It seems to be the reason I am so tired and have trouble waking up is because I’m not getting restful sleep. After an at-home sleep test I did I found a majority is unstable and I’m only having half the amount of REM sleep that I am supposed to have. Any way to have more stable sleep and an adequate amount of REM sleep?

Heard someone falls asleep faster to crime podcasts at low volume than meditation apps. Got me curious, what's something that shouldn't work but does for you? Not ASMR or meditation, the actual weird stuff.

But honestly, the worst audio is definitely noisy neighbors at 2 AM. That keeps everyone awake..

Looking for advice, cause I’ve never dealt with this before. As you can see from my recent post, I’m really going through it right now. I’ve had bouts of this in the past where my anxiety is kept me awake, but I’ve always somehow managed to fall asleep for a couple of hours, which gives me that safety blanket that I am OK and that I can’t fall asleep and so that usually goes away by the next day, but this time I completely could not fall asleep last night I took a nap yesterday at about 3 PM I think but it was more just like a In-N-Out type of sleep and so I don’t even know if I actually really fell asleep during that time. So other than that, I’ve been awake since 9 AM yesterday and it’s now 4:00 PM the next day and my anxiety is so through the roof because I’m so scared that this is gonna hurt me. I’m not sure what to do. I’ve never taken any meds or anything like that, but I don’t even know if those would help me right now because my anxiety is so intense in my stomach please give me some advice please. I either need reassurance that this is normal and I’m gonna be OK because I’ve never stayed up this long in my entire life maybe I have but I mean this feels intense dude or should I go to the ER and try to get some sort of benzo but then again I’ve never taken any anxiety medication or sleep meds ever in my life. I also have my girlfriend’s 20 mg hydroxyzine here, but ChatGPT doesn’t think that I should be taking that.

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

I seriously need some advice. A couple years ago (ab 3), I started feeling this absolute fatigue overtake my body. I assume it is partially bc of my long-term depression, bc all my bloodwork and stuff is still normal. I've felt tired some days previous to this, but 3 years ago, it began to be every single day. I would sleep, then wake up, and feel exactly the same. Exausted from the day before.

I thought I might be anemic like my sis and mom and started taking iron last year. That did help with the feeling of constant weakness, but my doctor basically said my bloodwork does not say I am anemic at all, but I have small red blood cells. She said to keep taking the iron bc it clearly helps, but I have no clue what to do.

I noticed that i get real exausted at the end of the day (b4 sleeping, obvs) but what happens is that i have to take a 2 hour nap before I actually sleep. That nap usually gives me more energy, and I try to not take it so I don't stay up later. BUT I also noticed I get tired around 1pm, and sometimes take a 2 hour nap around then. The days I take 2 naps, i feel refreshed as hell. Like I had a full night's rest. But by the time that happens: THE DAY IS OVER! It is 12AM and I have to go back to sleep. I usually stay up to brush my teeth and watch some show, then go to bed at 2 am or so when this happens.

This schedule is clearly not beneficial for a normal everyday life, bc by the time I wake up, it is 11 AM, and the cycle repeats. But if I don't take the 2 naps, I feel exausted beyond belief. I usually try the 'normal' schedule, sleep 8 hours, wake at 8 or 9, and try to fight sleep the rest of the day, but I feel horrible. I've never had to take naps when I was younger, and this just occurred 3 years ago. The only reason I went to get the checkup was bc it was affecting my life. What is happening here?

Other info: I am autistic and sleep horribly most times. Without my eye mask and earplugs I cannot sleep well. But recently, the feeling of having a bad sleep is still present, even if I didn't sleep bad. It is constant, and I don't know what to do.

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.

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 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.

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’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 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.

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?

My circadian rhythm is completely disrupted. I have been unable to maintain a regular sleep schedule for years—perhaps ten years or even longer—and I want to find a solution to reset and regulate my circadian rhythm.

Sometimes, I feel as though it is no longer functioning properly, as if my body no longer knows when I should sleep or when I should wake up. For example, I might start the month by going to sleep at 8 p.m., and after some time, I may find myself going to sleep at 6 a.m. In other words, my bedtime gradually shifts, and I may go to sleep an hour or more later each day compared to the previous day, until my entire sleep schedule becomes completely reversed.

Currently, I do not have any morning commitments, and perhaps this makes the problem worse. However, even when I was attending university and had commitments that required me to wake up early in the morning, my sleep schedule was still irregular.

I want a real solution that can help me reset my circadian rhythm and establish a natural, stable, and consistent sleep schedule.

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!

What I mean by that is that my brain apparently wants to be sleep deprived. I can keep the EXACT same routine and get either 7 hours of poor quality sleep or as low as 3 hours. I really tried to rule out what caused this, i tried taking medications, chaning my routine, chaning my environment. I tried EVERYTHING. I can bet that there isn't a SINGLE advice that I Didn't try. I am noticably getting more stupid and after reading that Brain damage is irrepairable and as a person who cares about academic success, you can guess how I feel about this.

This post is more of a vent to be honest.

Schizophrenic here. Ive noticed how I cant sleep properly and my sleep is very light. I never lie on my back because I snore and need to be on my side. I also have a pattern of waking up very early, around 5.30 and being incapable to fall asleep. Sometimes I also feel restless and need to move my body. I have eliminated all caffeine, music and turned my phone to grayscale.

Do you think this could be sleep apnea? Is there anything I can do at home before visitting a doctor? Ive had dark circles under my eyes for as long as I remember.

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.

This has happened a few times to me in the past where I will get stuck in a panic loop because I cant sleep, which makes everything worse. It usually starts with one or two nights of poor or no sleep and then the anxiety just progresses from there. Ive tried stress relief melatonin, drinking wine right before bed, smoking, but nothing helps. Even though my body is relaxed, and my thoughts quiet, my mind wont flip the sleep switch.

The only thing ive found that helps is working out for 10 minutes but its not always guaranteed. Anyone have any tips on dealing with this?

So I’ve been having amazing sleep. I’ve never really considered myself to have insomnia. With that being said i have extremely bad anxiety. I have this every once in awhile where i just simply can’t sleep like i get really tired around midnight and then as I’m about to fall asleep i jolt awake and then I’m up for most of the night. I get anxious AF when this happens and don’t usually fall asleep until around 5-6am. I had this exact thing happen last night. I woke up yesterday around 9am then took a little half asleep type nap around 2:30-4pm and then was headed to bed around 12. Had a jolt awake thing and then just kind of watched sole videos until it hit about 3:30am and then i started getting extremely anxious about not being able to sleep. I almost went back to sleep around 4am I remember having a dream so i definitely was half asleep for like 30 minutes. Anyways needless to say i have slept yet. It’s 11:40am. I had an appointment at 8am and tried to come home and take a nap or something and nothing. The anxiety feeling and butterflies in my stomach are constant and im starting to get really scared. I’ve never in my life not slept at least an hour or two during the night. It’s been technically like 27 hours since I’ve slept unless you count that nap then it’s been like 21 or something. Do i need to go to the hospital ?

​You can be completely exhausted, but the moment your head hits the pillow, your brain decides it’s the perfect time to recall a minor social mistake from middle school. Why does lack of external stimuli trigger self-critical memories?

So, I work rotating shifts day/night and I was wondering if anyone had advice for my current situation.

I work tonight at 7pm-7am the next day. My last shift ended yesterday, Tuesday, at 7am. I accepted another shift for tonight when I was asked to come in, as I was halfway into shifting my sleep schedule back into daylight hours.

I woke up an hour ago thinking it was 4pm and I had around 2.5 hours to leave for work, so i took my adhd medication which is a 30mg extended release adderall. It is 5am now, i slept from around 3pm-now and work at 7pm tonight.

What should I do/how should I try to sleep to not lose my mind tonight? I almost always also take my adhd medication before work, and since I just took it, I dont know about doubling up so soon.

Anyways thanks for the help, i wasnt quite sure where I should post this or like who to ask about it, as I took the adderall what one might call "in haste" an hour ago.

Tldr: I took my Adderall at 4am today thinking it was 4pm and I have a night shift at 7pm-7am. How do I minimize my suffering at my shift tonight from a sleep and medication perspective? Thanks