Thank you, Mary, for your quick reply. I will have to try this. I am pretty desperate for a good night's sleep. I sleep about 4-5 hours if I am lucky most nights. It really sucks the life out of you after a while. I am not a good daytime napper, which just complicates the issue.
I will put this on my list to try, but it is hot where I live as well, so I don't know how well I would tolerate this, even at the bottom of the bed. I have heard lots of folks say it works well for them.
My husband uses a magnesium spray. He says it helps when he has pain. I've never tried it. I am not sure where he gets it, but here are a couple of links:
Have you tried blue light filters? I use an app on my phone called Night Screen which lets me turn it down much darker than the standard phone setting, and changes the colour tones to orange after sunset. I found that helped a lot with my sleep quality since I'm tied to my phone pretty much constantly. There's also similar things available for PC.
I was the same, and then learned it is a prolonged "napping" that badly affects my night sleep. Now I practice "power nap" that does not exceed 30 minutes.
Add soda pop to that list -- like Coca Cola, Diet Coke, Pepsi, Mountain Dew, etc.
I do power nap when traveling, and have done for at least 2 decades or more. It's fairly easy to do power naps sitting in my car at a rest area, partly because even though I do have a timer, I usually can't sleep longer than 20 minutes sitting up in a car. Quite effective to regenerate and prevents me from falling asleep at the wheel. But I've never tried it at home, basically because I don't like using an alarm at home, and I just have never wanted to schedule a nap except while traveling. Except when I should take a nap and try because I had a bad night, and then that's when I can't fall asleep during the day.
I have a pill cutter. My aged fingers couldn't break a pill in two if my life depended on it. Plus I am having hand surgery tomorrow & won't have full use of my dominant hand, particularly my thumb for about 6-8 weeks. Even prior to surgery I haven't had full use of my right thumb in years, certainly not enough to break a pill in half with use of two thumbs. I assume when you say it breaks evenly, that your tablets are scored? Mine are not. Not all pills are scored, and I've rarely seen supplements scored. Scoring of tablets is useful for breaking in half using a pill cutter, but not essential. Yet even with a pill cutter, I don't always get an even cut, so you must have magical thumbs!
I had my pre-op CoVid test yesterday. Should know the result tomorrow morning, which I expect will be negative, of course; I'd be very surprised if it turned out positive. If I do test positive, it won't be from the my vaccination as the Covid-19 PCR test specifically looks for genetic virus material, none of which the mRNA vaccines include.
At this point, (one month after our second vaccination injections), Hubby & I are both considered 'fully vaccinated' so we're both feeling pretty well protected as long as we continue following stringent mitigation procedures. The B-117 and other possible variants that may turn up in the meanwhile until the nation and the majority of the global population is also fully vaccinated, are keeping us extremely cautious. We still don't know how this will turn out.
My closest family members will all have reached 'fully vaccinated' within the next 60 days, with me & my sibs all done already.
Older son gets his second vaccination injection on Thursday. Granddaughter & younger son are getting their first doses on Friday & Saturday, respectively, so I expect I should feel safe to travel to Texas to visit them again in late possibly in June. I was going to go this month, but expect minimal use of my dominant hand AND a lot of occupational therapy before I regain full use of my hand, so visiting this month or even early May seems rather out-of-the-question, even without the rising CoVid cases, particularly of the B-117 variant in their part of the state.
Of course all this does exacerbate the sleep problems I've been having, I am sure. In spite of an attitude that worrying about stuff out of my control is useless, it doesn't stop the mind from being effected.
Yes, on my phone. Not on my computer, though. And the TV we are now using is as is (it has no setting for blue light filtering - hopefully the next one will.)
This morning, I turned on the Night Light feature on my laptop to filter out blue light, more for eye strain issues & retina protection, than for sleep, but if it helps, all the better!
Even when blue light is filtered, I believe that brain stimulation caused by action movies or stimulating internet reading or compulsive web browsing are just as likely to keep me up as the blue light issue, but perhaps I would fall asleep sooner if the blue light was filtered out. I'll keep an eye on it.
I do power nap when traveling, and have done for at least 2 decades or more. It's fairly easy to do power naps sitting in my car at a rest area, partly because even though I do have a timer, I usually can't sleep longer than 20 minutes sitting up in a car. Quite effective to regenerate and prevents me from falling asleep at the wheel. But I've never tried it at home, basically because I don't like using an alarm at home, and I just have never wanted to schedule a nap except while traveling. Except when I should take a nap and try because I had a bad night, and then that's when I can't fall asleep during the day.
But it is a good idea and I know it works because it is what I do when I drive long distances. Maybe I'll give this a try if the other things I'm trying don't pan out.
Years and years ago, I cut caffeine to a maximum of two cups of tea per day & only in the early morning. Only extremely rarely do I ever drink tea after noon, and if I do, it's usually at the end of a day of driving and generally de-caf or chamomile tea. I do not eat chocolate or drink cocoa because when I do, I always get pimples in the worst places. Other than a rare occasion, I just don't consume foods that contain caffeine unless I have a persistent headache that won't quit, then my HA (headache) pill includes caffeine. I don't drink soda pop (grew up not drinking it because this is how I was raised) and I don't drink alcoholic beverages, nor do I drink sweet drinks or fruit juices. I don't even drink orange juice (I don't really like it.) Really other than 2 cups of tea in the morning, all I drink all day is water, plain, filtered water and once in awhile I'll buy a quart of buttermilk and drink about 3 ounces to ward off hunger. So that's about it for beverages for me.
My physician has me taking methyl B12 + folate, which could be a real culprit here. I've decided to try a couple of weeks without it and see what kind difference that makes. My blood levels for B12 were high the last time they were done, so it's not like I've been deficient, in spite of the fact that I do not eat meat.
It is true that my evening meals (eaten around 4:30 or 5 pm usually, several hours before I normally go to sleep) do often contain stimulant ingredients, like spiciness, various vitamins, fats, salt, pepper, whatever. I don't eat many sweets regularly because I tend to prefer savory to sweet. Although I could cut out the ice cream bar I've been adding as an after-dinner desert (but again, this is really early in the evening because Hubby goes to bed around 6 pm or earlier, so it's pretty much before his bedtime, but long before mine.)
Perhaps I could start a new evening snack routine and add some things that are supposed to help with sleep like rice, garbanzo, edamame, hummus, bananas, pumpkin seeds, a Brazil nut (I used to eat one per day, but haven't done that in a long time; perhaps it's time to go buy some more), green leafies, yogurt, maybe an egg (for the tryptophan) once in awhile, but I can only tolerate so many eggs, and certainly not on a daily basis.
I might see if I can do that in the evenings. I used to take 5-HTP, but I ran out while away last year & didn't buy more (I was trying to cut down on pills pills and just forgot about them). Last night, though, I ordered more 5-HTP with L-tryptophan supplements. Both support serotonin & melatonin production, so I'll go back to taking those. I was trying to cut down on supplements, but perhaps these are pretty important ones right now, and probably cut out the melatonin since it doesn't seem to be working as positively as I was hoping.
Another possibility is to talk to my physician about changing out my cholesterol med for a water-soluble instead of the fat-soluble one I now take, which does interfere with sleep for some people. Although the sleeping issue is not new to since I started on simvastatin, so I am not sure that one matters. But I will keep it in mind for future discussion.
Anyway, you have given me food for thought, Daisy, that has helped me re-think my supplements and what to add as an evening snack. I'll try those and see how it goes. I did buy buttermilk yesterday, and although it does contain butter fat, at least its milk so I had a small glassful in the evening to encourage serotonin production. I had already taken my 3mg melatonin. I did get to sleep much earlier than usual, but also awoke too early, so still didn't get enough sleep and the quality was down (very restless during the night.)
Additionally, I've been tracking my quality of sleep with melatonin, and so far, it's not looking favorable. But other factors may be at play, so I'll keep tracking for a little longer with those in mind as well, before ruling it out.
I have a pill cutter. My aged fingers couldn't break a pill in two if my life depended on it. Plus I am having hand surgery tomorrow & won't have full use of my dominant hand, particularly my thumb for about 6-8 weeks. Even prior to surgery I haven't had full use of my right thumb in years, certainly not enough to break a pill in half with use of two thumbs. I assume when you say it breaks evenly, that your tablets are scored? Mine are not. Not all pills are scored, and I've rarely seen supplements scored. Scoring of tablets is useful for breaking in half using a pill cutter, but not essential. Yet even with a pill cutter, I don't always get an even cut, so you must have magical thumbs!
Best wishes Earlene as you figure it out
However, Some supplements are brutal to the liver and kidneys if taken for a long time.
Talk to your doctor before you weed out old (if prescribed) or add on new.
No magical thumbs here. Just 70 year old ones. I was shown this trick by my physician husband, and you would be amazed how easy it is. If the tablet is rounded and placed on a hard surface, 2 fingers is all it takes to break most of them in half. The trick is magic, not my fingers. I have a pill cutter as well, and I am a retired RN, but for the life of me, I have never found a pill cutter that works for me. All my cut pills come out unevenly cut. Best of luck with all your medical adventures, Earlene. Have your husband perform the magical pill trick.I had my pre-op CoVid test yesterday. Should know the result tomorrow morning, which I expect will be negative, of course; I'd be very surprised if it turned out positive. If I do test positive, it won't be from the my vaccination as the Covid-19 PCR test specifically looks for genetic virus material, none of which the mRNA vaccines include.
At this point, (one month after our second vaccination injections), Hubby & I are both considered 'fully vaccinated' so we're both feeling pretty well protected as long as we continue following stringent mitigation procedures. The B-117 and other possible variants that may turn up in the meanwhile until the nation and the majority of the global population is also fully vaccinated, are keeping us extremely cautious. We still don't know how this will turn out.
My closest family members will all have reached 'fully vaccinated' within the next 60 days, with me & my sibs all done already.
Older son gets his second vaccination injection on Thursday. Granddaughter & younger son are getting their first doses on Friday & Saturday, respectively, so I expect I should feel safe to travel to Texas to visit them again in late possibly in June. I was going to go this month, but expect minimal use of my dominant hand AND a lot of occupational therapy before I regain full use of my hand, so visiting this month or even early May seems rather out-of-the-question, even without the rising CoVid cases, particularly of the B-117 variant in their part of the state.
Of course all this does exacerbate the sleep problems I've been having, I am sure. In spite of an attitude that worrying about stuff out of my control is useless, it doesn't stop the mind from being effected.
Yes, on my phone. Not on my computer, though. And the TV we are now using is as is (it has no setting for blue light filtering - hopefully the next one will.)
This morning, I turned on the Night Light feature on my laptop to filter out blue light, more for eye strain issues & retina protection, than for sleep, but if it helps, all the better!
Even when blue light is filtered, I believe that brain stimulation caused by action movies or stimulating internet reading or compulsive web browsing are just as likely to keep me up as the blue light issue, but perhaps I would fall asleep sooner if the blue light was filtered out. I'll keep an eye on it.
I do power nap when traveling, and have done for at least 2 decades or more. It's fairly easy to do power naps sitting in my car at a rest area, partly because even though I do have a timer, I usually can't sleep longer than 20 minutes sitting up in a car. Quite effective to regenerate and prevents me from falling asleep at the wheel. But I've never tried it at home, basically because I don't like using an alarm at home, and I just have never wanted to schedule a nap except while traveling. Except when I should take a nap and try because I had a bad night, and then that's when I can't fall asleep during the day.
But it is a good idea and I know it works because it is what I do when I drive long distances. Maybe I'll give this a try if the other things I'm trying don't pan out.
Years and years ago, I cut caffeine to a maximum of two cups of tea per day & only in the early morning. Only extremely rarely do I ever drink tea after noon, and if I do, it's usually at the end of a day of driving and generally de-caf or chamomile tea. I do not eat chocolate or drink cocoa because when I do, I always get pimples in the worst places. Other than a rare occasion, I just don't consume foods that contain caffeine unless I have a persistent headache that won't quit, then my HA (headache) pill includes caffeine. I don't drink soda pop (grew up not drinking it because this is how I was raised) and I don't drink alcoholic beverages, nor do I drink sweet drinks or fruit juices. I don't even drink orange juice (I don't really like it.) Really other than 2 cups of tea in the morning, all I drink all day is water, plain, filtered water and once in awhile I'll buy a quart of buttermilk and drink about 3 ounces to ward off hunger. So that's about it for beverages for me.
My physician has me taking methyl B12 + folate, which could be a real culprit here. I've decided to try a couple of weeks without it and see what kind difference that makes. My blood levels for B12 were high the last time they were done, so it's not like I've been deficient, in spite of the fact that I do not eat meat.
It is true that my evening meals (eaten around 4:30 or 5 pm usually, several hours before I normally go to sleep) do often contain stimulant ingredients, like spiciness, various vitamins, fats, salt, pepper, whatever. I don't eat many sweets regularly because I tend to prefer savory to sweet. Although I could cut out the ice cream bar I've been adding as an after-dinner desert (but again, this is really early in the evening because Hubby goes to bed around 6 pm or earlier, so it's pretty much before his bedtime, but long before mine.)
Perhaps I could start a new evening snack routine and add some things that are supposed to help with sleep like rice, garbanzo, edamame, hummus, bananas, pumpkin seeds, a Brazil nut (I used to eat one per day, but haven't done that in a long time; perhaps it's time to go buy some more), green leafies, yogurt, maybe an egg (for the tryptophan) once in awhile, but I can only tolerate so many eggs, and certainly not on a daily basis.
I might see if I can do that in the evenings. I used to take 5-HTP, but I ran out while away last year & didn't buy more (I was trying to cut down on pills pills and just forgot about them). Last night, though, I ordered more 5-HTP with L-tryptophan supplements. Both support serotonin & melatonin production, so I'll go back to taking those. I was trying to cut down on supplements, but perhaps these are pretty important ones right now, and probably cut out the melatonin since it doesn't seem to be working as positively as I was hoping.
Another possibility is to talk to my physician about changing out my cholesterol med for a water-soluble instead of the fat-soluble one I now take, which does interfere with sleep for some people. Although the sleeping issue is not new to since I started on simvastatin, so I am not sure that one matters. But I will keep it in mind for future discussion.
Anyway, you have given me food for thought, Daisy, that has helped me re-think my supplements and what to add as an evening snack. I'll try those and see how it goes. I did buy buttermilk yesterday, and although it does contain butter fat, at least its milk so I had a small glassful in the evening to encourage serotonin production. I had already taken my 3mg melatonin. I did get to sleep much earlier than usual, but also awoke too early, so still didn't get enough sleep and the quality was down (very restless during the night.)
Additionally, I've been tracking my quality of sleep with melatonin, and so far, it's not looking favorable. But other factors may be at play, so I'll keep tracking for a little longer with those in mind as well, before ruling it out.
I have a pill cutter. My aged fingers couldn't break a pill in two if my life depended on it. Plus I am having hand surgery tomorrow & won't have full use of my dominant hand, particularly my thumb for about 6-8 weeks. Even prior to surgery I haven't had full use of my right thumb in years, certainly not enough to break a pill in half with use of two thumbs. I assume when you say it breaks evenly, that your tablets are scored? Mine are not. Not all pills are scored, and I've rarely seen supplements scored. Scoring of tablets is useful for breaking in half using a pill cutter, but not essential. Yet even with a pill cutter, I don't always get an even cut, so you must have magical thumbs!
UH OH! I guess I haven't communicated well, Earlene. They cannot lie flat against the surface that they are sitting on. They have to be rounded (convex) on their surface area, not in circumference. Does that make sense? That is why it works so well. The pressure applied to each end causes the pills to snap in the middle.
I see what you mean. they are too tiny for that, but they do break quite well in my pill cutter. I switched to 1/2 tab at night for the past few nights & now I don't get that grogginess.
Hang in there, it’ll get better. I hope your recovery goes well.
