Spacegoat

Well they do say that everything comes full circle and true enough here I am, right back where I started.

So now that I know alcohol is addictive and all that, would it be so bad to have one drinking session just to get some sleep???

I don't really see what other options are available to me. I just did 3 days the night before last, and I aint looking forward to the next 3.





I won't let it get me down But I do give up yeah.

Spacegoat

PS there is no need to point out that pounding techno doesn't exactly help with insomnia LOL, I've already given up for one night.


I'm F'n bored with the internet now, and no matter how many hours I stare at the walls they are still the same color, snot green.


___________ ___________ ___________ ___________

MelindaFlowers

Insomnia is why I started drinking years ago. Forcing myself to get up early helps but that is hard. I feel much better with less sleep than hungover though.

AddictGuy

Alcohol as an answer to anything on a sober recovery site?

Mentium

I linked booze and sleep for many years. I even used to justify my drinking by arguing (with myself) that without it my sleeping will be awful.

The truth is that alcohol induced sleep is not truly restful. Another truth is that if it kills you ultimately, then sleeping won't be a problem!

Here's a link worth looking at:
https://www.drinkaware.co.uk/check-t...ohol-and-sleep

Spacegoat

Fair point AddictGuy. Trying to reason with myself here.

But I dunno, anything must be better than this, sick of just nothing I can't really function either.

I'l check out that link now Mentium. Same as that Melinda, same as that. Acute insomnia, actually it is chronic by times.

Dee74

Alcohol is one of the worst things you can throw at insomnia.

After twenty years I learned that my sleep quality was crap - I was passing out, not sleeping

It took more and more alcohol to get me to sleep

Eventually I couldn't sleep without alcohol.

and ultimately...it stopped working.

I'm sure one time use - or just for a week or two - sounds very persuasive - but none of us would be here if we had that kind of take it or leave it attitude to booze.

Cut out the stimulants - coffee, colas, energy drinks, cigarettes.
Cut down on the internet surfing at night. Log off an hour or two before you want to hit the sack.
Try to get even more active - exercise really helps promote healthy sleep.
No huge meals at night.
Keep your room dark.
Try and have a regular bedtime.

If none of that stuff works after a week or so, see your Dr, Strat - it's a much better idea.

D

mecanix

have you tried any of the following ?

1) go talk to a doctor
2) keep a sleep diary , you might be getting enough but at the wrong times ..
3) give up caffeine and stimulants .
4) have a peaceful and quiet room with low light, only watch calming thing if you have to have the telly on or play on the computer .
5) exercise every day until you are physically tired .

The ONE big thing i know if i know anything is that alcohol is not the answer to anything .
Sobriety is the top priority whatever happens . If your anything under 3 months sober i'd still assume it's still the drinking you did thats causing this .

I hope you sort it without abusing your body anymore .

m

jazzfish

Ironically, alcohol is one of the major causes of insomnia. I have solved a few friends' sleeping problems telling them to stop drinking in the evening. By the way, none were problem drinkers.

Another thing to remember is that after years of having our sleep cycles impacted by excessive drinking, our sober sleep problems are actually the result of our drinking, not our sobriety. We are healing, give it time.

Marcher13

Stratman, do you have an evening routine that prepares you for sleeping? And are you tired out from good living -- including exercise -- so that you need to sleep? Have a look at Dee's list again, it's full of good tips.

Good sleep is the complete opposite of passing out.

Nonsensical

Sorry you are having trouble sleeping. Poor sleep is a terrible feeling. It also clouds one's judgment.

I drank for at least 10 years (in part) because I truly believed it helped me get better sleep.

I could not have been more wrong.

It only took about 8-10 days of not drinking before my sleep was greatly improved. I think I was lucky in that it corrected in such a short period, but many others have reported a similar circumstance. I still have poor sleep from time to time, but it's nothing compared to how it was when I was drinking.

Look for another solution, because alcohol isn't a realistic one for insomnia.

Spacegoat

Yeah guys I tried all that, as for doctors I been going to them the past 15 years about this. Clouds ones judgement indeed, I've made a lot of errors between this and booze.

Funny you should say that Dee same here. At first a 6 pack would do the trick, then by the end of my drinking career 3 days of slugging beer smoking doobs and taking downers would have no effect.

Throwing stuff at it is right man, plenty of woo-woo then. As for a routine, I am always trying to 'reset' myself into a normal one, then something else happens like yesterday would be a prime example. Well anyway, thanks for all the advices.

Aellyce

I'm sorry you are struggling with sleep, Strat. It is a difficult issue. I've never had serious problems with insomnia by default, but I learned that I can very easily cause it to myself. I can sometimes be my worse enemy when it comes to relaxation... well not at this point very much but in the past definitely. Would just ignore all those good healthy habits Dee and mecanix mentioned, mostly because I let myself "obey" my naturally hyperstimulated brain and mental processes, intentionally exacerbate this instead of balancing it with relaxation. I totally hear ya on it's being hard to resist listening to music or other kinds of stimulating media, interaction, etc. It did not cause a problem when I was very young, but started to feel the detrimental effects in my early 30's... and then like many of us, I would use alcohol to "relax" my mind. That was how I got addicted to it physically in the first place, used it to help me sleep on a regular basis while working a totally crazy erratic schedule -- not when my body needed rest but when my mind decided to allow it. Then I "woke up" to not being able to live without it. Please don't go back there.

My suggestion to you would still be the same that I said so many times before: I think some external professional assistance might help sort out many of your problems, including the daily rhythm, relaxation, etc. I really had to learn from some gurus how to relax and follow the advice, because my own intentions often would want to go in the opposite direction. It can become a new habit if we keep at it.

Mel12

Yes, if I shoot myself in the foot with a bazooka, I will no longer notice my headache. Drinking to not notice insomnia seems to draw on the same "curative" principle.

Mel

SDH73

I feel for you, man. Not sleeping really sucks! I would do my 3 or 4 days of no sleep while detoxing but then it would level out. Felt pretty hopeless for those few days, though.

I used to consider myself an insomniac. Even as a kid. Looking back now I think that I just really liked those late hours when no one else was awake and it felt like I had the whole world to myself. It wasn't that I couldn't sleep, it was that I didn't want to. Not saying that applies to you, just sharing here.

Hope you can get this figured out, bud. That's gotta be really tough.

EndGameNYC

Booze for insomnia? What's next? A few drinks to take the edge off your anxiety? Brighten your low mood? Make the stars look prettier at night?

When was the last time you felt refreshed the next day after a booze-driven night of "sleep?"

I'm very familiar with the thought process, as well as the results. "Just this one time." "It's for medical reasons." "Anything is better than what I'm feeling/going through." "If I don't drink, that stupid dog next door will never stop barking!" And, my all-time favorite, "Nothing else works!"

alaina742

I have trouble falling asleep basically every night. Get up early and don't sleep during the day, no matter how tempting. I take NyQuil every night. One or two do the trick, but since I've started recovery, it does take me longer to fall asleep even with the pills.

Bmac

Be careful, Nyquil is 25% alcohol. I went to a Christian college for a year that forbade alcohol. I would buy the extra large bottle of Nyquil and get hammered from it. The bright spot of that was I had the least chest congestion on campus.

For me today, if I find myself having trouble sleeping, I hit the gym during the day and work out like a madman. At night I take Benadryl, Melatonin and Valerian root. Usually does the trick.

tokidoki

I hear you Stratman. Have been an insomniac my entire life (according to my parents, even as a toddler). The first time I abused alcohol was three months after my second child was born. I hadn't slept for six nights and was desperate... so I used alcohol to "help" me sleep. Fast forward a few years and yeah... alcoholism raised its ugly head.

Yup, alcohol is insidious and it *doesn't* help one really sleep. Found it out the hard way. Please take care.

PurpleKnight

It's a vicious circle Strat, if you don't let the body adjust to natural sleeping and rely on alcohol, where does it end?

Progression is a real thing when it comes to alcohol!!