Has anyone found anything that helps SLEEP

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jyearta

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I having a hard time sleeping, I get anxious as the night goes on knowing that if I don't get some sleep I'm going to have seizures.

I DON'T want anyother presc. medic.

I take Magnesium 250mg and I added Ibuprofen last week and did help, however after taking Ibupr. for 5 nights in a roll, I woke up feeling drugged, unable to do simple task. By 7:00PM I start getting more alert or should I say awake.

Any suggestion would be appreciated.
 
Thanks Nakomova. I've tried melatonin in the past and I did have a seizure, I can't remember how much I took. After that happen I scared to take that again.
 
Ive been taking Melatonin. I started taking this back in January. I started out with 3mgs and since then, my body has got use to it, so I bumped it up to 4.5 mgs which does the trick now for me.
 
You can break the melatonin into 1/4th. Some people only need a tiny bit. And take it around 7. Its supposed to readjust your circadian rhythm and get you back on a day night schedule.
 
a hobby,
knitting, origami, just keeping the brain busy.
or something
there are several threads about finding something to do.
 
I walk on my threadmill every day and do my house cleaning, etc. I just started waking up and unable to go back to sleep.
 
magnesium
relaxation techniques
no light in the room at all
exercise
not eating after 8:00
 
I started taking magnesium after reading one of your post several months ago. I take a whole table at 250mg and added 1/4 extra. When I tried taking1 1/2 (250mg)tablets, that amt. made me very drowsy the next day.
 
Do you mean non-drug? Otherwise Trazadone does the job wonderfully. So does Benedryl or Dramamin which are safer, lower-impact drugs and are available over the counter.

Drug free. This is crazy but ice seems to help me. Maybe becaue my head is usually in pain. I put warm fuzzy socks on my feet, pack my head and neck in ice, position myself comfortably on the pillow in a cool, dark room (if that's possible), and I'm asleep faster than I would be otherwisse. The exception is pain. When it's up above a "4" it can keep me up all night.

I've heard people say things like hammocks help them. The swinging is soothing. I just like hearing the leaves rustle and feel the sprinkler hitting me every 20 seconds or so. :)
 
I read every night before bed. Since it's something I do every night before I go to sleep it's like my brain know's it's bedtime. If I read during the day it usually will put me to sleep too.

Alot of times if I'm having trouble sleeping I'll listen to music on my MP3 player.

This is going to sound stupid but sometimes I'll 'count' myself to sleep. I go from 1 to 100 then start all over till I'm asleep. Concentrating on the numbers blocks everything out of my head so there's nothing else to think about.
 
Now, I can suggest something but everyone reacts differently to different medicines and I have no way of knowing if you might be allergic to it or not and if it would trigger a seizure. I've used a pill they just came out with not long ago called Zzzquil from the makers of Niquil. It's for sleep only and I tried it and it helps me sleep without making me feel groggy when I do wake up and it doesn't make it hard to wake up.

The best thing though I can suggest if you want to go the pill route is ask your Neurologist what the best "OVER" the counter pill would be AND if it would interact with the anti-seizure pills you take.

Some things I do is take a hot shower before bed, read, listen to music & I have to have complete darkness. Some people drink chamomile tea and if you drink caffienated drinks, stop those7 t0 8 hours before bed cause it can take that long to leave your system, depending how much you've had.
 
I couldn't do this for a long time because my mind was so haphazard. But now I am stable enough to do this. This involves no drugs but in the last 2 weeks it puts me to sleep so well it's crazy. I have the room pitch black. I meditate for about 20-30 minutes, stretch out slowly for about 5 minutes. Then I just pass on in my bed and sleep great. I always did this on rare occasions before I had seizures. Before a big exam or something. Works great, and you don't have to take any pill. Thank god!
 
I wish I could help more with this as I've been having a lot of issues with sleep lately. The last few nights I've slept well because I was sleeping terribly for a few weeks. I used Trazadone, and it worked at first, then stopped working. I also have used melatonin before, but it also stopped working rather quickly, or it seemed to work randomly. You can try something called "square breathing" that my therapist showed me, and it helps a lot in slowing your mind down. Basically, picture a square... You breath in for one edge of it, hold your breath around the second edge, let it out for the third edge, then hold that for the fourth edge. Then repeat. She told me to start doing it throughout the day, and then breath that way the whole time you are in bed. I also try to picture something calming while I'm doing it.

It does seem to help, though I have issues feeling like I have to pee every single time I drift off, so that seems to counteract the relaxation technique. Exercise earlier in the day also helps (too close to bedtime and you'll probably struggle with sleeping).
 
On the rare occasion that I have any trouble, I tell myself a story, or make one up. For whatever reason, that seems to work for me. It's probably along the same line as counting sheep.
 
Two nights ago I started taking 1mg of melatonin at night while reading in preparation for sleep at night. For me thus far it is working great.
 
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