Insomnia.

mm that hour of sleep from 1am to 2am really hit the spot.

yeah totally. although on night 3 i am usually too exhausted to need a sleep aid.

― mookieproof, Wednesday, February 27, 2013 3:31 PM (1 month ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

one thing ive learned about my particular brand of insomnia is that exhaustion does not equal sleep. i can be physically exhausted as fuck but the brain still says 'no sleep for you, sucker'

has anyone tried that sleep aid that you can take at 3am?

vodka?

whiskey?

self-abuse?

As a possible temporary fix, there's another new benzodiazepine derivative that's become available online in the U.K. - Pyrazolam - that was apparently developed by the Russians & is currently legally available at very low price (30 pills for £10) - I won't name a reliable site these can be bought from unless requested.

Chemical info from government drug info site:

Pyrazolam is a benzodiazepine derivative which is water soluble.
Pyrazolam has a duration of action of approximately 6 hours
Pyrazolam has no active metabolites.
Pyrazolam has activity approximately x12 that of diazepam (Valium)
Pyrazolam acts as a high-affinity GABA positive allosteric modulator with a moderate duration of action.
Pyrazolam is used primarily as an anxiolytic.
Pyrazolam causes less ataxia and sedation than comparable agents at normal doses.
Pyrazolam is more selective for the α2 and α3 receptor subtypes than most benzodiazepines.

But it was this awesome 'trip report' I found online that persuaded me this was worth trying at least once:

Tried these last night was very happy with the results. As stated before they defiantly have the anxiolytic properties with sedation.

Just to note I have a bit of tolerance issues over from abuse of similar substances. Start lower if you are new to this class of drug.

9.00pm took one with a friend an hour or after eating some pizza.

9.10 Starting to feel something happening. Feel very content

9.40 Decide to add another one feeling this could add to the effect.

10.00 Feeling very content with life. Been outside with a friend to smoke and he agrees that we are in a good head-space.

10.40 Add one more while my mate chooses a movie. The Green Hornet really? Normally I might have objected but don't really care at this moment in time. I reach over and grab some ice cold peach ice tea which is going down well.

12.30 Decide to have another one.

1.30 1/2 Sublingual tastes pretty nasty. Did feel effects hit hard quick though although this could be from the one previous.

2.00 Took one more and chatted to a friends although the sentences were not long they were profound. I had a very calm mind and knew that pushing it any further wasn't needed. I probably could have stopped at 3 to be honest.

3h Went to bed. I could have stayed up but wanted to wake fairly early to continue cutting my garden hedges...

Woke up feeling great about 9.00am. If I could have stayed in bed for longer I would definitely have. Don't feel bad today at all. Still got a very clear head and been in a positive mood.

In reflection I did not need to take so much but alas it happened. Although this didn't negatively effect me at all it might others with less tolerance.

I wouldn't really rate this recreationally apart from that we were both very content with life. I had no memory problems at all etc

Sorry that it's brief but I am off to the pub to meet friends and don't want to be late.

the gap here especially funny:

10.40 Add one more while my mate chooses a movie. The Green Hornet really? Normally I might have objected but don't really care at this moment in time. I reach over and grab some ice cold peach ice tea which is going down well.

12.30 Decide to have another one.

On a serious note, from personal experience with lifelong insomnia, the shit that I would most advise fellow insomniacs never to take are the over-the-counter anti-histamine based 'sleep aids' like Sominex. These fuck up your mental equilibrium way worse than benzodiazepines IMO.

agreed

yeah, when I've tried those they've made little to no difference as far as getting to sleep goes, but in terms of struggling to wake after ten hours of sleep and my head being a fuzzy mess all through the next day, GOOD WORK THX.

they're especially inadvisable when you wish to wake up early to continue cutting your garden hedges

Benzos are really not the greatest choice of sleep aids. It's not really what they're for. But I've turned to them in moments of insomnia.

I agree that benzos are far from ideal, and in fact become soul-destroying if taken long-term. But as a short-term fix they're vastly superior to the likes of Sominex & Zopiclone

II'm not sure yet if its coincidence or not but since I started wearing a sleep mask I've been sleeping like a log - I'm only sleeping 4-6 hours but the quality seems a lot higher. I have no idea why its making such a significant difference.

Should note that the Sominex brand name is used on a completely different drug in the US and UK. In the UK it's promethazine, which in the US is the presription drug Phenergan and doesn't help me fall asleep at all. American Sominex is exactly the same thing as the Benedryl allergy med, which does make me groggy a bit but that effect wears off if I use it more than a few days in a row.

I've used benzos, mainly Xanax, to help me fall asleep, and like others here find it far better for that purpose than nonprescription antihistamines. But Ambien is the only thing that reliably knocks me out, and quickly, and doesn't leave me tired the next day. Although it does often make me forget what I did the night before. Also, it's the most addictive substance I've ever used, so be careful....

Yes, it's correct that Sominex is a different drug in UK as compared to US, but I didn't think this was worth pointing out because in both cases the active ingredients are horrible anti-histamine sedatives

yeah agree with your general assessment. Antihistamines suck as a sleep aid, but their status as the only non-prescription sleep med makes them way more popular than they should be.

Also a major dud - Lunesta (US only I think), which actually does help me fall asleep, but leaves this awful metallic tinge in my mouth, as if i'd been sucking on old pennies, that ruins my sense of taste for the next 24 hours. Over 30% of ppl experience this side effect with this drug.

Yes, Lunesta is Zopiclone and that metallic after-taste is just awful. If this is all your doctor is willing to offer you, don't settle for it, & just buy something better off the internet instead.

team insomnia

I can't believe what I need to do to get tired and have a good sleep.
On Monday, I got up at 5am, spent all day in Wales, walked about 15 miles along the coast and got home about 5pm. I Felt a little tired when I got back, but started coming around about 8.
I must have fallen asleep between 12 and 1am, but still woke up at 6am wide awake. I felt like I'd had a good sleep, but what do I need to do to get to sleep and sleep longer than 4/5 hours.
Unfortunately, I can't spend my days walking along beaches to get enough fresh air and exercise to make me tired.

hi dere

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/marek-doyle/help-me-sleep-magnesium-secret-to-sleep-problems_b_3311795.html

trying a magnesium supplement next week

interesting. thanks for the link. i have been doing OK recently, but am worried about the future when i expect to have more stress than i do now.

How can you tell if you need more magnesium? Well if you're having difficulty in going to sleep, find that you wake easily or wake before the alarm, you may be short. If you get cramps regularly, find that fluids pass through you easily, have cold hands and feet, experience tightness in the neck and shoulders or notice twitches in small muscles (the eyelid, for example), you will probably benefit from addressing this. By far the most noticeable change is sleep quality.

yes to all these except the peeing

that all sounds like me except i think my diet contains a bunch of magnesium according to a website of "magnesium rich foods." i think i might try a supplement anyway.

Yesterday I witnessed something very nasty. Slept a black, exhausted sleep last night, but tonight I barely dare shut my eyes for the flashbacks & consequent surges of fury. I'm out of sleeping pills. I am disgusted at myself, and the world. /endrant #gothefucktosleep

ugh yeah, I am having this thing where right when I start to drift off, I get horrible cramps, which is most surely an electrolyte thing. I was a bit freaked because I started an antidepressant, which can cause low salt levels. I think in the summer I just gotta pay more attention to how much I am sweating and make sure I replace everything. But yeah, nothing worse than tossing and turning. Don't have insomnia per se, but my sleep cycle is completely off-track and has been for most of my life. It's making normal life kind of hard.

My new memory foam bed has made a huge difference -I don't toss and turn and wake myself constantly anymore, bc I don't get sore spots from pressure. I also haven't had the morning leg pains since I started the magnesium.

It's still taking me a long time to fall asleep, but I'm getting such better quality sleep now.

Yep. Supposed to be up in 3.5 hours to fill out paperwork for new job. My room/body feel clammy. I was gonna take melatonin, but got paranoid since I couldn't find good info on if I can take it with antidepressant. I don't have insomnia, but delayed sleep phase syndrome, which while not as horrible, does create a lot of issues with being functional at normal human times.

gaaaaaaaaahhh. I've been taking this over-the-counter anti-anxiety medication and when I take it in the afternoon I'll involuntarily be asleep within an hour, but when I take it at night, here I am three hours later still wide awake. That's just not fair.

5:19 here and wide awake :(
Have tonnes to do today and I know I'll only get tired when it's time to get up and do stuff.

Ugh! :(

SNAP.

http://31.media.tumblr.com/2f4a8bc65aae50bdb0660702c9c037b5/tumblr_mohjy5AmLl1r60h6bo1_250.gif

Ugh, insomnia, kinda manic. Got to watch the baseball though. Dunno whether or not take anything to level me out, which might screw me up for tomorrow.

Reading Wittgenstein to help me get to sleep, which raises two problems. One: where does the idea that reading something boring make you sleepy come from? It's the same nonsense that gets people offended if you yawn while they're talking to you. Two: I love Wittgenstein, who am I kidding. Going to go find a book I hate...

Treating Insomnia to May Help Cure Depression

headline writer too tired and depressed

Ugh! :(

― not_goodwin, Wednesday, 4 September 2013 04:14 (4 months ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I wish I felt this awake in the daytime :(

i was wondering if you were still around!
Is there something you can do (take a few days off or something) to reset your clock? What do you think is causing the insomnia? It's the worst, that much is for sure.

So, twitching (as if being given an electric shock) every time I get close to sleep ... what's that about?

the hypnic/hypnagogic jerk?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypnic_jerk

Ta. I wonder what reduces it?

"abrupt muscle action flexing movement, generalized or partial and asymmetric, which may cause arousal, with an illusion of falling."

nope, just the falling

http://5by5.tv/b2w/156

TOPIC: Better Sleep Habits

This week, Dan and Merlin do a deep dive on building better sleep habits with a focus on the paradoxes and planning of daily activities that can make all the difference.

also references conferencecall.biz toward the end (!)

(on-topic conversation starts around 10 mins)

http://delgadomd.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/insomnia-300x298.jpg

has anyone tried medical marijuana to help with serious sleep problems?

mine is better since i got on ADs - i don't lie awake for hours, and i initially fall asleep fairly quickly by my standards - but i'm not getting much restful sleep: i toss and turn and wake up a lot during the night, i have lots of intense dreams, and generally still feel tired in the morning. i have klonopin which i can take up to 3x a week, and that's great bc it helps me catch up. but i'm wondering about other options (melatonin, magnesium, valerian, etc. - none of that has any effect for me).