Insomnia: am I the only one?

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florafloraflora
Posts: 219
Joined: Tue Jan 16, 2007 7:03 pm
Location: Washington, DC USA

Insomnia: am I the only one?

Post by florafloraflora » Thu May 17, 2007 4:07 pm

I've had sort of a string of failures lately, and I blame it partially on insomnia. In the past I've had a tendency to bad insomnia, which becomes a downward spiral as I eat badly/too much to keep going on no sleep, which makes it harder for me to sleep well, which leads to more bad eating... on and on.

My insomnia's actually been a lot better since I started No-S, because I've been consuming so many fewer calories. The occasional sleepless nights I've experienced after overdoing it on an S-day have been a good incentive to keep things moderate. But right now I'm stressed out about my obligations at work and at home, and I'm also having some noisy-neighbor problems, and it's making the I-monster harder to beat. Because the source of my stress is things that have to be done, I can't afford to take downtime to catch up on rest, and it's a lot more tempting to overeat to compensate. When I'm this sleep-deprived, I feel like a ravenous snack-beast, in no mood to eat reasonably or deny myself anything I crave. And that's what I would blame for last night's failure. You can read all about it on my check-in page if you like.

I'm wondering: does anybody else deal with insomnia? Has it changed since you started No-S'ing? And does it make it harder for you to stick to the rules?

I know that ultimately any excuse is a poor excuse, and I'm accountable only to myself. But my judgment feels impaired when I'm this tired, and I need some tips for hanging on.

zoolina
Posts: 252
Joined: Sat Nov 04, 2006 2:48 pm
Location: In Transit

Post by zoolina » Thu May 17, 2007 4:50 pm

I've read that being sleepy makes you want to eat more, especially sweet things, to keep your energy up. I definitely feel that way when I'm sleep deprived.

However, it's probably a good idea to stay strict with yourself even during the rough patches. I don't think you actually need that many more calories to make up for a sleepless night (unless you start some kind of crazy spring cleaning all night long). Your body is just sending out the signals that you should munch.

Good luck, though. I have a failure or two every single month (pms) when my body sends out those "don't you want to eat some chocolate" vibes. I find it nearly impossible to stick to my guns on those 2 days.

kccc
Posts: 3957
Joined: Fri Oct 27, 2006 1:12 am

Post by kccc » Thu May 17, 2007 5:11 pm

I do better on the insomnia front if I eat decently and stick to regular bedtimes. No matter how busy I am, I will be less effective if I am over-tired.

Other things that help me (YMMV)
- Exercising. If I can't fit it in during the day, 15 minutes of yoga-like stretches at bedtime.
- Listening to sleep music/tapes. I have a couple of things on my iPod that I listen to when I need to wind down. They come in two flavors - meditation/music to calm down when I am close to sleep but having trouble getting there, and quiet shows that "I want to listen to when I have time" for when I really can't sleep. At least I'm lying down and resting, and my mind is off whatever is stressing me. (I listen to "Zencasts" for the second - they're free downloads from iTunes.)
- Reminding myself that "the most important thing I can do right now is sleep."
- Keeping a pad by the bed so I can put things on it if I'm worried about forgetting stuff.
- Trying to be as effective as I can during waking hours. It's one thing to be busy, it's another to be busy AND guilty b/c you're avoiding something.

Hope there's something in there that you can use. Good luck.

Kevin
Posts: 1269
Joined: Mon May 02, 2005 9:02 pm
Location: Maryland, USA

Re: Insomnia: am I the only one?

Post by Kevin » Mon May 28, 2007 10:38 pm

One thing I've done when insomniatic (!) is to accomplish something before bed. Think about what's bugging you (*one* worry bead, not the whole rosary), the do something about it. Then say to yourself "There. I did something about my problems."

Then go to bed while you are feeling successful.
florafloraflora wrote:I've had sort of a string of failures lately, and I blame it partially on insomnia. In the past I've had a tendency to bad insomnia, which becomes a downward spiral as I eat badly/too much to keep going on no sleep, which makes it harder for me to sleep well, which leads to more bad eating... on and on.

My insomnia's actually been a lot better since I started No-S, because I've been consuming so many fewer calories. The occasional sleepless nights I've experienced after overdoing it on an S-day have been a good incentive to keep things moderate. But right now I'm stressed out about my obligations at work and at home, and I'm also having some noisy-neighbor problems, and it's making the I-monster harder to beat. Because the source of my stress is things that have to be done, I can't afford to take downtime to catch up on rest, and it's a lot more tempting to overeat to compensate. When I'm this sleep-deprived, I feel like a ravenous snack-beast, in no mood to eat reasonably or deny myself anything I crave. And that's what I would blame for last night's failure. You can read all about it on my check-in page if you like.

I'm wondering: does anybody else deal with insomnia? Has it changed since you started No-S'ing? And does it make it harder for you to stick to the rules?

I know that ultimately any excuse is a poor excuse, and I'm accountable only to myself. But my judgment feels impaired when I'm this tired, and I need some tips for hanging on.
Kevin
1/13/2011-189# :: 4/21/2011-177# :: Goal-165#
"Respecting the 4th S: sometimes."

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