A long depressing sleep deprived Post

MB37 · Aug 30, 2007

I suppose there's no way you can cut back on your hours or go part time? Could you look into loans to help pay for school/living expenses? If not, you need to go back to your MD. Just because one med (and Benadryl) didn't work doesn't mean they all won't. There are pure sleeping pills (Lunesta, Sonata, Ambien), there are benzos (I'm on clonazepan for anxiety/insomnia and it works well for me so far), you can try valerian root or melatonin, and there are others as well. Also, if there's no way to change your schedule, you may want to try to start going to sleep at 9 - with chemical help, if necessary. Then you can get up at 4 or 5, with 7-8 hours sleep, and study for a couple hours before you leave for class. It'll be quiet, and you'll have to place to yourself. Or take yourself out for breakfast or coffee if you prefer a more lively environment. I'm trying yo make my hours more regular myself, and it's tough. I feel your pain, since I've struggled with insomnia my whole life. Go talk to your doctor again, and if he/she can't help you go find a new one. You'll figure something out, just try to hang on until you do. It'll get better!

tabswifeRN · Aug 30, 2007

How many mgs of trazodone did they have you on? I was put on 75 mgs for 2 weeks and it didn't work and just yesterday they upped my dose to 150 mgs and I was out in a half an hour. I have a hard time falling asleep and like you when I wake up I can't get back to sleep, but since they upped my dose I still wake up but I fall back to sleep in about 5-10 minutes. Plus I don't feel bad in the morning.

lvnhopeful · Aug 31, 2007

Trying to get through nursing school is hard, no matter if you have children, a job, or are totally independent. I have a thyroid problem, and I also suffer from insomnia, though I don't take any perscriptions for either.

The best thing you can do is try to get on a regular schedule and stick to it. I still have nights where I get only 3-4 hours of sleep, especially if there is a test or something coming up that requires a lot of attention, but sticking to a schedule helps more than anything else I have tried. Your body will eventually adapt.

Maybe, as some one else mentioned, you can cut back your hours a bit. Even if you work from home and don't have to be available all the time, subconsciously you may be waiting for the next call you get.

Good luck to you, I hope you can work it out.

txnursingqt · Aug 31, 2007

Thank you all so much for your advice. I was just so depressed and upset this morning. I talked with my A&PII teacher and she said it was not going to hurt me if I missed today. I emailed her the chart we could do for extra credit and she gave me the full credit. :yelclap:

I think that the best thing for me to do is to get on a regular schedule. It is a little after 11pm and I just took some Benadryl and I am about to go to sleep. Tomorrow night I am going to try and be in bed by 10pm and then on starting Sat I am going to go to 9pm and try to stick with the 9pm range. I do so much better when I stay on a set schedule. My DH is a night owl like me so it can be tough but he has promised to support me and help keep me on a good schedule. Right now he has a second job throwing the newspaper and on Sat nights I have been helping him do the inserts and roll the papers, which is usually from midnight to about 3-4am, but I told him that I will not be able to do this anymore because I have to stick with a schedule. He told me tonight that he spoke with his unemployed uncle and he has agreed to help him for only $20 a week! So I don't have to feel so guilty because it really takes 2 people to do the papers on Sat night/Sun morning because they are so big.

I also think I am going to see my MD and maybe try Lunesta. I have heard that it not only helps you get to sleep but also helps you stay asleep. So we will see. I just feel better knowing that I have plan.

Thank you all so much for taking the time to read my long posts. I tend to ramble and tell way too many details. But that is just me!

Take care! :thankya:

JarOfPennies · Aug 31, 2007

Txnursingqt, hang in there and give that wonderful husband a big hug. Sounds like you found a winner!

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Aug 31, 2007

When I was young I could sleep for 10 hours straight. And, when I slept I was dead to the world--could sleep through a thunderstorm. Now, that I'm older, I'm not like that. It's 4am and I'm awake. I sleep for 4 hours max and I'm up. I nap at least once during the day now.

If your thyroid is OK, then I can't imagine why you feel fatigued all the time. One thing you can do to substitute for sleep is to meditate. I learned to do transcendental meditation when I was in my early 20's. It is a physical technique to relax your body and relieve anxiety. You are completely alert and you only need to do it for 20 minutes. Every time I come out of TM I feel like I have just awakened from sleep, have to stretch and I yawn and feel like I just got up from a nap. But, like I said, you are totally awake and alert doing this technique. The people who teach TM used to charge a very reduced student rate for it. You can also find books that teach very similar techniques for way cheaper.

Do you know the story behind Thomas Edison? He was a big napper, never slept a full 8-hours. He would take naps during his work. When he got tired, he would put his head down and nap. He got fired from one of his early telegraph jobs when he got caught sleeping. He devised some automatic switch to keep messages flowing through the telegraph lines so he could continue taking his little naps at his next job! The thing is that he would awake from these little naps very refreshed and go on with what he was working on. Some people can thrive well on broken up sleep like this.

I have heard it said that if you are awakened and you have difficulty getting back to sleep, it is a waste of time to even try if you already know it is not going to work. Get up and do something that needs to be done. When you get tired again, try going back to sleep then. You just have to be prepared to use every minute of awake time wisely.

santhony44, MSN, RN, NP · Aug 31, 2007

The Benadryl might be contributing to the feeling of being fatigued. I know that when I take it, I feel "hung over" and tired the next day, even if I slept. Prescription sleep meds work much better for me personally.

If you haven't had a CBC done lately, ask your PCP to do one. Being fatigued is also a symptom of anemia, which is quite common in women.

Eating a decently healthy diet and getting some kind of exercise can help, too (even if it's a 10 or 15 minute walk).

beth66335, BSN, RN · Aug 31, 2007

Fatigue can also be a symptom of poor sleep. You may have things going on while you are asleep preventing you from going deep enough for REM. Maybe consider a sleep study if you have never had one.

DermNP2Be · Aug 31, 2007

When I was young I could sleep for 10 hours straight. And, when I slept I was dead to the world--could sleep through a thunderstorm. Now, that I'm older, I'm not like that. It's 4am and I'm awake. I sleep for 4 hours max and I'm up. I nap at least once during the day now.
If your thyroid is OK, then I can't imagine why you feel fatigued all the time. One thing you can do to substitute for sleep is to meditate. I learned to do transcendental meditation when I was in my early 20's. It is a physical technique to relax your body and relieve anxiety. You are completely alert and you only need to do it for 20 minutes. Every time I come out of TM I feel like I have just awakened from sleep, have to stretch and I yawn and feel like I just got up from a nap. But, like I said, you are totally awake and alert doing this technique. The people who teach TM used to charge a very reduced student rate for it. You can also find books that teach very similar techniques for way cheaper.
Do you know the story behind Thomas Edison? He was a big napper, never slept a full 8-hours. He would take naps during his work. When he got tired, he would put his head down and nap. He got fired from one of his early telegraph jobs when he got caught sleeping. He devised some automatic switch to keep messages flowing through the telegraph lines so he could continue taking his little naps at his next job! The thing is that he would awake from these little naps very refreshed and go on with what he was working on. Some people can thrive well on broken up sleep like this.
I have heard it said that if you are awakened and you have difficulty getting back to sleep, it is a waste of time to even try if you already know it is not going to work. Get up and do something that needs to be done. When you get tired again, try going back to sleep then. You just have to be prepared to use every minute of awake time wisely.

Wow! That is so interesting! I love historical stories like that. I, too am somewhat of an insomniac. I have a hard time falling asleep and even when I fall asleep late I wake up by 5:00 am at the latest.

Music in My Heart · Sep 1, 2007

I also think I am going to see my MD and maybe try Lunesta. I have heard that it not only helps you get to sleep but also helps you stay asleep. So we will see. I just feel better knowing that I have plan.

Good call. I never have trouble falling asleep but I regularly awaken in the middle of the night and am often up for the remainder.

I tried Lunesta and it put an end to that. I take it infrequently (~6x per month) but it helps to know it's there and that I can take it if I really need to. Except for the nasty taste in my mouth when I awaken, I've felt no deleterious side effects. The only problem for me is that our new Rx plan won't cover it and it costs about $4 per pill.

Jedi of Zen · Sep 1, 2007

You may just be a night person. As I am too, by nature. And that's not necessarily a bad thing imo, because if we want to have hospitals running 24 hours, then we need to have people who can work at night.

Is there any way you could take night or late afternoon classes? My school actually just started offering the entire RN program via night classes. Maybe if the school you're currently at doesn't do it, there may be another school in your area that does.