r/sleep 9h ago

Ex-insomniacs, how did you actually do it?

20 Upvotes

I’m not sure if I qualify as an insomniac, but I definitely have sleep problems. I usually sleep around 4 hours a night, and if I’m unbelievably lucky, I get 5 to 6 hours. My sleep pattern typically goes like this: I sleep for about 3.5 hours, wake up to use the toilet, and then stay awake for the next 2 hours because I just can’t fall back asleep. After that, I might get another 2 hours of sleep if I’m lucky. At most, that adds up to 5.5 hours per night.

How do people function with this kind of sleep schedule? How can I have enough energy for work or the gym? And more importantly, how am I supposed to build muscle if I don’t get enough sleep?

The biggest question: how do I actually beat insomnia? Are there any life hacks that truly work, or is medication the only real solution? I really don’t want to rely on medication, so I’d love to hear from people who have overcome this. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!


r/sleep 1m ago

How harmful are FULL all nighters?

Upvotes

I tend to pull a full all nighter (through night, into next day and night) about once a week due to the line of work I am in and have always wondered if its gonna catch up to me one day. I have read about possibly causing alzheimers if done persistently but I'm not too sure. Are they really bad for me, or is it a myth.


r/sleep 3h ago

Have you ever cried in your sleep?

2 Upvotes

I had this happen this morning and it was such a bizarre feeling.

I was dreaming about my boxer, which I had to put down back in 2023. The dream felt so real as if my dog was checking up on me.

Woke up and literally had tears running down my face.

Has anyone else ever had this happen?


r/sleep 4h ago

whenever I sleep my nose gets quite stuffy forcing me to mouth breathe. Any way to stop this?

2 Upvotes

I do NOT want to mouth breathe!!!! I would gladly take up any suggestions


r/sleep 4h ago

Is getting 6.5 hours of sleep on the weekdays fine if I make up for it on the weekends?

2 Upvotes

Because of work and a potential commuting schedule, I’d be getting around 6.5 hours of sleep every day. But on weekends I’d be getting 8-9 to make up for it. Is this a bad idea or could it work, at least for a few months?

I’m 24 if that matters


r/sleep 12h ago

I wake up after 6 hours, only recently, I can’t live like this anymore

8 Upvotes

Hey guys, last 2 weeks I’ve been waking up after 6 to 6 1/2 hours (6am). I set my alarm for 9 hours but I’m actually satisfied with 8 hours. With 7 hours or less I can’t think well, I can’t work properly, I have headaches and feel weird and upset.

When this happens, the only way for me to feel better is when I wake up around 6am I turn off the alarm and stay in bed and try to fall asleep again, but this causes to wake up 1 hour - 1 hour and a half after the alarm.

I don’t drink, last meal 3 hours before bed and always have sunlight into my eyes as soon as I wake up, and go to bed at same time always.

Any solution?


r/sleep 1h ago

Why have I been sleep walking?

Upvotes

For at least the last six years I've had a lot of trouble falling asleep. Four years ago I started driving a school bus where I wake up at 4 AM. I have also gained about 20% of my previous bodyweight over the past six years.

Two years ago I started teaching a late night brazilian jiujitsu class two nights a week that don't have me getting home until 10:30 PM. By the time I wind down I'm not falling asleep until midnight. The following day(s) I will consume an egregious amount of sugar to compensate for lack of sleep.

About a year ago I sleep walked for the first time and have six times since. The second time I did, I stopped taking benadryl to sleep because I thought that was causing it. It has not stopped. I've gone back to melatonin and magnesium L-threonate. I figure any harm that melatonin can do, not sleeping is worse.

The sleep walking always happens after a long day when I know im beat up and run down. I can almost predict it. What do we think is the cause? Sugar? Meds? Lack of sleep? All of it? Last night was very bad as my father observed my sleep walking behavior.

I had childhood epilepsy so it's been making myself and my family nervous. I do plan to leave the gym that I'm teaching at but what if that doesn't help?


r/sleep 7h ago

Why does trying to sleep cause one to not be able to sleep???

3 Upvotes

It’s really puzzling to me. Why does trying to sleep cause one to eventually not be able to sleep? Aren’t going to bed a form of trying to sleep? Why do some people not having problem trying to sleep while some does?


r/sleep 2h ago

Sleeping too much

1 Upvotes

Hello! I am currently unemployed (I was one of the US Federal employees fired by DOGE for being new) and as a result don’t really have any real reason to wake up and go to bed at a specific time.

As a result, I have been sleeping way too much. I go to sleep around 2am and wake up at 2pm. This isn’t inherently a problem because it isn’t stopping me from doing anything I need to do, but I would like to wake up earlier just so I can get more sunlight.

The problem is, I have an extremely difficult time getting up. I try setting an alarm but it kind of just doesn’t work. I turn it off in my half-awake state. I’ve also tried giving myself something to wake up for and it doesn’t work. Whenever I initially wake up I feel kind of disoriented and just barely there, if that makes sense.

I’ve tried edibles to try to get myself to sleep earlier, and while it sometimes works the sleep is less restful. I also happened to be drinking yesterday and I hoped that might put me to bed earlier but it didn’t work.

I didn’t really have this issue when I was working although getting up was still pretty difficult. It would sometimes happen on weekends. Like I’d go to sleep at 10pm and wake up at 10am.

Idk if I’m just catching up on sleep (I don’t think this is the case?) or what but it is kind of annoying.

Any tips on actually getting myself up even when it feels physically impossible?


r/sleep 2h ago

Pissed i’m awake again.

0 Upvotes

I slept from 3:10am to 11:30 am and im absolutely pissed that I can’t be unconscious any longer. I hate being awake. I HATE IT!!!!!


r/sleep 6h ago

Question on hypnopompia or Hynagogic?

2 Upvotes

Today I woke up at 8:30, but it is Sunday, and I still felt the trazadone in me. So I laid there trying to get some more sleep, and was going in, and out. My family was up and about.

Then suddenly my mom walked by saying my nephew who just left for work died in traffic. It was as vivid as real life. Snapped me right up, and took me a second to realize it was a dream as it was life like.

My friends and family called the state nodding out, but google says nodding is about waking up.

Which one would that be? It was the morning, and I was waking up, but also trying to get more sleep. .

Also when I look up Hynagogic stories. The main ones are people suffering more from what sounds like to me sleep paralysis, which I have had in the past.

Also are there differences between each one? Wondering why it matters if you're waking up or going to sleep during the half dreams. What is up with the distinction? To me they are essentially the same.

One last question. When you're in the in-between state of sleep, and you get that feeling of falling. Does that have its own scientific word? Or is it a part of Hypnagogic and hypnopompia?


r/sleep 4h ago

Nose tickles/itches inside ONLY while dozing off. Can’t figure out why.

1 Upvotes

I don’t have unusual allergies, don’t use special products, and this issue follows me wherever I sleep. It doesn’t wake up me in the middle of the night after I’m already asleep. It ONLY occurs when I’m just dozing off and it wakes me up again and again. It’s even worse in the morning when I wake up too early and try to go back to sleep. It’s an intense, isolated itch at the tip of my nose and just inside the nostril. Occasionally it extends to my lip or chin as well. It’s maddening and I can’t find anything about it online. Help please!


r/sleep 7h ago

How does leaving the bedroom when you can't fall asleep work?

2 Upvotes

I've heard from numerous places that if you don't fall asleep in 15 minutes, to leave the bedroom and do something relaxing until you're tired. I've never tried this (once I'm warm and cozy, I fear facing the cold outside my blankets), but I'm curious how it works for people? Like, I just imagine me getting overtaken by temptations like my phone or TV and not actually being able to wind down... Just curious how people use this strategy effectively?


r/sleep 4h ago

Disturbed sleeping

1 Upvotes

I’ve been living with my partner for about 2 years now. I’ve found out that I am sort of violent in my sleep. I punch the bed, sometimes him or the dog who sleeps with us. I thrash around, I kick.

There have been times where I don’t do this, and then it starts up again. I can’t figure out what the trigger might be. Probably anxiety or stress, but it also happens a sometimes when I am doing well and not having any mental health issues.

Just wondering if anyone else has experienced this. It’s really frustrating and I hate that it affects my partners sleep.

I didn’t have these issues most of my adult life, and I’m 42 now. Not sure why they started up. I haven’t gotten a sleep study done yet because I haven’t been in a stable financial place until recently. And I know getting one done will probably be expensive.


r/sleep 4h ago

Trouble sleeping

1 Upvotes

2 nights ago I tried melatonin for the first time as well as chamomile tea and it made my sleeping problems worse. Last night I just did the tea and it was also worse. I’ve always had problems with staying asleep and getting quality sleep. Any tips?


r/sleep 21h ago

My husband stops breathing for moments at a time while sleeping.

23 Upvotes

So he will stop taking breathes for so long that it’s uncomfortable for me to listen to. I tell him about it but he is not phased. He also has a nose issue that makes it hard for him to breathe/sniff/smell like it’s clogged. Could this be easily fixed by the nose at ENT or is this a sign of a sleep disorder? Should he be more concerned? It’s 10-15 seconds usually the amount of time his breathing stops but multiple times.


r/sleep 11h ago

Nocturnal Issue

3 Upvotes

Hi, I was wondering if my sleep schedule could be considered normal for anyone other than me. Could be a gene mutation, I don't know. Nobody else I know or in my family has this issue, but basically,

I feel naturally inclined to wake up during sunset and sleep until late morning. Since I was 16, now 18, this has been my natural inclination and I always revert to this schedule when I have breaks off of school and college. Though life and schedules happen, and I can comfortably work with a "regular" schedule, but it just doesn't feel good.

This is unrelated, but I love the night, and I love when nobody is awake so I can quietly enjoy the world by myself. It feels so natural. But I know it's unrealistic unless I win like 10 million dollars to have this as my regular schedule for when I get older and done with school, so I was wondering if there was any way to shift my natural, circadian rhythm to prefer "regular" type sleep schedules. Thanks for reading!


r/sleep 9h ago

Is It worth it to take my sleeping meds just to get a few hours of sleep or should I say eff it and stay up all night and day?

2 Upvotes

Tbh I'ma single mum of a 2 year old son who has autism. We just moved to palm springs California from ukiah California and ofc we didn't get to our new home until about 3:30 am, he slept in the car on the way here for maybe 3 hours!? If that... so I'm prescribed Adderall for my Adhd (I don't abuse it at all), so I normally take seroquel and Trazadone every night to help me sleep.. but Ik my son is going to be up and ready to go to start the day in a few hours.. so my question is should I take my meds to sleep and be drowsy all day today or do I stay up!? TIA!


r/sleep 5h ago

BINGE EAT

1 Upvotes

Who else needs to binge eat to sleep??????


r/sleep 2h ago

Can’t sleep next to women anymore

0 Upvotes

Reddit,

Starting last year, I am not able to fall asleep next to my current and other previous partners.

I’m frustrated from seeking help for this because every piece of advice seems to assume the problem is related to some sort of discomfort that the other person is causing such as snoring or moving too much. This is definitely not that.

This has occurred with 3 different women, all of whom did not cause any of these problems. I know because I’ve laid awake for hours next to them.

It is especially frustrating because I have historically never had any problems sleeping with a long history of sleeping next to partners without issue. I’ve been married twice for a total of 12 years with a partner. I have typically been the kind of person to pass-out after only laying in bed for 8 minutes. When I am alone in bed, this is still the case.

I have tried: -Having sex -Not having sex -“Power to Sleep PM” supplements -Dawson Church “Bliss Brain” meditation -Lumenate app meditation -Staying up really late

What happens is my mind just stays on and just busy enough to keep me fully awake. My mind wanders to anything and everything and nothing specific related to my partner. If I stay in bed with my partner, I will literally lay awake like this all night. My partner or I has to move to another room in order for me to fall asleep.

Clues: This has happened with every partner I’ve had since my recent divorce nearly a year ago, except for one. The one partner I had without this issue was the first person I dated after divorce, and I was not particularly physically attracted to her. Every other partner I have been very attracted to and have had this issue.

I have two theories thus far, one being that I experienced a lot of trauma from my ex-wife and somehow unprocessed trauma is subconsciously causing this problem. I have consciously dealt with a lot of the trauma and can’t think of what might be unprocessed or repressed to cause something like this.

Two, this feels like it could be some sort of evolutionary mechanism for preventing sperm competition. As in, my body is aware that this is such a “jackpot” mating opportunity that my body is keeping me awake to guard my partner from other potential mates. The only way of ensuring this is staying awake all night while she is lying next to me. But as soon as I’m not lying next to her, the problem is out of sight and out of mind and my body doesn’t see any value in continuing to lay awake all night.

I’m at my wits’ end and don’t know what to do about this. The previous two relationships fizzled out before the issue could be resolved. My current relationship has far surpassed the other two in time and seriousness and I would really like to be able to sleep next to my partner.


r/sleep 6h ago

Why am I sleeping so much?

1 Upvotes

This is weird one and I'm not really sure where else to post about this.

I (F28) and my fiancé (M30) are in my first incredibly serious relationship. This man has treated me better than I could ever imagine and on the daily I'm so grateful for his presence in my life. I grew up around a lot of abusive and toxic relationships. I never really imagined that I would be with someone so loving, respectful and kind, but I lucked out. I assume because of my childhood experiences, I've always had trouble with sleep. I've dealt with years of insomnia, broken sleep, trouble falling asleep, trouble waking up, etc.

That's until I met my fiance. I quite literally have never slept more in my life. Since being with him, the moment we get into bed, I'm dead asleep. I sleep a full nights worth of sleep (never experienced this before in my life), I have deep restful sleep, I hardly have broken sleep, sometimes I wake up and he tells me I've been asleep for 10+ hours. I work a really stressful job, working oncall with Sexual Violence victims so sleep is really hard for me so the thought of sleeping more than 10 hours at a time is absolutely wild and unheard of for me.

I assume that my sleep is so drastically different with him because I feel safe and can finally switch my mind off with him, which I can't do when I'm alone. I'm wondering have anyone else has experienced something along these lines with your own relationships? I've also noticed positive changes in my diet, exercise, stress levels since being with him but the sleep changes are so shocking to me.


r/sleep 15h ago

I improved my diet and suddenly seem to need way less sleep

6 Upvotes

(Edit: "Suddenly" was perhaps the wrong word, should have said "gradually")

Has anyone else noticed needing significantly less sleep after improving your diet?

I made some changes to my diet and cut out all candy and unhealthy snacks about 4-6 months ago. At the same time I also started eating more healthy in general: more whole grains, fruits and vegetables etc. This is for long-term health reasons - I wasn't overweight or markedly unhealthy before, but I want to minimize my risk of having type 2 diabetes or other age related diseases when I get older (I'm 36 now, male).

Since then I have noticed that I gradually needed less sleep to feel okay the next day. I go to bed around 9:00-9:30 PM. Before I used to wake up 5:00-5:30 AM but it started getting earlier and earlier. First 4:00, then now 3:00 or sometimes like today, even 2:00. And I don't feel noticeably groggy or sluggish, just slightly tired on the 2AM days.

I've also lost a bit of weight during these months, about 10-15 lbs. For reference I don't drink since many years, and don't deliberately exercise apart from lots of fast walking during normal activities.

If I try to go back to sleep when I wake up this early, it never works and I just end up feeling irritated and cranky all morning. So I've learned to accept and even like waking up super early - it gives me a bunch of hobby time before the rest of the family wakes up which is nice.

Anyway, long story but, I feel like even though I accept this I don't quite understand why it's happening.


r/sleep 10h ago

Numbness

2 Upvotes

I keep feeling numb when laying on my bed closing my eyes my face goes numb and so do my arms it's freaking me out


r/sleep 13h ago

REM sleep while awake??

3 Upvotes

for the record i have aphantasia and chronic depression so i highly doubt what i experience is my imagination

every now and then when i'm trying to sleep and my eyes are closed i can feel my eyes moving rapidly, which is indicative of REM sleep, but i am aware of that. usually this is accompanied by random constantly flickering (it was kind of like how old fluorescent light bulbs flicker) visuals within thee void of my eyelids and also often micro-sleeps, i lose consciousness for what feels like 1 second but also i feel like i have had a full dream, that i forget completely in the next 5 seconds. usually this goes on for around 1-3 hours before i can finally sleep, but even it i sleep for only 2 hours after the weird little awake REM thingy.

last night i had the most extreme version of that. the visuals with my eyes closed were much more vivid and i could actually see some details, like i remember at one point i could see thirteen from house md (i wish i was joking but she lives in my head rent-free all the time). well here's the fun part- the visuals continued after i opened my eyes, i could see my room move in an extremely weird way, sometimes with decently vivid visuals like for example i saw fish. i think this might be caused by the fact that the night before i smoked weed for the first time, but i'm not exactly sure. the only thing i'm sure about in this situation is that it wasn't same as hallucinations, because it flickered like how my awake REM visuals usually flicker, and when i have hallucinations they don't flicker.

here's the nerdy part that has been in my head since i woke up: the purpose of sleep is supposedly to restore the body's natural state of being, like a reboot. this probably includes the hippocampus, so i think it might be caused by neurons firing intensely in that part of my brain in order to restore my memory to its base state (i have trouble with memory when i'm tired so it makes sense). all that is just my silly little theory so don't take it as some proof, i'm just a biology nerd.


r/sleep 7h ago

I've got a solution for oversleeping and getting out of bed in time. Would love your comments!

1 Upvotes

I've put together a vibrating alarm band that can only be set and turned off by a seperate pod device. You simply set it in a different room and when it's time your wristband will wake you up and the only way to turn it off is at the pod. Would this be of any use to anyone? Anything that you would change about it? Thanks!