Architect wrote: ↑Wed Jul 06, 2022 3:50 pm
Anyone else have difficulty sleeping 7-8 hrs plus ?
Yeah....me.
7 hours is a good night for me. 8 hours is a red letter day mark it on your calendar day for me.
Most of the time I am doing good to get 6 1/2 hours. If I get less than 6 hours I am a slow walking zombie and a real bitch here so when you see me being bitchy here it's a good guess that the night before was a short night.
In my case I know the reason....mental stress at times is a factor because I have a very aging mother who is failing right in front of my eyes and there's a physical reason which encompasses some pain issues that aren't so easy to deal with.
Even when we know the reason it isn't always so easy to fix.
Architect wrote: ↑Wed Jul 06, 2022 3:50 pm
Actually, sleep aids I sleep worse, possible reason I don't desire to get out of bed.
Common complaint....they do a decent enough job helping us fall asleep but they totally suck at helping us stay asleep and the result in the morning is what you experience or what I call the "morning hangover".
Two kinds of insomnia...sleep onset insomnia where we have trouble falling asleep and sleep maintenance insomnia where we have trouble staying asleep (wake often, wake too early and have trouble going back to sleep).
Sometimes I have had both kinds in one night...usually the sleep onset part is from stress from my mom and then the maintenance problem can often be a combination of both since I will often wake and THEN starting worrying about my mom again.
There is a new kind of sleep aid that is RX and for supposedly targeting the sleep maintenance thing more than the sleep onset thing. It's called Belsomra. Supposedly not nearly as much "morning hangover" effect either.
You might have a chat with your doctor about it if it sounds interesting. Horribly expensive if you don't have a decent co pay for a Level 3 Tier drug. So that might be a deal breaker for you. I pay $42 for 30 pills. I might take 2 a week...maybe 3...depending on what I have been up to.
It's supposed to help you stay asleep longer and if you read deep into the studies and literature about it the "sleep longer" part on average is around 45 minutes to maybe 1 hour. Doesn't sound like a lot but sometimes that extra 45 minutes or so is critical to feeling decent the next day. Especially when it means 6 1/2 to 7 hours vs 5 1/2 to 6 hours.
I have some pain issues affecting things as well and I do think that it helps me sleep a little sounder as well so when I take it I don't wake quite so many times tossing and turning from discomfort.
My doctor and I decided to try it because sometimes I just needed some help even after taking a pain pill and the other kinds of sleep aids you aren't supposed to take in combination with an opiate. This one is much safer.
And when I wake up I don't seem to have any morning hangover issues to speak of.
As with any medication though....huge YMMV sticker but I thought I would mention it in case you hadn't heard about it.
If you don't have a thyroid then I assume you take some sort of thyroid med....might look into it as possible source of sleeping troubles. For some people thyroid meds do end up causing sleep problems.
Lots of meds come with that side effect.
I may have to RISE but I refuse to SHINE.
but past year, I haven't slept more then 6 hrs, occasional 8 hrs + 
Cool gel pillow works great, but not for entire body. I tried different bedding, etc... I sleep with just a sheet. 
I only take em for a few day's, add to sleep aid collection. He wanted to try Trazadone, but I declined. I will certainly ask him about Belsomra, he's a fantastic pcp, will try anything to keep me healthy. 
negative. All blood labs normal, including wbc. But Lymphocyte slighted elevated. I'm fighting another virus