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It doesn’t seem to matter how much I take care of myself, the one thing I seem to be constantly hunting is a good nights sleep. My inability to sleep effects how well I function during the day and compounded with other triggers, such as weather, can lead to an increase of migraine episodes. Lack of sleep also gives me less “juice” to fight the pain once a migraine episode has begun.

Here is how a typical night goes. Around 10:30, I am tired and ready for sleep. I get comfy and cozy, my husband and I pray and say our good nights, then my husband turns off the light. I lay there for 5 minutes…wide awake. What is it about turning off the light that makes my body wake up? As awful as it is, I could barely stay awake during the prayer so I am not sure why sleep escapes me.

Then there are those nights when I fall asleep with no problem but 2 hours later I wake up feeling like I slept the full 8 hours. No matter what I do, I cannot get back to sleep. I may be awake for 3-4 hours before I can drift back off to sleep. The longer I lay there the more frustrated I become.

Although I am not sure how to remedy this issue, I do know that the effects this has on my body is detrimental. Simply put, my migraines increase in quantity and severity when I am overly tired. Lack of enough sleep also makes me more susceptible to depression, anxiety and it weakens my immune system. Our bodies are designed to have a period of rest and if that isn’t happening regularly our bodies retaliate.

I have tried medications like Ambien and that made me asleep but not resting. I knew everything that was going on around me. Like many people, Ambien forces you to sleep but it doesn’t allow your brain to rest. So this isn’t a solution for me.

I also take Melatonin, which is a natural hormone that helps sleep, on occasion. I have mixed results from this because some times it works well and other nights it does nothing. It does seem to be most effective if I don’t take it that often. With that in mind, this really doesn’t work well either.

So, until I find something that really helps, I will just lay here and convince myself that I am “resting “. I will probably be on my tablet (I know it is probably the worst thing I can do). What else am I supposed to do at 3 am when I have been staring at the dark for 2 hours?

What have you found that helps you get better sleep?

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