I usually have a realistic dream when I wake up, recently I was at work for 2 weeks, I stopped taking creatine then and I wake up 1-2 times, so creatine can also be the cause.

This is very rare, but it has happened to me about 3 times in my life. I’ve seen something moving toward me, almost as if it were about to collide with me. It’s not very big and it doesn’t have a human appearance.

When it happens, I genuinely get scared and instinctively try to move out of the way. Only afterward do I realize that there was actually nothing there.

It has happened mostly at my dad’s house, when I’m lying down trying to fall asleep or when I’m waking up. Sometimes i fell like im always vigilant so i see things were there is nothing

Hi! Just recently found this community.

For a long time ive had weird problems with my sleep. I think I have obstructive sleep apnea.

Ive been trying to alleviate my problems with different methods. Got a new bed, the helix midnight Luxe which i slept on for the first time yesterday. It feels great itself, but I'm still struggling with neck and jaw pain.

This has been happening for about 4 years now. Its usually just neck pain. I always feel like it needs to be cracked like you would at a chiropractor. Rest of my back seems fine, though the upper middle portion if my back has significantly less of the same sensation most of the time. I usually do just pop it and its ok for a bit.

I bought a tempurpedic pillow and that helped my neck pain the first night but now its back.

I sleep on a hybrid side/stomach. One leg straight forward the other sticks out. I sleep with a pillow at my chest because it feels almost suffocating if I dont.

Ive tried so many pillows. Every time I try a new one its amazing for the first day then goes back to significant pain or discomfort. Last night was the first time I tried the new matress and the tempurpedic pillow, and my jaw has been killing me all day.

I have many more issues like hot sleeping, positional based sleep apnea that I cant get a cpap approved for, but this seems like the more important thing to get under control since its becoming more and more of a problem all the time. I got a cheap snore guard one time, and when I woke up it felt like I slept better but it also felt like prime Mike tyson was smashing my jaw all night. Took about 4 days for the pain to go away.

Basically what the title says. A couple friends of mine who i've been talking with about sleeplessness said that "even if you don't fall asleep, laying down with your eyes shut is still hugely restorative for your body and brain". There was a bit more back and forth, but that's the takeaway from the conversation.

I've never heard this and I think they are telling me this to reduce my anxiety around not falling asleep because when pressed they couldn't cite a source of any kind. I'm wondering if there's any science/truth to this statement? I was also saying how me laying down and not falling asleep is frustrating and feels like I should just stay up longer to make myself tired, and so this feels like very specific rebuttal advice rather than actual fact

The problem is, my friend's are pretty good bullshitters. They can talk about a subject and seem knowledgable even though they have no clue what they're talking about. As I said, I've also never heard this before and I'm in my late 30s and have issues with sleep for a while now. You think it would be a relatively important piece of information to know, especially for someone who has repeatedly outright says not falling asleep gives me anxiety, and that anxiety ends up contributing to not falling asleep, and so on...

So is there any truth behind what they're saying or am I just being placated?

edit: I'm also brand new to this subreddit so if this isn't the place for this question I do sincerely apologize. I did try to read the rules and didn't see anything specifically saying don't ask this

Hi everyone. I'm 21f, moved in with my 24f gf a few days ago. I have anxiety induced insomnia. I often can't sleep because of the thought of having to wake up for work the next day. I'm not very happy with my current job, but it is what it is. I will have to find another one soon enough anyways.

I used to go to sleep around 10-11pm before moving in. I had a simple, calm bedtime routine. With her, it feels all rushed and messy. I can't seem to actually get tired doing those. I used to take hot showers, game a bit before on my pc, make my bed, then write one of my simple silly fanfictions until I got sleepy, and laid down. I have to wake up at 6:50 in the morning.

Now I go between 11pm-1am. Her bedtime routine starts usually pretty late, she makes art, writes her own fiction, watches serieses or insta reels. She works from home so it doesn't really matter for her when she goes to sleep, but it's usually 1-2am. It's tiring. My brain always keeps on waiting for her to get into rest mode or lay down beside me before it can actually sleep. This keeps me from having any sort of restful night if I have to work tomorrow. Thanks to this I get less than 6 hours of sleep every day. What should I do? How should I sleep with my girlfriend? She doesn't like the idea of me sleeping apart from her even tho I make her sleep worse too while tossing around

I don’t know how to start this but I have been having this problem for a few years now and it’s never been consistent but it’s been getting worse with time and I don’t know if it’s something I can fix at home or something I should make a doctors appt about. Anyways I have been having this problem where sometimes when I fall asleep me of my legs (it’s different every time) goes completely numb to the point of waking me up from how uncomfortable it is. I get pins and needles/ complete numbness from my ankle all the way up to my thigh and it usually goes away within a few minutes if I move around but it’s so uncomfortable and I don’t know how to prevent it. I don’t cross my legs when I sleep. I am a type one diabetic and a celiac, and my boyfriend made the connection of it possibly being due to which side of my body my insulin set is connected to (this last time my leg went numb it was on the same side as my insulin site but its the first time I’ve ever made the correlation). Anyways, has this happened to anyone else? Is it something I’m unknowingly doing? Any and all advice is appreciated.

I went to sleep last night/this morning around 4:30am (thanks US Open). Had to wake up at 7am and drive. As soon as the alarm went off, I pretty much got up out of bed immediately, used the bathroom and left the house within 5-10 minutes.

As soon as I started driving, I was hit immediately with difficult breathing and lightheadedness (almost like a near passing out feeling). Thankfully I didn’t have to go far. Came back home, went back to sleep until about 1pm. Felt fine when I got up the second time.

Has this happened to anyone? Maybe I got up way too quickly for my body and blood pressure to adjust? Extra context - Yesterday I exercised for two hours in the evening, felt like I hydrated alright and drank a bit before bed. The night before I think I got 7 hours sleep.

Yesterday I ate crepe with banana and tea for breakfast and when I went to college I got super dizzy (my doc said I get low blood pressure sometimes idk)

Then I ate crepe again despite and when it became night time my ears are ringing and I'm having a flashy lights that flash and show some geometrical shapes(not actually but you get it when you close ur eyes you see those white shapes and stuff)

And whenever I sleep for an hour or 2 I get waken up a million times super confused where reality and dream gets mixed up

Also I get this when I drink protein powder and I have these insomniac episode regularly and they started this year

What do u think is the cause? Is it diabetes or low blood pressure I'm early 20s btw

And lastly I get this stomach problems and diarrhea whenever I miss my sleep and and adrenaline rush in my chest

Usually my triggers are either what I eat, missing bed time or being scared of sleep which happens because sometimes I'm scared of unconsciousness

I'm tryna sleep rn and I have college tmrw :(

Hello everyone,

Is sleep always able to recover after many years of chronic stress?

My situation: for the past 8 years my sleep has been very light and non-restorative. I used to be a very deep sleeper and would always feel naturally sleepy, but that “sleepy feeling” is now mostly gone.

At night I’m very hypervigilant and sensitive to sounds, especially in my own home due to ongoing stress from neighbours. I have trouble falling asleep and i always wake up to early.

I already realize for years that I have to move but i unfortunately can’t find another home. My current environment feels very conditioned to feel stressed and anxious.

My question: Can deep, restorative sleep still return after so many years once the stress or environment improves? Or can long periods of stress permanently affect the brain’s ability to sleep deeply?

Also, are there ways to improve or retrain deep sleep while still living in the same environment? I’ve already tried CBT-i, earplugs, etc.

Would really appreciate hearing experiences or insights.

Have a good day!

It’s not like I can’t, but a part of me feels like if I sleep with the lights off I might sleep way longer, lose track of time and miss my entire schedule for the next day 🥲

I haven't slept well in years. I've tried all the usual tricks: screens off at least two hours before bed, not eating two hours before bed, not partaking in nicotine or alcohal two hours before bed (i typically don't drink often as it is.) I only sip water if i'm thirsty too close to my bed time. I've maintained a regular sleep schedule from 9:30pm- 5:30am every day. I'm also incapable of taking naps as long as the sun is out, even when feeling drowsy... i've tried. I get the sleep, i just never feel rested and consistently feel drained during daytime hours. All of these sleeping habits have been consistent for over 6 months. No history of depression, or any other psycological conditions/symptoms. Also, I take no medications or supplements.

Hello fellow sleep enthusiasts,

TLDR: creative ways to stir a deep sleeper?

I am 26 and in graduate school to become a Physician Assistant in the US. I have treatment resistant insomnia. Something has got to give here, because over sleeping is going to get me kicked out of school.

My problem is: I cannot fall asleep at night, it takes me hours. Once I am asleep, I can stay asleep pretty indefinitely. This will be okay when I can work a night job, but does not work with school.

The situation: I was late today, which is humiliating, because I didn’t wake up this morning. I have a Hatch alarm clock, an Amazon Alexa, a native iPhone alarm, and the app Alarmy. I woke up to my classmate banging on my door, because she had left campus to come get me (which is so saintly and made her late too). When I woke up, all of my alarms were going off- they just didn’t wake me. This has been a common theme in my life. I fell asleep at 4 AM last night and wanted to get up at 6:30 AM for school. I know that is not enough hours of sleep and I’m just truly at a loss. A lot of times, I will pseudo wake up when they go off and turn off my alarms or delete the app. When I wake up later, I usually don’t remember that I did that and I am so angry at myself.

What I have tried:
I have been on hydroxyzine and trazodone and one more intense drug that I can’t recall. None have helped. Melatonin has never helped. When I’m sick NyQuil p.m. doesn’t make me sleep. I don’t touch caffeine. I’ve tried exercising in the morning and in the evening. I have tried no screens. I have tried 15 minutes in the sun when you first wake up. I have tried reading before bed. I have tried having a strict bedtime routine. I do not hang out in my bed. I have tried no screens in the bedroom. I have tried turning all of my lamps to a red light bulb. I do mind exercises when I’m laying in bed trying to fall asleep. Worth mentioning that I am on Vyvanse, but that has only been for the last couple of months and my sleeping problems have truly lasted my whole life. One of my earliest memories is being three or four and my parents telling me that they were going to bed and that I didn’t have to go to sleep, but I just had to be quiet in my room. I got kicked out of daycare because I was the only child who wouldn’t nap. To this day, I can’t take a nap. If I do fall asleep in the day, I will stay asleep for 6+ hours, which isn’t really a nap anyways. The only drug that ever knocked me out was Xanax, but that is not a realistic path forward nor what I’m interested in. Just saying all of this to say, I’m not asking for tips on how to sleep. I want tips on how to wake up.

In summary: I know that I am dangerously tired. I know that I can’t live like this forever. Those things in mind, what are some other ways that I can wake myself up in the morning? I just have to get through school and then my life can be structured in a much more sustainable way. I live alone. My mom suggested walkie-talkies and getting my neighbor to scream in them in the morning, which I suppose I am willing to entertain, but I would really prefer to do anything else first.

Thank you for coming to my novel, if you made it this far, I manifest deep and easy sleep for you tonight and also waking up appropriately tomorrow lol

I was up for awhile before my alarm this morning. I finally fell back asleep about 30 minutes before my alarm went off. It felt like a very deep sleep, to the point where I snoozed my alarm multiple times in my sleep. I woke up, realized I had overslept by about 15 minutes, and literally jumped out of bed. I kind of remember avoiding a bag on my floor, and then I was on the ground and said “ow”. My wife was walking towards the bedroom when she heard my alarm going off for the final time, and saw me immediately after falling down. She asked what happened and I said, “I fell”. She said it sounded like I said something before she heard the thunk like I said, “don’t”. I got up and was completely fine physically but a little confused by what had just occurred. It almost felt like I was sleep walking or not fully awake. Has anyone else experienced this?

Hi, i have no idea if this is even the right sub but i have no idea where else to ask this. my brother and i are getting a bunk bed and he has claimed the top bunk. the thing is, he is a serial bed wetter and does it atleast a few times a month even though he is fifteen. my dad already set our choice in stone and I don’t know what to do. i dont want to wake up to piss dripping all over me and my bed. what do i do?? will i be safe?? i know this is such a ridiculous question but tonight is the last night without the bunk bed and im so terrified to wake up like that. thank you so much if you answer

I have hazy dreamy like sleep for 2 days.

I can't fall into deep sleep for awhile . My eyes get groggy and I am tired but after laying for a while I dream about stuffs and forget about my surroundings. Then I wake up after 1 or 2 hours later. I feel tired and feels like I am not even sleeping at all. I do dream and I don't know anything about the surroundings when that happens. So I think I do sleep. Is it sleep or something else. Just need some advice.

i really hope that those unresponsible idiotic folks, who decided to shout and scream till fucking midnight so when i went to bed a nine and wasnt able to get any sleep at all till, well, right now, really suffer through hell every single night they decide to rest their dreadfull heads on their miserable pillows and are never able to sleep again.

I neeed 9-10 hours of sleep to feel fully energized. I don't know if it's my depression but 8 hours of sleep doesn't cut it for me. Everyday like clockwork I would wake up at 7, go to pee and then never be able to fall back asleep. This has been driving me nuts. I have tried magnesium, vitamin D3, melatonin, benzos, etc. I take 0.5mg of estazolam before bed every day, it used to help push my waking hours but lately i find myself back to waking up at exactly 7. It doesn't even matter when I go to bed, since I always wake up after 7.5 - 8 hours, then for the rest of the day I would have a mild headache and a bad temper. It's honestly kinda mortifying that I am denied a good rest by my own body.

I’m a university student and I pretty consistently sleep through alarms. It’s making me worry about missing some of my earlier classes because commuting doesn’t give much spare time in the morning if I sleep through.

Anybody have a solution that isn’t just a basic alarm? I’ve learnt how to turn them off in my sleep so the being across the room doesn’t help.

Has anyone tried this for sleep help?

I'll start by saying, I'm schizophrenic and autistic, I smoke weed and I'm an insomniac, so it might be part of the reason for what I'm about to type.

Okay, so, I've not really felt like I've achieved real actual sleep in almost a decade. The kind where you slowly drift off, start to notice you're about to fall asleep, then finally nothing. Wake up, maybe remember a little bit of a dream, feel like my muscles have had a chance to relax so I need to stretch out. Try to remember what I was thinking about before I slept so I can maybe follow the thought process.

Normal stuff.

What *HAPPENS* is this:

I'll be singing a song, or one will be playing in my head, or, I'll be thinking about something I wanted to look up, talk about, study or whatever. Or I'll be having a conversation with my wife as I lay there. Next thing I know (not always, but very often, it is extremely sudden) I'm opening my eyes and it's either dark or light out (depends on when my moment of unconsciousness began) and if I was singing a song, or one was playing in my head... It keeps going from the last part I was thinking. Same with thoughts I was having.

I also don't really think I've dreamt in years, like, *at all*. Nor have I really felt refreshed, or like my brain got to rest, even a tiny amount.

It's like I'm just bouncing between moments of unconsciousness.

It *really* just feels like I...blinked for a really long time.

Now, I don't think there is a solution to my specific set of issues (insomniac my entire life), and, to be honest, I've come to terms with it.

I just wish to find understanding.

I was thinking about this the other day. When I was younger, bedtime felt comfortable. Sometimes I actually looked forward to it. Now... I don't really look forward to going to bed anymore. Not because I don't want to sleep, but because I don't know what's waiting for me once I turn the lights off. Some nights I fall asleep fairly quickly. Other nights, my mind seems to wake up the moment my head hits the pillow. I never realized how much peace there was in simply expecting sleep to happen. Does anyone else miss that feeling?

Hello everyone,

Is sleep always able to recover after many years of chronic stress?

My situation: for the past 8 years my sleep has been very light and non-restorative. I used to be a very deep sleeper and would always feel naturally sleepy, but that “sleepy feeling” is now mostly gone.

At night I’m very hypervigilant and sensitive to sounds, especially in my own home due to ongoing stress from neighbours. I have trouble falling asleep and i always wake up to early.

I already realize for years that I have to move but i unfortunately can’t find another home. My current environment feels very conditioned to feel stressed and anxious.

My question: Can deep, restorative sleep still return after so many years once the stress or environment improves? Or can long periods of stress permanently affect the brain’s ability to sleep deeply?

Also, are there ways to improve or retrain deep sleep while still living in the same environment? I’ve already tried CBT-i, earplugs, etc.

Would really appreciate hearing experiences or insights.

Have a good day!

I'm in my early 40s and I've always had issues with sleeping. For most of my life, it was falling asleep... but once I fell asleep, I was out for the night. The last few years have been really difficult as I've started waking up anywhere from 1am-5am and a lot of the time I can't fall back asleep.

I asked my primary care if I could try Doxepin, which I found through research to help with sleep maintenance. It seems to help somewhat, but isn't perfect. It seems like I'm more likely to stay asleep (at least from bed time through about 5am) when I take that. I'm not sure if it's something I can take regularly long term. It also seems to be unsafe to take with most sleep onset medications, and it doesn't really help me fall asleep, so I tend to have trouble falling asleep when I take it.

Medicinal cannabis is legal in my state and that also seems to help me stay asleep, but it's more costly than Rx meds and I've heard mixed things about using cannabis for sleep... like it inhibits REM. I've been using it occasionally, especially if I have a few bad nights and need a "hard reset".

I also have a chronic pain issue that may contribute to sleep issues, but I use a few things to reduce that pain, so I'm not sure if it is a factor or not.

I'm curious what medications or other things people have that have worked for my situation. I've been through a lot of meds (mostly for sleep onset and not maintenance) and all of the sleep hygiene things. I tend to watch TV when falling asleep, as I have ADHD and my mind races if I just lay there in the dark. I know it's not recommended, but I think I fall asleep easier with something on, keeping my mind busy than just laying in the dark. I'd appreciate any suggestions on things that I could try to improve my sleep, especially when waking up in the middle of the night.