Living in Ohio in winter is hard, and it drags most of us down.
This combined with some of the various incidents recently (one of my daily med kids got suspended for a fake bomb threat, the week prior to that we were under heightened security for a fake gun threat, a self harm/suicidal ideation crisis, etc etc) has me really blah. I invested a whole evening for self care, got some non-educational reading done and watched a scary movie. Still having trouble falling asleep, getting my mind off the kids.
I do pretty well during the evening, it's when it's actually time for my brain to rest. I don't know what to do.
Thanks guys! After the rough day I had Monday I had another yesterday. I took my prescribed sleep aid BEFORE attempting to fall asleep, that helped. I also had a low key evening, leftovers for dinner and just 30 mins of school work.
Long walks, even in crappy weather (I'm also in the midwest- I feel ya on the long winter blahs), reading, and watching old-school Full House reruns with my 8-year-old are helpful. Hang in there! Also, my friend, Unisom, is helpful. There are different preparations-- I prefer the one with doxylamine succinate. It's otc and I only need it a few times a week, but even just a few nights of good sleep can make a world of difference.
I repeat to myself frequently what Ruby mentioned, you can't care more than their parents. There are a few little ones here that I just want to take care of, the ones I thought about all summer long and prayed they would be back and whole when we returned.
On the extra bad days, MrWine handles the tiny one while I just turn off and either watch one of my guilty pleasure TV shows or take a long bath or shower. I also pray and try to mentally ball up everything that is upsetting me and toss it up above.
Specializes in School Nurse. Having conversations with littles..
3 Benadryl and I am good to go for a good night's sleep. OD I can't believe you didn't stay awake and enjoy the Bachelor with SP! Thanks, that's good information, I thought they both had the same amount of Benadryl in them.
When my brain can't turn off, I listen to podcasts. Specifically, I find podcasts that are interesting to me but perhaps a bit too boring to really hold my attention. Right now I've been listening to a movie review podcast that takes 2-3 hours to review a movie. They have a billion back episodes and I can just put a podcast on and set my sleep timer and normally I'm asleep within twenty minutes. My rule with myself tends to be if the podcast doesn't work, I'll take benadryl as long as I have at least 7 hours before I have to wake up (otherwise I feel hungout in the am).
Try maybe listening to something that is engaging but boring and see if that helps your mind turn off. Good luck!
I go to the gym with my new boxing gloves and beat the H E double hockey sticks out of the heavy bag. no problems with sleep after that.
Hppy
I'm with you- I started kickboxing last summer and it's the best thing I've done in awhile. Exercise, stress release, improved confidence, and best of all, the chance to visualize punching certain individuals...
NutmeggeRN, BSN
2 Articles; 4,743 Posts
Ha! We are etting a Noreaster!!! maybe some excercise shovelling...
And true, we are always here! And dressed in pink (or faded red) today!