Sleeping Problems. x_x

[furrypaws]

Recently I've been having trouble sleeping.

Like going to bed at 12:30 and waking up at 6:50 with that feeling that I just had an awful dream.

I've been reading half an hour before I go to bed like I normally do, so I don't know what's going on.

I know the dreams like to play with my inner fears. For instance, the only dream I can remember consists of me being stuck on a road and just watching a man begin to cross the street only to be hit by a car. Time passes quickly, and all I can do is sit there and watch. I have no urge to get up and help, to run, to do anything, but just sit there and watch. I can't do anything else. Eventually, the cops come, and they pick him in his white blood stained shirt and his jeans and take him away in an ambulance, limp and unmoving, and I wake up in a cold sweat with that disgusting feeling in my stomach that I've felt the last week or so.

I have absolutely no idea what's causing it. That's not the only dream, just the only I can recall. It wasn't a person I know being hit, or a person I know driving the car, or anything. The only familiar thing about the dream was the street. It's a street in my neighborhood, but it's not like I watched someone get hit by a car there. I've never actually ever seen anyone get hit by a car. This dream just came right out of the blue.

I'm sure the psychologists on this board will have a ball with me. =\

I also just in general have been having trouble getting to sleep, staying asleep, and getting back to sleep.

Time to go to bed, anyways. Let's see what this night brings.

[Anduril]

Try going to sleep earlier for a couple of nights after about 30 minutes of no stimulation (ie, reading, tv, music) and no food or drink. I had some sleep issues and this clearing of my mind really helped me get a long and restful night's sleep. I'm going to steer away from analyzing what the dream might mean, so yeah.

[Broodstar1337]

Sleeping pills are your friend, brah.

[Anduril]

Sleeping pills are your friend, brah.
Sleeping pills can lead to some weird crap, like making a peanut butter and mayo sandwich or wanting to go get the Christmas tree in March. I honestly would say use sleeping pills as a last resort.

[SabZero]

You'll be the one to interpret the dreams, and how they apply to your fears. Obviously something is bothering you, and you just pushed it back. Or something you want to change, but are scared to. Getting out of your comfort zone and such. Instead of looking just at imagery, remember how you feel on the way. Maybe that will give you a clue.

[furrypaws]

Huh, good tips. I'll have to give these a shot over vacation.

I'm not really looking for a dream analysis, either. I'm just putting it down so I won't forget it. While I do want to forget it, I know I won't forget that awful feeling, and then what the dream was actually about will bug me perpetually.

Thanks for the help.

[ChibiBecca]

i agree with the advice to keep sleeping pills as a last resort. with most you build up a tolerance very quickly (making them less effective), and others you can become dependent on them.

but that's just from personal experiance. one lot i was given by a doctor after 3 nights of no sleep caused me to dream i was awake.. with caused some confusion when i really did wake up.

tried taking a bath before bed? i'd suggest no alcohol as well.. ^^

[Inazuma]

ive also had dreams where im standing on the side of the road, watching someone get hit by a car. dunno what causes those kinds of dreams myself, sorry. oh, i also had a dream where i was the one being hit by a car. anyway, try not to let it bother you so much, if possible.

my advice would be to eat well and exercise at least a few times a week. if you are feeling really good when you are awake, hopefully thatll carry over to your sleep. good luck.

you also might want to look into polyphasic sleep. most people sleep around 7 or 8 hours a day which is inefficient. I do 4 hours and it works out well for the most part. overall much better than back when i did 7 hours. I dunno if this will help your bad dreams or not, but at least you can sleep better in general.

and dont take sleeping pills if you can help it. waste of money and there are side effects.

[CelestialBlade]

Have you tried meditation? Sit down, close your eyes, relax every single muscle in your body, and completely clear your mind. Then try going to sleep, and hopefully that'll get rid of any lingering thoughts that may be causing your nightmares.

[Ethateral]

I've always had trouble sleeping since I was a baby (From what I've been told). I was up at night and was just plain tired during the day. I'm trying this herbal supplement that helps promote sleep. It works fairly well actually. It's not like sleeping pills, where it's forcing you that second. What I use is, Melatonin. It helps promote sleep and it's like a natural hormone in your body. It helps you drift off peacefully after 30 minutes or so. So it feels more natural. When you wake up, you feel rather rested. If anyone needs you during the night though, hah, forget it. Game over for 8 hours.

I don't use it everynight, since well, I forget, lol. XD

[Syl]

Whether you remember your dreams or not, your mind is always dreaming when in a state of slumber.

Maybe something's been on your mind lately, maybe even subconsciously. Stress can also cause this sort of stuff. Not sure if you're going through that, just throwing that out there.

Another thing believe it or not that can drastically affect your sleep is the bed (and the stuff on it) itself. When I got a new bed (compared to my old beat up one), I slept waaaay better and woke up rested and stuff.

Also, avoid junk food and the like a couple hours before bed. I know whenever I eat pork rinds or hot dogs before I get really weird dreams >_>

[Anduril]

I've always had trouble sleeping since I was a baby (From what I've been told). I was up at night and was just plain tired during the day. I'm trying this herbal supplement that helps promote sleep. It works fairly well actually. It's not like sleeping pills, where it's forcing you that second. What I use is, Melatonin. It helps promote sleep and it's like a natural hormone in your body. It helps you drift off peacefully after 30 minutes or so. So it feels more natural. When you wake up, you feel rather rested. If anyone needs you during the night though, hah, forget it. Game over for 8 hours.

I don't use it everynight, since well, I forget, lol. XD
I think this could be helpful to both myself (though not so much at the moment) and my mother, who also suffers from sleep difficulties. She was taking sleeping pills, and well the results were my previously mentioned sandwich and Christmas tree incidents.

[Vanzazikon]

I currently have sleeping problems, hence my late night/early morning post. They are not associated with dreams.

[SStrikerR]

I'm a night person, therefore it's almost impossible for me to fall asleep before eleven, but since that made me incredibly tired during the day I was forced to find a few ways to get to sleep easier.

1) Starting from your toes, go up your body, resting each muscle one at a time.
2) Find something calming to do that helps you get to sleep, such as reading.
3) Turn off the lights and close your F***ing eyes and keep em shut till you drift off.

[Neith]

Heh, I've been having similar problems lately. In the last two weeks, I've woke up in the middle of the night (well, 4-5am, anyway), about 3-4 times and it's always following a horrible dream. God knows why, but it's always violent nightmares that are extremely realistic. I've been under a fair amount of stress lately, and had a few heated arguments with people in real life, so I'm thinking those have influenced it.

The last few nights I've slept well, so I'm hoping it's a rare incidence, I really don't want dreams like that again (no, I won't describe them either). What's funny is, in the backstory I have for all my PSO/PSU characters, one does suffer from violent nightmares- and I created her backstory way before this started happening :lol:

[PIT]

We've got difficult times going on here on this planet... Life has sped up and people live in unnatural stress nowdays. Yup, that's a cool thing, I'm having some problems with falling asleep for about half a year now. It usually takes me 1-3h to drift off. I don't know which is the cause and which is the effect, but in addition I feel terrible. If it wasn't for school, I would probably give myself up to a sanitarium, my mind is a mess right now. Unfortunately it's the last year and it would be silly to stop before finishing this hell. Guess I'm screwd.

[Tyreek]

Hmm... at certain intervals, my sleep pattern regulates. I think the problem going on though, is that we have too much stimulation going on before sleep. I hear reading a little helps though as a relaxer.