Last month, since xmas, i have not been able to sleep well. First xmas all alone and it was horrible. Spent most of the time watching telly. I watched all 7 series of West Wing in a week because i could not sleep well. The holidays are not a nice time for people who are already depressed.

I have tried reading before bed, not reading before bed, music and no music. Exercise is out as that just elevates my heart rate to an unacceptable level for hours past the initial effort. Hot milk and teas don't do it.

What other than pills is next?

a few pints and a big meal before bed maybe? that always worked for my uncle John at 3pm on a Sunday

seriously now....i had insomnia for a while once, it was suggested to me that i try a light and sound machine.
I got one on 14 day trial and it sorted me out every night, so i bought myself one. They lower the brainwave rate by using light and you can use them for all sorts of things such as learning, sleep, confidence boosting etc. I dont use one now as i got over it in the end and i think the light and sound machine helped me through that.

http://www.mindmachine.com/proddetail.php?prod=MP-Sirius

they are not cheap though... and are considered to be an alternative therapy.

Hello from a fellow insomniac! I've gone through periods (sometimes very long periods) like that since I was a kid. On the plus side, I do get lots of reading done!

I've tried various things, and I've been to a few sleep management classes, the gist of the advice from these I've copied below. A lot of it is common sense and you'll probably know most of it. The main advice from the classes was that if you can't fall asleep within 20 minutes, get up and do something else. Ditto if you wake up after a few hours and can't get back to sleep (which is my main problem). I find that the most difficult one to stick to - the last thing you feel like doing is getting up!

Oh...and apparently hot milk is to be avoided, which is a bit of a u-turn from the general consensus I know. You don't mention coffee so I'm presuming you avoid that - I'm a major caffeine addict but I don't have any after lunchtime and I know that makes a difference. Don't have a TV in your bedroom is also common advice.

The main things I find that help me are having a notebook beside me to jot down the random thoughts and worries that stick in my head at 4 am, and when I remember, I have some lavender oil in an oil burner. I also found that reading "The Inheritance of Loss" had me drifting off in no time - not exactly a ringing endorsement of a Booker Prize winning novel, but I still haven't got to the end of it.

Actually, this reply is becoming so long, it might be the very cure for your insomnia! Anyway, here's the advice from the experts - hope it helps.

- Try to go to sleep at the same time each night and get up at the same time each morning. Do not take naps after 3 p.m.
- Avoid caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol late in the day or at night.
- Get regular exercise. Exercise during the day--make sure you exercise at least 5 to 6 hours before bedtime.
- Make sure you eat dinner at least 2 to 3 hours before bedtime.
- Keep your bedroom dark, quiet, and cool. If light is a problem, try a sleeping mask. If noise is a problem, try earplugs, a fan, or a "white noise" machine to cover up the sounds.
- Follow a routine to help relax and wind down before sleep, such as reading a book, listening to music, or taking a bath.
- If you can't fall asleep within 20 minutes or don't feel drowsy, get up and read or do something that is not too active until you feel sleepy. Then try going back to bed.
- If you lay awake worrying about things, try making a to-do list before you go to bed.
- Use your bed only for sleep and love.

I also have sleeping pattern problems but since I don't have to conform to a 9 - 5 regime, I don't let it bother me all that much. I agree that many of the points above are good measures to follow for someone who has to sleep in a regimented pattern in order to function properly at work the next day, although I no longer follow them myself (i.e. I sleep for 3 hours during the day, take large amounts of caffeine and nicotine until well after midnight, and use my bed as a general play area - hmm, I sleep and have love everywhere except the bed . However, I have discovered that certain CD's in my vast collection help me to fall sleep quite quickly at night time (Yousou N'Dour albums in particular), but probably not to everyone's taste.

I did notice that my sleep pattern deteriorated a lot when I moved into a small flat 2 months ago (from a 3 bedroomed house that had defined areas for my day and night life). Basically, now everything is in one big room - I work, sleep and play in the same room, and there's no real defined 'sleeping' space in the flat. Sometimes I work on the bed (or at least have papers there) and sleep on the sofa, all of which is not condusive to a good sleeping regime. I know bettter, but as I said, at the moment it doesn't bother me too much, as I can sleep and wake when it suits me - or suits the dog, more accurately; even the dog has got used to my erratic daily routine.

Having said all that, I can actually sleep whenever I want to, I just don't sleep for long periods at time.

I must admit that the single piece of advice that I can give that might be of much use is to choose a bed (and bedding) that you find comfortable - it really does make a difference.

Thanks for the tips.

Last night i was up till 3 am and here i am at 8 am . This pattern can go on for days it seems like and i am surprised that i am able to stay awake but i do.
I am a major caffeine addict and try not to drink anything of that nature past 6 pm. Maybe i need to look at this again and move the time back to stop drinking caffeine related drinks to 4 pm.

I was thinking that it was the reading, I am a student, that was keeping me awake but no such luck. The exercise during the day that i do only serves to make me hungry when i get home and after i eat i'm most likely to get tired and that's when i have to fight the urge to take a nap.

My doctor has said similar things to those being mentioned here however i am just not able to find one single thing that will help me and i am getting frustrated. And being frustrated does not help either in finding a solution.

I hope this is just the post Xmas holiday blues and nothing else. Because I can do things at any rate i want i am not bound to adhere to any sort of rigorous schedule when it comes to sleeping.

One thing i have done consistently was to get up if i am not able to sleep within a set amount of time. Now all this has done is exacerbate the problem and make matters worse so i don't know how that piece of advice came about however it beats laying there doing nothing.

I am going to try to do a little less exercise during the day, not to eat too soon after coming home and no caffeine after 4 pm as a start.

I rode myself into the ground today in hopes of getting a good night sleep because i am getting desperate now. This is really beginning to get ridiculous and totally out of hand. I am starting to feel a little bit out of control of my own body. So i had to take drastic measures. It's all fine and dandy divulging this to the general public but when it come to crunch time i are responsible for my own body and actions and nobody else. No amount of outside input is is going to give me much help except maybe outline some steps to take. But thanks for all your input nonetheless.

It must be awful, having longterm sleep problems, I know after my mum died in october i had a few weeks of 'sleep problems' theres nothing worse lying awake at night when everyone else is sleeping

Hope you get a good nights sleep tonight

I don't believe it. I came home at 5pm and i was a piece of quivering meat that was about to pass out or puke whichever comes first. I drank some coke really quick and had a bit to eat. Few hours later i am ready to go it seems like. I just don't know what the heck is wrong with me at this point and i am afraid if i give this issue any more thought than is necessary I am allowing this thing to control me and not the other way around. Or so my little mind seems to think. Just don't think it's a problem then it wont be a problem kind of mentality.

Oh well. Back when i was married there was a really simple solution to this my wife told me. Go in the closet and have a few(you know what) instead of bugging me at 3 am. At least i still have my sense of humor.

Sorry to hear about your sleep problems, and sadly there's not one thing that works for everyone so I think you just have to discover what works for you.
Btw, bananas are reccommended due to their content and the fact that the body takes a long while to digest them.
All the other things people suggest are worth a try.
Do you know what underpins your sleeplessness??
I've had a sleep disorder for years and one of the key things I found was actually accepting that I had it, and then the whole 'anxiety' about not being able to sleep, allowed for a more relaxed state of mind.
I have loads of different things that I do which can help, hypnosis tape, particular music, lying on a massage mat before going to bed, fresh air,aromas, controlling sound/noise,.......and I definitely have to have a notebook by my bed to empty my thoughts......
I don't have restorative sleep because I don't go into the deep phase 4 sleep, but I do think it helps if you can identify the cause of your sleeplessness, otherwise you will get into the cycle of being anxious about getting to sleep then as the hours tick by, you can become anxious about falling asleep and not being able to wake up and the nearer it gets to morning, the worse the anxiety......then you fall asleep 10 mins before you've got to get up and feel like S**t!
Depression, pain, overactivity of the brain, anxiety,noise, levels of seratonin in the brain and any one of the many known 'sleep disorders' may all respond to different solutions.

I do sleep but it sometimes take me ages. I just lie there and my brain just can't stop thinking. I swear all the lines on my face are from when i go to bed and frown while i am thinking about trying to get to sleep. I have a hard time relaxing enough and i am somewhat tense in bed as well. I catch myself tensing up all the time and have to tell myself to just relax. A few years ago i got some advice that i have stuck to. Laying on my bike with the insides of my palms showing up and flat. I don't know why i still do it but it came from a knowledgeable source so i will oblige.

I also have heard that lavender works as well but i have a sensitive nose and really dont want something else to think about. But saying this what can i lose. Getting some tomorrow.

I don't know if this is going to count much, but I've been having problems with sleep since forever... For me it's a question of staying awake for 36 hours or so... Then going to bed at 9 and waking up at 5 am. That always works, but you've got to be strong to go to bed before a particular hour (the next days too)... Strongness I'm afraid I don't have.

And the hypnosis tapes work really well too for me.

Anyways I usually can't go to sleep because I'm hyper and thinking all sorts of thoughts...

Don't mind me.

How about counting sheep jumping over a fence ... i cant believe no one has mentioned it yet.

And you could make it interesting and have the sheep multiply every time they hit the fence on the way over. You could also be inventive and have the sheep on stilts or pole vaulting over the fence, or on pogo sticks. Hell there are loads of ways to get the furry fellas over the fence, your imagination is your only boundary on this one.

I dunno would you get much sleep but its worth a shot !!

I forgot to mention something I've been trying for a while now... It's quite hard, but if you managed to count 12987987 sheep, I'm sure it'll be no biggie for ya. PMSL.

Thing is... I've been interested in lucid dreaming for a while now... When you lie down completely still for a while, your brain thinks you have fallen asleep. This might sound like crap, but it's true. After a while things start itching because it wants to check if you're still awake (alive - No, really I am serious about this). If you manage to pass those you could actually find yourself getting into a dream. I once almost managed that and it was lovely... After a while my whole body fell in a state of numbness and I got scared and got up...
However that was a long time ago and I've been strugglin to achieve that state again yet am too restless and don't seem to be able to lie still for more than 10 minutes. Anyways... After those 10-20 minutes of stillness, even if you move, you'll probably find yourself being completely relaxed and tired... Why don't ya try it. It's hard but it's worth it, trust me on this one.

Oh and keep your eyes closed whilst lying still.