I am having pretty severe sleep deprivation issues right now. When I lay down to go to bed, it takes me almost an hour to fall asleep, sometimes longer. And when I finally do get to sleep, it seems like it's only a matter of minutes and I am awake again, tossing and turning. I am taking a 6 week Biological Chemistry class right now, and I think the stress of the class is what is getting to me. When I am tossing and turning, I am having visions of all kinds of Chemistry stuff - conversion factors, elements, balancing equations, polyatomic ions, oxidation numbers, etc. I've tried to consciously not think about it while in the process of getting ready for bed and laying down, even talking my sweet husband into telling me stories about his childhood to take my mind off of it - with no success. And I've even taken Benadryl before bedtime (as a last resort) in hopes that I would be too drowsy to be able to think about Chemistry - not a chance! Do any of you have any helpful advice on how to get a good night's sleep? I know if I am doing this now, it is just going to get worse with NS. I am a person that needs a good, solid 7 or 8 hours of sleep to function. Needless to say, after working all day, by the time I make it to class I feel .
Wow, 3 days!! I can't even imagine! I'm a bit of a perfectionist as well, and having a class like Chemistry that I am semi-struggling in does not do well the the perfectionist in me. I've just recently come to the conclusion that there are going to be things that I can comprehend immediately and then there will be other things that I just won't be able to grasp as quickly. Oh, and I feel the same way about studying before bed. I seem to retain the information better.
Specializes in Cardio-Pulmonary; Med-Surg; Private Duty.
I did the relaxation/meditation thing, and every time Chemistry snuck into my head, I made myself start over at my toes. The last body part I remember trying to relax was my wrists and arms, going from toes to head and having to start over 3 or 4 times. So I would say it took maybe only 20 minutes to fall asleep vs. laying there for hours! And I stayed asleep for most of the night, which was such an amazing feeling!!
Twenty minutes -- that's awesome!
I'm so glad that it worked for you, and hopefully it will get even easier (faster) as time goes on and your body/brain gets used to the procedure!
And as a fellow perfectionist, I know what you mean -- it can be so hard to get your brain to just "let it go" sometimes... and not just "classwork" things, but EVERYthing in life can fall into that category for me. In the last couple years, I've done some soul-searching and discovered things from my past that contributed to my perfectionism complex, and it's been quite freeing for me. It's amazing how we can be so much harder on ourselves than anyone else is!
The Dreamer
390 Posts
Wow, 3 days!!
I can't even imagine! I'm a bit of a perfectionist as well, and having a class like Chemistry that I am semi-struggling in does not do well the the perfectionist in me. I've just recently come to the conclusion that there are going to be things that I can comprehend immediately and then there will be other things that I just won't be able to grasp as quickly. Oh, and I feel the same way about studying before bed. I seem to retain the information better.