I know all to well about the lack of sleep that comes with Chronic Pain.
The most recent thing that has been helping me is: I am on Xanax for anxiety. I take a half a mg twice a day. The last one I take is the end of the day right before I go to bed and then I take it with Restoril. The way they affect me, I normally take them then crawl into bed right away. With-in a few minutes I am off into slumber land for at least 4 hours and have slept for up to 8 hours with those 2 combined. I hate the meds I have to take to make me sleep, but at least I am able to get some kind of sleep.
Wish you the best and hope that you will soon find an answer to your sleep problems!!!!
nana2007

I dont have any advice but I would sure love to find some magic potion ....anything.This lack of sleep is really starting to get old!!! It is making ME old.I have tried sleeping pills a few weeks ago as a last resort and hated how they made me feel in the morning....I did sleep a little better with them but I sure dodnt feel rested when I got up and felt groggier for most of the day that I would have felt if I hadnt slept well.I purchased a really good mattress just before my surgery,I use pillows between my legs,I avoid caffiene.One of my biggest problem is the fact I cannot sleep on my back or my left leg feels funny and my foot goes numb....then when try to get up out of bed I am arched backwards and very stiff and sore.Takes me a good half hour in the shower to work out the kinks.

My pain does ease through the day and I am doing awesome in tier 3 physio....way above expectations and have been doing 3 hours of work a day for 5 days a week with it(I am an ICU nurse).....then as the day progresses I tend to get sorer again.

Anyway....I am 9 months post op from a diskectomy,laminectomy and dynamic stabalization of L4-S1.I am truly much better than pre-op and suffered for 8 years before taking the surgical plunge.

If anyone has any suggestions or home remedies,anything at all I would love to hear them.Thanks so much:)

Marliejo, like you i have tried the sleeping pills but i have found the supplements melatonin and magnesium to work almost as well. they are natural and i don't have the grogginess in the morning. i take a hot bath with some candles and then go right into bed! maybe it will work for you! it is very impressive that you are back at work!! take it easy and don't overdo! all my best! Jenny

nana2007, thank you for your suggestions!! i have taken Restoril by itself and it did not work!! hope you are sleeping like a baby anyway! Jenny

Melatonin and magnesium....I will go to a health food and suppliment store and see what I can find.Thanks so much for the suggestion:) I will let you know when I find them and how they worked.

I try not to overdo it,but the physio program I am in is called Pheonix and they are hired by WCB to take care of the client as a whole.....not only physically but psychologically.It is a rigorous 8 week program.At week 4 they send you to your original job as part of an ease back program.My duties are modified and ICU is probably not where I will end up in the end.I only have 2 weeks left in the program and really have been doing excellent.....but then again I have been doing physio since 7 weeks post op through tier one and tier two programs.Gotta admit that I am getting a little tired of physio .....but you gotta do what you gotta do...lol

Insomnia

This article is about the sleeping disorder.

http://www.smso.net/Insomnia

Hope this help

good luck

I have been having problems sleeping for years, but in the last 3-4 weeks it has gotten much worse.

I truely believe it is from anxiety. I fall asleep, but about 1-2 hours later I wake up and I am worried about finances or work.

I hope that the anxiety goes away when I finally have my surgery.

Thanks for posting the link.

Julie

I dont recomend this coz it will cause weight gain, but for soem reason if i eat a certain amount of Carbs..Yea carbs before i hit the bed i seem to grt sleepish,i dont know why,i do know if i mess up the amt,i gets the unsleepy bed dance,also some protein powders worked from my strength training days helped also,i used it to recover the muscle after a brutal heavy day,some thing about the lactic acid breaking down the muscle further after the work out,also ..i believe..just me ok? that if i kept the cortisol levels down my muscles wouldnt break down as quickly due to catabolism,but any way benedril seems to knock me out too,

This post is coming from me at 2:45 am... I hate having insomnia! My PM doc prescribed Rozerem AND Ambien CR to take together before bedtime. It usually helps me out and I can go to sleep around 1:00, but if I only take one of them, either one, I get no sleep. I ran out of the Ambien CR last Sunday night and have only slept a TOTAL of five and a half hours since then. It's hard to concentrate, pain control is decreased, and my head is killing me!! I sent in a new script to be filled for the Ambien, but I don't expect it to be in until the end of next week. If your PM doc will prescribe these two meds together give it a try. It doesn't make me feel drowsy but rather I just notice that I could go to sleep if I try and the Ambien helps me STAY asleep.

Sweet dreams to all...

h i all ..like most IP chronic pain call it what you want
i only manage about 3 hours {weak sleep} per 24 i go to bed sometimes at 3 am because waking at 6 am is not as bad as waking at 3 am {like if i go to bed at 12} the constant pain and lack of sleep is doing my head in i can not cope i have tried sleeping pills but after about 3 days i get used to them ;and i only get about 4 hours on sleepers!!we have an electrical ajustable bed it is very comfy BUT still after 3 hours my hands are in my back i legs are all over the place and i have to get up for more pain meds .i end up on my recliner thats where i stay for most of the day {please dont get me wrong i am not lazy i am just unable tp do anything due to pain and lack of sleep ANYONE LIKE THIS??? tony......

Hi Tony~
Try the Ambien CR/ Rozerem combo if your doc will give it to you. Like you, I get used to a sleep med very easy and it doesn't continue to work, but the two together have worked really well together. I can see this even more clearly now as i have been out of the Ambien CR now for a week and have only slept about six hours since then. I can't wait to get the Ambien again! Something new that the doc is trying with me is Equip (I think is what it's called), I'll have to double check the name. I told him that when I try to sleep at night my brain doesn't stop going. He thinks it's anxiety and the new med might help. I've only been taking it since last Thursday and can't tell anything yet BUT it's making me extremely nauseated! I'm trying to hang in there to see if I get past the sickness before making a final judgement.

you all have mentioned some new medications i haven't tried yet and i will check them out with my doctor. there is no reason not to think that something could be out there to give me even 4 hours of sleep a night. it is 3 in the norning here and i saw others were awake! keep trying! something has to work for us! thanks all. Jenny

Me too!
my daughter has researched this a bit and has found that a Vitamin B12 deficiency can cause sleep problems.
At this site, http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag99/aug99-report3.html , they say:
B12 and sleep

"Those who can't get to sleep at night may need vitamin B12. Studies show that B12 causes an earlier release of melatonin at night which resets the sleep-wake cycle. (Melatonin has been called "the sleep hormone" because of its effects on sleep). B12 acts directly on the pineal gland to provoke a faster release of melatonin. At the tail end, B12 causes melatonin to drop off faster. B12 helps you get to sleep earlier, and may help you wake up earlier if you leave a curtain open to the morning sun. B12 sensitizes you to morning light, which helps you wake up. Very serious sleep-wake disorders have been successfully treated with vitamin B12 in the methylcobalamin form, although it may not work for everyone. Unfortunately, the vitamin doesn't help people who want to cut down on their sleep time altogether."
We are all taking good quality B12 now.
I still take Restavit when muscles are sore, or when not sleepy, from 1/4 to a whole tablet.
Sometimes a 1/4 helps me sleep, at other times a whole one makes no difference. Some times you just get wired up. Still, for me I don't seem to have any bad effects from poor sleep- I wake every 15 mins or so to turn over, and quite often get only 3-4 hours of sleep. Fuzzy brain is the only one that stands out, and as I'm retired it's not too bad.

Nap every single day
short nap-
Avoid taking a hot bath before bed

Make your room colder-your body needs to cool down

Exercise-walk walk walk...........how many times has that been drilled into our heads

Get out in the sunlight soon after waking up in the morning
possible, get out in the morning sun soon after getting up. The bright sunlight (or any bright light) tells your body’s natural biological clock that its time to wake up, and that same clock will then be set to tell your body its time to go to sleep about 14 to 16 hours hours later.
I have found this really does help.

Don’t watch TV in bed
Block out noise
Find a bedtime ritual that works for you
Do what it takes to manage stress in your life

As an alternative you can try soaking in some bath salts before you actually go to bed. You could choose that has fragrances that relaxes you to be able to achieve a sleep-inducing atmosphere. You can use some warm water to soak into for more relaxation. It increases circulation making your body feel comfortable and more inclined to sleep.

Well I found out what was causing my sleep issues. The antibiotics I have been taking for going on 4 weeks (mean sinus infection). Was causing the vicaden to build up in my system there for making "high". I can't take vicaden at bedtime it wires me out... My PCP called her husband he is a pharmacist and he said I am matabolizing it different.

I felt like I was starting to have a panic attack again- but I just had the heart rate up and flushed face.... Not fun.

She switched me to Ultracet (not as effective on the pain) but surviving, also taking a flexerile at 8 pm and I am sleeping better. Not the greatest but better.

I can go back to vicaden when I am off the antibiotics.

Julie

Julie A, that is good news and i bet you are so happy to be catching some zzzzz;sss. that is why our pharmacists can really be a life line when it comes to our bodies and our medications working together. good night! Jenny

There are some herbal teas that are supposed to help you sleep... herbal teas don't contain caffeine, I'm not sure which, think it camomile. I googled "tea to help you sleep" and came across a quite humorous site:

http://www.well.com/~mick/insomnia/

Haven't tried any of their suggestions, but who knows right? Its worth a shot!

I've used all the prescription aids (ie Ambien) and some of the OTC aids (ie Nytol) but I'd rather not get stuck with those. For a while I was taking 10mg Ambien every night for about 3 months. Had to stop it.

So, I've tried to come up with different ways to help getting sleep:

1Alcohol - Wine, Fortified wines (Sherry/Port). A glass might taste great, might help me get ready to sleep, but I just wind up my awake
2Herbal Teas - Like Amanda mentioned. Those seem to work pretty well. I get an assortment package (so I dont get bored) but they are all basically "Sleep-Time" Teas
3Reading - I dont read...Well when I read it technical manuals - doesnt help me sleep, just gets me back on the computer.
4Relaxtional Music[/b] - This works really well. I have a large playlist on my IPOD dedicated to R&R type of music
5TV - Watching old movies..Helps, but I cant stay seated on the couch all the long

I use to get so uptight about not getting any sleep. When I was commuting to work, I would 'force' myself into getting at least 5 hours of sleep. Now, after working from home and a couple of years and pounds later, 2 - 3 hours is fine.
Sometimes, I really like the Midnight to 4:00am shift. No one around , the phone doesnt ring, its good solid me time.

Anyway, I strayed off the topic... I started with some sleep aids, lets keep it that way

i am not having as much a problem as my husband is over this. i am able to catch the 2-3 hours like some of you and that can hold me over till the next nap. my husband wants to sleep together at night. as it is he sleeps in the spare room since i am up all night. i don't know what else to say to get him to let up on me or to get me to sleep all night. Jenny