52 Card Project 2021: Week 37: Reveille

[pegkerr]

The CPAP machine has not solved my sleep disturbances. I still wake up multiple times a night, sometimes lying awake for hours. Sometimes I conk out and fall into bed as early as 6:30 pm; other days I can't fall asleep until after 2:00 a.m. The fact that the problems have continued has been a rather crushing disappointment. I had SO hoped that going on CPAP would make the insomnia go away, but alas, it hasn't.

I finally got in for a video appointment this week with an insomnia specialist. After reviewing my sleep diary, he determined I was sleeping (with wild variations) an average of 6 1/2 hours a night. So he gave me a set time of seven hours--I am to get into bed at exactly 11:30 pm and get out of bed at exactly 6:30 a.m., in an effort to re-set my internal hormonal alarms. He warned me that this would be rather difficult at first (in fact, he dubbed the regime "Sleep Boot Camp.") But if I stick to it, it should put enough pressure on my physiology and reset my hormonal clock sufficiently that my body will actually sleep when I'm in bed. Hopefully.

Last night was the first night. I gotta say, it was really tough to stay awake until 11:30 p.m. when I was dying to get into bed at 8:30 p.m. I wonder how long it will take me to adjust.

If I hadn't decided at the beginning of the year that each collage card title should be one word, "Sleep Boot Camp" would be this week's collage title. I mulled over the problem for a while and finally hit upon the word "Reveille." That made me think of the Andrews Sisters, and their song "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy."

Maybe having my own personal trumpeter would make it easier for me to get out of bed on the mornings that I'm groggy because I've only slept four hours.

Reveille



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Comments

[naomikritzer]

That is a great card.

[pegkerr]

Thanks!

[aome]

My husband has been struggling with stress-induced insomnia for awhile, and I see how hard it is on him. I'm sorry the CPAP hasn't solved your insomnia. Did your sleep specialist explain how to avoid taking naps if you get sleepy during the day? Because, not gonna lie, sometimes I absolutely canNOT stay awake in the middle of the afternoon, and need a 20 min nap to carry on. If you're trying to reset your sleep cycle, are you allowed a catnap if you need one?

[pegkerr]

No naps allowed. *groan*

I am still in the early days of this regime, and it's really difficult. I have resorted to walking around when I'm really sleepy, and sometimes I feel like a zombie lurching around.

[princessofgeeks]

Good luck with resetting your sleep schedule! At least you know you will be breathing when you DO sleep.

[pegkerr]

True.

[dreamshark]

I'm not surprised that the CPAP did not make your isomnia go away, but it still might be incrementally helpful if you solve some of the other problems that are not breathing related. I got a CPAP about 3 years ago and that's what I found. So many things interfere with my sleep, including the damn CPAP machine. But it turned out to help with a couple of surprising things that indirectly affected my sleep, just enough so I've found that on balance it is more help than harm. I rarely use it more than 6 hours at a time because it is so damned annoying, but for 4 or 5 hours a night it seems to be worthwhile.

Things that CPAP does not help with at all: Caffeine. Eating too close to bedtime. Too pumped up to fall asleep (due to anxiety or happy excitement or God knows what). Waking up 3-4 times/night. Achy muscles from exercising. Stiff joints from not exercising. Room too warm.

Things CPAP does help with.
-- Stuffy nose, which I sometimes have for months at a time due to allergies. The CPAP clears my nose.
I did not expect that, but it is the single greatest benefit I have gotten from the nasty thing.
-- Hip pain or foot cramps from lying on one side too long. CPAP makes it possible for me to sleep on my back for an hour or two until some other part of my body starts to hurt. At this point I can go back to sleeping on my side, which I emphatically prefer. I just can't do it for a whole night anymore, even with two sides to choose from.

What I found disappointing is not so much that the CPAP machine didn't solve all my sleep problems, but that the staff of the Sleep Center really weren't much more than very nice CPAP salespeople. They have one tool, and that's the CPAP. It works or it doesn't. For instance, I don't remember anybody even ASKING me about caffeine usage, much less explaining the difference between slow and fast caffeine metabolizers. You would think that would be the first thing they asked about, wouldn't you?

That is a great card, btw. So many of them are.

[pegkerr]

Thanks for the compliment on the card. And I really do appreciate hearing about your perspective on CPAP.