleep early (after having only 2 hours of sleep the previous morning) and my anxiety kicks in. I start to get terrified that I wont get to sleep. This has happened for the past 3 nights, and Ive only been having 3-4 hours of sleep. Im dead tired during the day, and when evening comes around that all too familiar feeling of dread haunts me. I cant focus on anything. Tonight I havnt gotten any sleep at all. Zip. The less sleep i get, the more anxious I am, which makes me sleep less. A vicious circle I tell ya.

Has anyone ever tackled this problem before? Im just going to try to stick to the same schedule and hopefully things will eventually sort themselves out. Does melatonin work? I may try to get some for tomorrow night and see how that goes, but i would hate to get addicted to it. These irrational fears seem so rational when night comes around D: Anyways, thank you so much for listening :) Have a great day everyone.

[autumnbee123]

I'm having the same exact problem! I can't sleep at all during the night! And I slept two hours yesterday. Woke up at 8 am so I could stay awake all day and fall asleep at night. Was exhausted all day. Then night comes and I can't sleep.

[jdlap]

Wow Im not alone! It really sucks. I might try to stay up all day again unless I absolutely cant, in which case ill take a quick nap. Hopefully I dont panic out again tomorrow night D: I need sleeeeep zzzz

[autumnbee123]

Me too! Lol. I'm scared to fall asleep when everyone else is sleeping because I'm scared I'll die in my sleep. I'm scared of dying everyday and it sucks!!):

[JLBnole68]

I'm feeling your pain. The past week, I've tried to get to sleep at a normal hour, but I wake up exhausted and feeling anxious. I know I'm not sleeping well or getting the rest I need. It sucks because I keep thinking about all the pressing work I need to get done, but it seems to be snowballing because I'm so tired and can't concentrate. I may try something to aid with sleep myself. As long as you don't take it for a really long time, I don't think there's a big danger of addiction. I know I've got to do something. This lack of sleep as adding fuel to my anxiety. Hope we can all find something to break the pattern soon.

[robocop01]

I work 630am-3pm for one month, then switch and work 1030pm-7am for a month and it rotates like that back and forth. I've done this for 6 years and it's killing me slowly I tell ya! Haha. It takes 3-4 days before I'm on a sleep schedule. You have to sacrifice one good day of sleep to switch the pattern. At night just remember how tired you were during the day, how tired you'll be tomorrow, how soft your bed is and how nice and comfy it is to lay n your bed. You will be asleep in no time. Just think about how your body deserves it's sleep and how great you will feel in the morning when you wake up. Also remember to exercise 3-4 times a week will help you relax and sleep better.

[robocop01]

One last thing, skip the melatonin, because your body produces that itself. If you add to it with pills then your body doesn't produce enough and you'll have trouble falling asleep without it. Melatonin is a last resort and a lot of bodybuilder a use it to get a good 8 hours of sleep.

[nf1234]

Try melatonin please. I use it all the time and ive stopped using it and have had no issues depending on it. It's impossible to get "addicted" to. When I started my new job I totally had to shift my sleep schedule and the melatonin got the job done. I got a solid 8 hours using it. I personally like the instant release ones. Mine are 3mg and I actually only take a quarter to fall asleep. Everyone is different dose wise but it is totally safe. You can take it during the day and it probably wouldn't do much but make you a little sleepy. I know use anxiety folks worry about taking new things but I promise you that you dont need to worry about the melatonin. Let me know how it works out!

Also Sleepytime Extra Tea is good! You could combine that with melatonin if your really having trouble.