Kelly,
I laughed out loud about obsessing about the next line!! That kinda defeats the purpose, I agree.
Well, ditto to everything Paula said and here's a few more thoughts. I have a sleep disorder related to my fibromyalgia. The things that my doctors have suggested that really help me are:
2 Benadryl antihistimine tablets at bed time (my psychiatrist and her husband and my mother all swear by it, for what ever that's worth!)
2-3 Elavil at bedtime. It's a prescription antidepressant but is also prescribed for sleep disorders because of its sedative effect and because it seems to help achieve the stage four deep sleep that our bodies need to heal and grow.
2 Xanax at bedtime. It's a prescription anti-anxiety med also used for sleep disorders.
Ambien and Sonata of course are prescription sleep aids in the hypnotics family of medications.
Obviously all meds listed should be taken as directed and not abused, and all have side effects of one sort or another.
Second category of suggestions: Do you practice good sleep hygiene? That means going to bed at the same time every night, not watching scary or funny shows on TV right before bed, not exercising too late in the day, etc. Just do a google on sleep disorder and you'll find a bunch of websites that list all the recommendations.
Two more ideas. Are night sweats waking you up with shivers and chills? I was having an AWFUL problem with that. I started sleeping with a towel! Then I figured out that if I wore some kind of moisture wicking long underwear as pajamas, they soaked up the sweat and I stopped waking up shivering. I'm sleeping MUCH better now.
Finally, waking up at 4 in the morning persistently is one physical symptom of clinical depression. It's my early warning sign that I'm getting depressed again. Has that been considered in your situation.
I'm really glad you brought this up because it DOES relate to IBS. I'm convinced that if everyone on this board started really getting enough good quality sleep, the severity of their symptoms would be dramatically lessened.
My husband and I have a saying, "Sleep helps!" :-)
--------------------
Laura
Keep it simple!
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