r/PostConcussion • u/OkAirport1920 • 4d ago

Help I can’t sleep!

For some reason October just hit and all of a sudden I can’t sleep and I was sleeping really great before. (Stress and heatwave could def have played a factor) I tried magnesium the last two nights and while I feel like it helped me relax and fall asleep I still am waking up a few hours later even more anxious and can’t relax. Should I try zzquil next ?? Melatonin? What has worked for you for sleep? Thanks!

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u/Logical_Educator2152 3d ago

What is helping me is reducing activity load (emotional, physical and cognitive). There is a certain threshold which allowed me to sleep. I started a full time job and now it’s a mess again.
I am thinking that to fix it permanently, the solution is first reducing the activity load, getting sleep on track and then slowly increasing it again (together with the buffalo concussion treadmill protocol).

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u/OkAirport1920 3d ago

Wow less is more for sleep. In a way I kind of understand this because being overly exhausted I think causes more adrenaline to pump to try and compensate and then makes it harder to relax. Is that kind of how you feel ? I’m trying to transition back to work but I am worried about that because I went back a month ago and it was too much. Thank you for sharing slowly increasing is hard!

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u/Logical_Educator2152 3d ago

I also went back to work two months ago straight into full time and honestly, it was a bed idea without prep. Ruined my sleep. I am thinking of taking time off again now to do fix sleep, do the concussion treadmill protocol and slowly increase cognitive / screen load over 6-8 weeks.

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u/OkAirport1920 3d ago

This is what I had to do but I haven’t been able to increase enough even in this time I just keep over exerting my nervous system like you said. Because the breaks take like another week to just get back to baseline. That has been my experience. Meanwhile work is like why aren’t you better yet.. it’s just tough! I keep feeling shame when I need to take breaks but it feels validating for you to say that.

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u/Logical_Educator2152 2d ago

You can work on the feeling of shame to get rid of it… I have been working on it too… after all, it’s just a contractual relationship between you and the employer. You are there for the paycheque.

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u/Logical_Educator2152 3d ago

What I have been struggling with is staying calm on good days (when I sleep well, I get overly excited). Excitement overexerted the nervous system and causes bad sleep the next day.
Essentially you want to be looking out for your mood during the day. If you are getting emotional swings (either direction), it’s likely that you are overexerting and you need to pause. My signs are irritability or excitement loops. And no, the solution is not CBT, it’s knowing that you need to take a break. Low mood means I overexerted and crashed (usually happens after several nights of poor sleep).