Sleep

[Temple]

Immune issues and sleep - a great topic. I have had sleeping issues for years. My LC is so much better with a gluten free diet. (I am gluten-sensitive, not celiac) But my sleep problems continue. I have problems with Lunesta and Ambien (most of the time they don't seem to work and I almost always feel hungover and flu-ish even when they do. I fall asleep okay around 10 - 10:30, but then wake at 12:30 (sometimes take .25 xanax) and then keep waking every 2 hours or so. Sometimes take another xanax then or 10 mg. sonata. I still don't sleep very well and I worry about having to increase the use of these drugs. Do any of you have any good ideas about sleep? I have also tried all the so-called "natural" remedies like "Rescue Sleep". Calms Forte, etc. Thanks.

[Gas Bag]

Just curious, do you happen to be a pre-menopausal woman ? If so you won't ever get a good nights sleep until you are post-menopause. Just my experience and loads of other gals I know.

I still don't sleep enough, but I have noticed since I have been eating probiotic yogurt I have been sleeping better. My whole general well-being has improved immensely as well.

Deb

[RUBYREDDOG]

As we age, our hormone production diminishes. One such hormone is Melatonin. The so called "sleep hormone". Without it you can not sleep soundly. (it also has other beneficial influences on our bodily functions)

There are several ways to supplement declining levels of Melatonin. You can wear a patch at night or you can take a supplement pill as I do, an hour before going to bed. I use time released pills that I buy from www.Vitacost.com They are fairly inexpensive and I like the fact that I don't have to take a "drug" to get a full night of sleep.

In her book "Breakthrough" by Suzanne Somers, she states that she takes 20 mg and wears a patch each night. I seem to do well with (2) 3 mg pills a night. YMMV

Hotrod

[Gas Bag]

I tried Melatonin years ago, and it kept me awake. It doesn't work for all people.

Deb

[Rosie]

Just curious, do you happen to be a pre-menopausal woman ? If so you won't ever get a good nights sleep until you are post-menopause. Just my experience and loads of other gals I know.

Oh really?? I used to sleep soundly, I haven't had a complete night's sleep since I hit menopause 10 years ago. I'm awakened by hot flashes about 3 times a night. Luckily I have learned to go back to sleep fairly quickly, but it sure would be wonderful to sleep through the night. I had high hopes that going gluten-free would help, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

I have problems with Lunesta and Ambien (most of the time they don't seem to work and I almost always feel hungover and flu-ish even when they do. I fall asleep okay around 10 - 10:30, but then wake at 12:30 (sometimes take .25 xanax) and then keep waking every 2 hours or so. Sometimes take another xanax then or 10 mg. sonata. I still don't sleep very well and I worry about having to increase the use of these drugs.

I would be very wary about using these drugs to help with sleep. The prescription sleep aids like Ambien and Lunesta have the same mechanism of action as Xanax and other benzodiazepines like valium and Klonopin. I ran into problems with Klonopin when I was prescribed it for restless leg syndrome. I noticed that at first it helped me sleep, but after a while I got tolerant to it and then found that I couldn't sleep without it. It was having other affects on me too. Do you know that there are as many benzodiazepine receptors in the gut as in the brain? In retrospect, this is when I first noticed occasional episodes of diarrhea, and I developed diary intolerance shortly after I got off Klonopin. When I finally decided to get off Klonopin after several years of use, I had to taper down slowly over several months in order to let my body adjust back to not having the drug. Abruptly stopping it can really make you feel really bad for a long time, as it's a severe shock to the body. I would avoid using these drugs in any case, but would be especially wary with having a gut disorder too.

[Gas Bag]

Oh really?? I used to sleep soundly, I haven't had a complete night's sleep since I hit menopause 10 years ago. I'm awakened by hot flashes about 3 times a night. Luckily I have learned to go back to sleep fairly quickly, but it sure would be wonderful to sleep through the night. I had high hopes that going gluten-free would help, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

I seriously don't know one premenopausal, perimenopausal, or menopausal woman who does not have sleep problems. It wasn't until I hit post-menopause that I finally started sleeping better again.

There are four stages of menopause. And it is an extremely long process.

Premenopause refers to a woman's reproductive or fertile life, from the first menstrual period to the last. It has been misused to describe the years immediately before menopause (perimenopause) or to describe premature menopause.

Perimenopause represents the years immediately preceding menopause. Most people refer to perimenopause when discussing menopause. During perimenopause, hormonal changes in the body can result in menopause symptoms. The onset of perimenopause is typically between 45 and 60 years old and can span a 2-6 year period.

Menopause is the stage where a woman has her last period. It is the permanent cessation of the menstruation and fertility. Most women will experience natural menopause, however, in a few cases, premature or artificial menopause is experienced. Menopause can be confirmed by 12 consecutive months without a menstrual period.

Postmenopause is the stage in a woman's life after the last menstrual period.

Deb

Here is some information from the Power Surge website.
Insomnia at menopause

[Rosie]

Well, Deb, since my last period was 11 years ago (I'm 62 now) I can safely claim to be post-menopausal. The hot flashes have reduced somewhat in frequency and intensity over the years, but are still very much present. And that is the case with many of my friends. It's great for you and your friends that you don't have a problem sleeping, but we are all different. And I will say that trying every suggestion about how to get better sleep, from cutting out caffiene and alcohol to exercise, relaxation techniques, herbal remedies, melatonin, no naps, cool room, regular sleep habits, etc. ad nauseum, nothing has seemed to help. I have a cycle of having a hot flash about every 2 1/2 hours day or night and nothing seems to touch it. Research has shown hot flashes to be correlated with a rise in cortisol, and I've noticed that when I've taken steroids for anything, like asthma or severe poison oak, that my hot flashes get worse. So I'm glad that I'm able to control my LC with diet and not have to take the steroid Entocort.

[no-more-muffins]

So you all are saying that it pretty much just sucks to be a woman. Dang hormones. I am only 33 so I have many "great" years to look forward to. (Actually, on the sleep topic, I have been sleeping better since I went gf. I still wake up early, but I am doing much better.)

[Gas Bag]

Well, Deb, since my last period was 11 years ago (I'm 62 now) I can safely claim to be post-menopausal. The hot flashes have reduced somewhat in frequency and intensity over the years, but are still very much present. And that is the case with many of my friends. It's great for you and your friends that you don't have a problem sleeping, but we are all different. And I will say that trying every suggestion about how to get better sleep, from cutting out caffiene and alcohol to exercise, relaxation techniques, herbal remedies, melatonin, no naps, cool room, regular sleep habits, etc. ad nauseum, nothing has seemed to help. I have a cycle of having a hot flash about every 2 1/2 hours day or night and nothing seems to touch it. Research has shown hot flashes to be correlated with a rise in cortisol, and I've noticed that when I've taken steroids for anything, like asthma or severe poison oak, that my hot flashes get worse. So I'm glad that I'm able to control my LC with diet and not have to take the steroid Entocort.

That is good you don't have to take steroids then.

I am just about the only menopausal person I know who does not have problems sleeping anymore, but I also quit having hot flashes. So it must be connected. I didn't state that cleary enough, just about everybody else I know has a terrible time sleeping. Some women never get over hot flashes.

Deb

So you all are saying that it pretty much just sucks to be a woman. Dang hormones. I am only 33 so I have many "great" years to look forward to. (Actually, on the sleep topic, I have been sleeping better since I went gf. I still wake up early, but I am doing much better.)

Ha yeah sometimes you can say that.

[Pat]

Rosie,

If you are willing, bioIdentical hormones help with hot flashes and insomnia and other menopausal symptoms. I fought it for several years because I just didn't want to take hormones but last fall I couldn't take MC and menopause at the same time. I told my GYN that someone had to fix something!!!! They take longer than synthetic to work because they start you ( at least for me) at a very low dose and work up to where you need to be to be symptom free. I started on a synthetic patch but switched last spring to the BI.

Pat

[Bifcus16]

I am with Rosie as one of those post menopausal gals who can't get relief from the flushes. HRT causes a LC flare so that is out, and the doc reckons bioidentical will do the same - but I can't find anyone who prescribes them anyway.

But back to Temple's question.

Hi Temple,

Are you waking up because you need to go to the loo, your partner snores, hot flushes etc, or for no obvious reason?

You have probably researched the obvious things - no caffeine or sugar late in the day, avoid alcohol, have the room slightly cool - not too many bedclothes, a relaxing pre-bed routine ( low light activities, a set routine followed every day - maybe locking the house then doing teeth etc before climbing in). If you wake up properly during the night, get up and do something with no or little light - I always go to the loo and get a glass of water from the kitchen without turning the lights on, then try again. Do you exercise outside during the day - even just a walk? This helps manage melatonin production, which helps you sleep.

You mentioned feeling hungover. That usually means you are dehydrated, so make sure you are drinking enough so that when you go the loo during the day you urine ends up being close to clear - it will be more concentrated first up in the morning.

Do you find yourself worrying when you wake up? Could anxiety or depression play a part? Disturbed sleep patterns can be a sign of depression and it may be worth talking to the doc about that possibility. Or if you are worrying, it might be necessary to come up with some ways to calm the mind when you wake up. A great time to try EFT.

For a while I kept waking up at around 2:30 every morning. Then hubby pointed out that is the time the newspaper is delivered (early, eh). Once I knew what it was, it stopped waking me - I think my mind just went "I know what that is" and let me slip back down to deep sleep again.




Lyn

[Gloria]

NMM wrote:

So you all are saying that it pretty much just sucks to be a woman. Dang hormones.

I think we've given the wrong message here. Yes, having hot flashes is aggravating. I had them for 10 years and they woke me up all night. I still get them sometimes, but infrequently. The hot flashes are due to the reduction in hormones, not because of them.

I tell my daughters that estrogen is their friend. Since I've been in menopause my skin is beginning to change and I sometimes have bladder leakage, to give just a couple of examples.

Gloria

[Rosie]

If you are willing, bioIdentical hormones help with hot flashes and insomnia and other menopausal symptoms. I fought it for several years because I just didn't want to take hormones but last fall I couldn't take MC and menopause at the same time. I told my GYN that someone had to fix something!!!! They take longer than synthetic to work because they start you ( at least for me) at a very low dose and work up to where you need to be to be symptom free. I started on a synthetic patch but switched last spring to the BI

Pat, those are good suggestions, but unfortunately are out for me. I have a clotting problem called Factor V Leiden that makes me much more suseptable to blood clots from HRT. The only reason I found out is because my sister was hospitalized with serious blood clots in her lungs after being on HRT for about a month. Her doctor decided to test her for it. When she came up positive I got tested and am positive too. About 10% of the population has it, and most of the time it doesn't cause any problems. But it does make you more suseptable to blood clots in general, so I've just decided to not take any chances after what happened to her, even with bioidentical estrogen.

I sure wish that there were something that really worked for hot flashes. But it's one of those things that doctors don't think is very important, kind of like chronic diarrhea..... But it can really affect your quality of life. When I first stated with hot flashes, they were quite a problem. When they hit, it wasn't just feeling hot. The sensations were much like I've heard described with a panic attack......racing heart and brain fog, so that I couldn't carry on a normal conversation. Needless to say, they made me self-conscious and I would worry that one would strike in a public situation. Now they are much milder, but still prevent me from getting a full night's sleep.

Rosie

[mbeezie]

Hi Temple,

Off of the hormone topic and back to your question . . . .

I too started to sleep better after going GF, but found that GERD was also a problem with nighttime waking. Like you, I'd fall asleep OK but then would wake up. Alcohol was probably the worst trigger for this, but soy and spicy food also did me in. I have eliminated all of my GERD triggers and now don't wake up. For me, exercise helps as well.

Mary Beth

[ant]

If you have GERD put a couple of bricks under the legs at the head of the bed to raise it a bit. It is not a cure but it helps a lot.

Best ant.