I don't know why, but once I get on a roll of insomnia, its hard to get off it...
I could just scream....sometimes....like at 3 am....
I'm 62 so I couldn't be in menopause, right?
Do we still need progesterone at this age? (I was wondering that)

methyl12
http://www.4yourtype.com/methylb12.asp

reset your circadian rhythm

sweet dream!

Thanks, Lola, its so great to get a speedy response when you're feeling desperate! I will beef up my B complex and supp with extra methyl B!
But whatcha think about the hormone situation? Progesterone cream? I mean, I stopped using it a few yrs ago.... but...?

first find out about your hormone levels
or simply follow the menopause book and protocols....
female balancing protocol

I'm right there with ya, Jayneeo. I am determined to find something to help me. I won't bore or discourage you with the long lists of supps I've tried. Currently I have on order an essential oil to promote sleep. I'll let you know if it works. It's like an endless search.

I am still using progesterone cream, and although menopausal, I understood it would benefit us for life. I know my gyneo has all her patients on it.

Hope you get some rest!

Thanks so much, WF! Y'know I really think I need the progesterone cream.....
also, I probably know which supps you mean.....melatonin, valerian, magnesium, D3, etc......not working for me now....though they have in the past.....let's keep each other posted....I just took a special B complex with phosphatidal serine.....

I see sleeping as a thing I do when I feel like it.. I get up all hours and then later feel like ok now I can go to bed and try again.. the issue with women is that we get up to go to the bathroom every 45 minutes or some times 1.5.hours -yippy.. if I sleep 3 hours I feel like a queen..

1...so my first response is .. sleep when you can.. day or night take a nap.. don't let it bother you..

2   Try this for the possibility of it helping to quiet our bladder muscles.. Drink peppermint tea for 6 weeks as often as possible during the day... I did this once for other reasons and found that after that time I was able to stretch my sleep time from 45 minutes (for real) to 90 minutes and occasionally I can wake and turn over for 3 hours.. for me that was a great step in the right direction..

3   I also received a gadget that has birds twittering on it or water running or rain, I turn that on someday's and it allows me to fall asleep before the 10 minutes running time are up.

4   I have a TV in my bedroom ( can nearly not fall asleep without) but I pasted colored transparent gift plastic warp on the front to tone down the light by quiet a bit .. then I make use of the timer and set it for about 30-40 minutes and that allows me to 'just' listen ,, while falling asleep..the programs are so bad at night anyway that I know I will not miss any important stuff.. or sometimes I out on the channel with just music..  

5   make sure your pillows are comfortable, I also put a soft foam on top of my matt razz so that I can feel more supported long-term, even though I have a fab bed.. mine goes up and down  and that also helps.. changing my position ever so much helps..

6   pillows (4) supporting my arms my back all helps .. a dark room without street lights penetrating is another big help to stay asleep.. my problem is 'staying' a-sleep, a mask early morning helps to some days.

as you see I have done this for 20 years.. and am quiet used to it.  luckily I can get up chipper no matter what time it is.. in fact all my upset cares go away weil I sleep even if it is only for a few minutes at a time..

the biggest thing I would advise -aside from having tried many things- is to just don't get upset.. find a hobbies.. I learned many computer things as a result of it.. and now I even found 4 old schoolmates I am planning to visit after 50 years.. that might be just the best thing I can gain from all my sleepless hours of meandering around my house..

one other thing sometimes helps have a friend over, somehow that makes a difference.. why I don't know..

Quoted from Goldie

... the issue with women is that we get up to go to the bathroom every 45 minutes or some times 1.5.hours -yippy.. if I sleep 3 hours I feel like a queen...

Goldie, I'm not so sure that is a "female" issue as much as it could be a blood glucose issue.  I've got many women friends that drink copious amounts of water and sleep throughout the night.  

I, on the other hand, have woken up throughout the night for countless years having to urinate.  I always blamed it on the amount of water I drink throughout the day.  Then I found out the reason I was drinking so much water was because my body was trying to rid itself of the glucose levels in my bloodstream.  

Since strictly adhering to the diabetes protocol, I now wake up 1-2 times, at most, with the post-memorial night episode being the exception.  I even told my friend today last night was the first time I didn't wake up to urinate for as long as I can remember.  

I will use progesterone cream the rest of my life as long as tests don't show the level becoming too high.  Always take a break of a few days every month.  And for long-term use, I use a smaller amount than is recommended.  It can build up if used excessively.

How about a low-dose melatonin before bed?  This has been a great friend to me, and I've been using it for 8 years.

After many years of eating for my type, I no longer have to get up in the night for bathroom visits.  This has been a great side-effect of the deep balancing that takes place.

Good point about the blood sugar level, Rob!  This makes sense to me.

Quoted from Goldie

I see sleeping as a thing I do when I feel like it.. I get up all hours and then later feel like ok now I can go to bed and try again.. the issue with women is that we get up to go to the bathroom every 45 minutes or some times 1.5.hours -yippy.. if I sleep 3 hours I feel like a queen..

WoW Goldie, that is some assumption?  I allways thought myself as not needing many hours of sleep, but at my worse, I may go to bed at 10pm/11pm and wake up at 4 or 5 am, no night breaks!  Yes, I may have had nights when I may have had difficulty going to sleep at all, but I consider those as being something needing to be fixed, not something to put up with and take it as the norm! I am not saying to worry about it, no need to get stressed over it, just to acknowledge it for what it is and look for solutions, without stressing, in a positive manner.

A type woman have issues with stress hormones, not just women, all A types for that matter, irrespective of sex or age.   I have been managing mine lately with the 'Calm Focus pack', Histonia and Cortiguard from Nap and Dr DAdamo B12 supps and of course the famous 'c' word: compliance!!  It is making a huge difference and even though I had been exposed to a great deal of stress triggering events in my environment lately, I have remained under control, and not the other way around!!  I do make an issue of allowing time for meditating and relaxation in my daily routine, you will see it stamped all over my daily journal thread in this forum!!  Sometimes that comes easy enough, the body ask me to do it even more than once a day, sometimes I have to remind myself to sit down, close my eyes and go through the actions.  Sometimes that 'bliss' moment when you feel that wave of calming, re-energizing energy bathing you arrives quick enough, but at other times, it is just that, going through the motions, telling the mind to calm down, forcing the body to relax, have the 'time out' anyway.

I do not use any creams and have not try Fem Balance or any other woman hormone specific supps from Nap or elsewhere, I thought that was for the younger ones.

Regarding the 'pee' breaks, I do drink a lot of water, in fact nearly 3 litres a day!! I do go to the toilet a few times during the day, but my elimination process lets me have at least 6 hours uninterrupted sleep.  That I consider it to be the norm rather than the exception for women or anybody ...

PS: this is from an A type perspective ... I would like to think Os need that many hours of uninterrupted sleep too ...  

try some white chestnut, Bach flower remedy, to help break the broken record thing going on in your head, not letting you sleep after waking up in the middle of the night

Quoted from Goldie

the issue with women is that we get up to go to the bathroom every 45 minutes or some times 1.5.hours -yippy.. if I sleep 3 hours I feel like a queen..

I'd have to disagree about all women, I sleep the whole night without needing to eliminate, nor do any of the women in my family have to get up ever 45 mins to have a whee    

k....it's an age thing, for sure. but I wouldn't be surprised if blood sugar had a lot to do with it....
Victoria, I knocked off progestrone cream years ago, but will go get some....thanks. And Lola, white chestnut's on my list too. Goldie, I like your ideas....(about the friend...my DH might not go for it)...and about my DH...got him in an adjacent room (snoring) plus earplugs and noise machine.

sorry for the assumptions but 5 hours uninterrupted I would jump of the world if ever in my life I had that.. even as  young person I had to go all the time .. maybe diabetes might have something to do with it,, but then I also had it during childhood..

so sleep well and yes indeed meditate.. maybe the thread should not be for you who is getting a good night rest.. but for me who is not..  

Goldie,

I always thought I had a small bladder.  I remember going on a road trip as a child and telling my dad I had to pee again.  I recall as clearly as yesterday he frustratingly said "This time I'm going in there with you to see just how much you really have to pee.  I'm tired of this stop the car, I've got to pee stuff".  Just sayin' I always had to go too.

Remember this really is a silent offender.  People don't usually find out about it until their organs, limbs or eyesight are affected.  

I don't think this is what is happening to jayneeo but you certainly have a lot of the same symptoms I've had for years.

Last night an 8 hour uninterrupted sleep was unprecedented.  I'm forever grateful to Dr. D for his research and dedication.    

jayneeo,
hi there! You didn't mention calcium.....are you taking that with your magnesium?  I like one with equal cal/mag amounts.  I take it only at dinner time or later.  Also b12 methyl is ok at night, but I wouldn't take other bs at night
Cause they would keep me up.  You could try having your carbs only in the dinner time meal,  might help you
nod off.  Are you eating turkey?  How's your serotonin?

have you eliminated caffein, especially in the evening, it will keep you awake, and it will keep you, using the bathroom.

Also, if you are on computer/tv watching, try for several days to star at something bright orange for five minutes, when you are planning on going to bed (but don't get on computer or watch tv after viewing orange for five minutes) just lay down and close your eyes, and keep closing them, when they open again, sleep comes.  It feels so natural.

I am down to one trip to the bathroom at night, fall right back to sleep and go again when I get up to stay up.  I try and go to bed about the same time each night, also.

Sleep Tight, Sweet Dreams.

Orange I will try that.. orange paper will be ok??

yet my issue is not falling asleep, but staying asleep or falling back asleep.. I just have to go to the bathroom and all to often after the second time in 3 hours I am then wide awake.. I will try the orange then a second time..

interesting.. thanks worth a try.

We've discussed on the Forum a long time ago about how light will stop the body's production of melatonin.  So if one must get up in the night, it's better to go in the dark, if possible, if you have trouble going back to sleep.  And not to have nightlights or clocks with lighted faces that are visible.

Wow, guess I feel lucky, I rarely have to get up at night and I almost always sleep soundly for 7 to 8 hours. If I do have a restless night, the following night I seem to make up for it by sleeping a little longer. I too try to go to bed at the same time every night and my cat will not ever let me sleep in.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0ffwDYo00Q

Grey rabbit

I better do not show that to my Zuri, she may get the wrong idea!!! ...  

Quoted from Goldie

the issue with women is that we get up to go to the bathroom every 45 minutes or some times 1.5.hours -yippy.. if I sleep 3 hours I feel like a queen..

...my first response to you is:Are you sure this running water thing isn't interfering??!!

3   I also received a gadget that has birds twittering on it or water running or rain, I turn that on someday's and it allows me to fall asleep before the 10 minutes running time are up.

Thanks! I know this is helping not only me, because there are so many others dealing with this.
Phase 2 of my sleep program:

Get progesterone cream
Get more compliant (esp. no sugar)
Get white chestnut essential oil
look at orange paper before bed!!!!!!!
(quit coffee....once again!)

Quoted from jayneeo

...
Phase 2 of my sleep program:

Get progesterone cream
Get more compliant (esp. no sugar)
Get white chestnut essential oil
look at orange paper before bed!!!!!!!
(quit coffee....once again!)

All sound steps to help restore healthy sleep patterns.  Best of luck to you jayneeo!

I tried it .. I did not eat any carbs/sugar all day = then at nightbefore sleeping I ate pineapples slices and 4 prunes.. and a tiny piece of 85% choc..

I SLEPT like  a baby all night .. I think I got up once.. unbelievable..

It was tough all day- as the brain was in 'I wish I could' mode,  but I am going to do the same today..
(interestingly I could just about feel my very frontal brain bothering me with recurrent thinking.)

Today I will stay compliant:

All morning until 11:30 I broth for breakfast and 2 green leaves of Kale.
after 11.30 Tuna salad (today) or top round thin slices for lunch with some onion and red pepper slices,
3-4 pm if need be (any time) the same small portions
6-7 pm dinner some meat and green veggies..  or eggs.
bed time pineapple and prunes..

I am forcing myself to adhere to this for at least two weeks, to see if I can break from the munchies, and break from sleep interruption.. and if this should work I will do this for a long time to come..

I like the idea of 50% calories during the day and sleeping without interruption.. I can not think of why my bladder would wake me up when I ate carbs during the day.. and let me sleep at night.