Friday 26 March 2021

Insomnia a Walk and the First Cut.

 The Insomnia

I'm sure that I've mentioned many times that I am a very poor sleeper, for me a good nights sleep is falling asleep almost immediately waking just once through the night to go to the loo, then falling straight back to sleep again and waking around 6 30am. I never sleep through the night, that would be amazing. 

More often than not the above is not the case, this past week I have slept on average just 3 - 4 hours a night, in fact one night I didn't sleep at all! I know I'm not alone there are many of you like me, but it makes you wonder why it happens, why can't we sleep? 

There is a vast amount of help available online and believe you me I have tried everything there is to be tried. It's like the sleep switch just doesn't work, I can be tired and yawning when I go to bed and then the next minute be wide awake. 

For the record.

I exercise every day. 

I go to bed every night at the same time.

I don't look at computer screens, or any other screens for at least an hour before bedtime.

My last meal is always a light one and is eaten a good four hours before bedtime.

My bedroom is an oasis of calm, no screens, no clutter, just a comfortable bed, drawers and wardrobes, there is no light pollution and it's at a perfect temperature.

My last caffeine intake is 3pm.

I listen to calming music in the evenings and have tried meditation.

I eat foods that are rich in magnesium which helps promote sleep you can see them here I have also drank herbal teas.

I have tried sleeping tablets very briefly in the past, if I take one now it doesn't work, I just feel hung over and groggy the next day. Sleeping pills are not the answer, so what is? is there an answer or do we just have to accept it and deal with it the best we can. 

How I'm Coping

If I lie awake for more than two hours, I will read for half an hour put my book down and then try again, if after another two hours I still haven't slept I will do something else for half an hour and then try again and so it goes on throughout the night, at least this way I feel my time isn't totally wasted like it when I am lying there tossing and turning all night.

Son number three has recommended I try Sleepio.com I have nothing to loose so I'm giving it a try, the first week is keeping a sleep diary, I'll let you know how I get on.

Let me know if you have sleep problems and how you cope with them, we may learn something from each other. 

Since writing this I have come across this website which gives out lots of useful information

Everything You Need To Know About Insomnia

A Walk

This week, my friend Baz, yes the one who got me lost in Hawthorne Dene 😂 suggested a walk nearer to home, in fact it's a walk he takes a couple of times a week, it's just a short one Linda he says, about three miles. Seaham is Baz's home town so he knows all the nooks and crannies and hidden pathways. The walk he suggested took us through a Park in Dalton-Le-Dale 


I had never visited this park before and it was practically deserted, it will be lovely when the weather warms up, it's huge and there were lots of lovely Spring flowers in bloom.


The park brings you out into the village of Dalton-Le-Dale which has quite a rich history, here you can see the ruins of Daldon Towers a fourteenth century structure, which I found really fascinating, I love to see old ruins and try to trace their history. I found some information from the Dalton Le Dale history society, you can read about Daldon Towers here.




This Fountain is just a little bit further along from the ruins you can read more about it here
I left a few painted rocks there for someone to find. 😊


This lovely old tree looked so pretty I was surprised to see it covered in cherry blossom already.


We continued through the village and decided to take a circular route back rather than turn back and retrace our steps. I was feeling quite tired as I had only slept for three hours the night before but as we stepped out from the dene which runs behind Dalton Le dale, it brought us out onto this road and I could see with the sea so far away in the distance we still had quite a way to go. 


How long did you say this walk was I asked, about three miles said he, I said you have got to be kidding! 





It was a lovely walk really, the weather was quite cool with a very cold wind blowing in our faces but what let it down mostly was the litter! I could have wept, the amount of litter along this road was unbelievable. Obviously people just throw their rubbish out of the car window as they speed along. Are they mad! what on earth are they thinking? We are doing so much damage to this poor planet of ours but how can we stop this, how can we teach people to act more responsibly surely it's common sense. 




By the time we got to the sea front I was pretty tired and yes once again just dying for a cup of lovely reviving coffee. 


and still trying and failing miserably to capture all the beautiful changing colours of the sea, in the photos they just look grey but in real life I saw deep turquoise, blues and greens.


I love to spot the tiny boats in the far distance. 


The walk ended favourably with a stop off at costa for a take-away cup of cappuccino and we sat facing our beloved statue Tommy  with the coffee cups warming our hands and the cold wind not bothering us at all.


From this point of course I still had quite a walk home, after collapsing in the chair when I got in I checked my Fitbit to discover that the three mile walk was actually over eight miles! we had walked 17,518 steps. You would think then that I would have slept soundly that night but that was the night I didn't sleep at all🤦‍♀️ strange isn't it?

My lawn has had it's first cut it's looking rather patchy here but I love it when it's smooth and neat.


I wait for this pot of hyacinths to bloom every Spring, this year I will repot them because they haven't done as well as they usually do but I love them just the same. 

I painted the bunny stone to cheer up son number three as he was quite ill in bed suffering from the side effects of his second vaccine, of course I could only send him a picture, he can have it when I see him again, I have no idea when that will be but I'm hoping to visit him in Qatar later in the year, fingers crossed. 🤞 The side effects only lasted a couple of days and he's fine now.😊

The crocheting and sewing is going on quite frantically in the background as I have to finish this for Daughter in law one for her birthday at the beginning of next month..

and this before the end of the month..


so that's what I will be doing this weekend, what will you be up to? whatever it is I hope that you have a good one. 

Take Care 😘😘


22 comments:

  1. It's so annoying when you can't sleep well at night Linda. I feel for you and you seem to be doing all of the right things before bed. How nice to take that long walk and I enjoyed looking at the pretty photos you took. I hope you have a nice weekend.

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  2. Have you tried a warm bath before bed Linda? The walk looks lovely, shame about the litter, people just don’t care ☹️ Hope you have a lovely weekend xx

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  3. My nights are pretty much like yours...The difference is that I eat something before going to bed (at midnight) because hungry is a no-sleep for sure ;)
    A good night for me is sleeping 4 hours straight...
    Lovely pictures of the countryside and ocean ! Lovely creations too !
    Have a shinny weekend ! We are expecting 24ºc :)
    Hug
    Anna

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  4. That does look a lovely walk but I think Baz underestimated the distance a little. Insomnia is terrible, I suffer from it on and off and I can't work out if anything makes a difference, sometimes I just seem to sleep better than other times.

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  5. I commiserate with you, I have had nights where I had trouble sleeping but fortunately not that often. I think sometimes it just becomes a habit pattern. I hope you find a solution in Sleepio.com
    Briony
    x

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  6. When I'm with insomnia, I usually drink passion fruit juice. It calms me down. People always say that physical activities helps, but after your report, I don't think it works for everyone. Hope you have already have a good sleep. I love all the pictures. You live in a very beautiful place.

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  7. I'm a poor sleeper too, always go to bed at the same time and get up the same time. I usually get up once, sometimes twice,to go to the bathroom (have bladder problems and pills for it make me feel awful and dizzy, so don't take them) Sometimes I lay there at least an hour before going back to sleep. I try blanking my mind, doesn't always work, so try going through the alphabet, with first names that live in a place, that buy something in another place. All the words have to begin with a, then b, etc. Usually by mid alphabet I fall asleep. I stayed up late last night to watch a curling game final but still got up at 6 am, so today I had a sleep in the afternoon to catch up.

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  8. I too have insomnia. Nowadays I have started to go to bed only around midnight to be woken up by my cat around 3 (even if she doesn't I'll wake up around that time), then after that it's a very disturbed sleep until I wake up around 7. If my son has to go to school he'll wake me up by 6 or 6.30. I sleep well only for 4-5 hours.

    I was on a keto diet for about a month few months ago, Keto along with intermittent fasting. I cut out carbs entirely. I was getting small amounts of carbs only from the vegetables that I took. I noticed then that I slept well. I will go to bed even as early as 9 or 9.30 pm and slept throughout the night without any disturbance for 8 hours. Now that I'm back to my normal eating habits my insomnia is also back. So I think diet does play a role, at least for me. I never exercised then. Too much exercise will also prevent you from getting a good night sleep. When I had some strenuous job or exercise I'll go to bed so tired thinking that I will get a sound sleep but that would be the night when I would be lying awake tossing and turning. So heavy exercise doesn't help.

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  9. Eeeee good luck with getting better sleep everyone. Sending you all calming sleep energies through the universe. Lovely post eeeee.

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  10. I too wondered if a warm bath could work. Waking up at all hours seems to happen a lot as we grow older. I hope you get some answers that will help you. Your daughter-in-law's crochet pretty is lovely. Hope you get it finished in time. Love those hyacinths.

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  11. That's a beautiful walk. I'm looking forward to getting some sea air myself this week.
    It's such a shame about the litter. I really don't understand why some people choose to leave such a mess. X

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  12. Recently I too have only been sleeping 3-4 hours most nights, but mine insomnia is due to the stress of dealing with my mother's illness and trying to get her 24/7 care. I can't take any sleep aids as I need to be able to respond to her at night if necessary. I do the same as you do. If I am tossing and turning, I eventually get up. I will read or crochet. I sometimes make some warm milk. Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't. I have yet to find a solution. Usually, once I wake up at night, I am up for the rest of the day. Love the little bunny rock. Your crocheted piece is very pretty.

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  13. It sounds like you are doing all the right things to get more sleep. I hope you find a way to get more sleep soon. The bunny rock is very cute!

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  14. Struggle for two years with Insomnia. Nothing worked, doc recommended not to get up and do stuff as that make it worse. What has worked is the yoga pose of elevating my legs for 20 minutes before bedtime. It helps with circulation, and sleep. This I do every evening just before bedtime.

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    1. What pose do you mean? I had a yoga class last year but I can’t think of anything like this. I also have insomnia and would love to give this a go.

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  15. Linda, I too have difficulty sleeping. Right now I am waking 4-6 times a night and as of this morning I have been up since 4:30. It is so exhausting. I try to eat something closer to bed because if I don't eat enough during the day I will be awake at 3 and stay awake. I get plenty of exercise and eat right. I think for me it is hereditary. My mother had a horrible time sleeping. Best of luck my friend, we can all be tired together!

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  16. Great stitching. I have a hard time sleeping too. I might fall asleep right away, but wake up an hour later. I might read for an hour or two. But some nights it is really hard. I think my problem is I try to be alert to hear if my husband has problems in the other room. Your walk looked wonderful! Good luck!

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  17. Have you had a sleep study done? I hope you find help. Insomnia is awful. Cute little cross stitch!

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  18. Oh! dear Linda I think your friend has a problem calculating distances LOL! I suggest that next time you go for a walk with your friend when he says how far it is double it and then you will be prepared for it beforehand. Perhaps a nice hot flask of coffee with you would help to revive you half way :-) Gorgeous views I am sure a second visit would be worthwhile. What pigs some people are! Such a shame there are ignorant litterbugs around. They exist here too! grr! Looking forward to seeing what you are making for your DIL's birthday! Sorry to hear about the insomnia. I have had a really bad time with this but recently I am sleeping better. No idea why I do what I always do which is very similar to what you have mentioned here. It is baffling!
    keep well Amanda x

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  19. So sorry you are having problems with sleeping.
    I haven't heard of Sleepio, I do hope it may be able to help you.

    I did enjoy seeing all of your photographs.

    All the best Jan

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  20. I'm the same as you, Linda. Never do I sleep through the night. If I get up only once to go to the bathroom, it's a good night. I am always pleased when I go to sleep right away and easily fall back asleep when I get up. But more often than not, I do a whole lot of tossing and turning, and often don't get any sleep at all. I don't read or get up to do anything. I just stay there, hoping eventually I might catch some zzzz's. The only thing I really use is lavender oil sometimes. Yesterday I didn't walk, was feeling out of sorts, ate a whole lot of bread and rice and even had pasta for dinner and I slept really well. I honestly can never figure out why one night I might sleep easily and others I don't. I don't really feel extra tired if I don't sleep so I just get on with the day. Good luck with whatever you decide to try.

    Your walk looks like something I would thoroughly enjoy. The longer the better. I basically see the same stuff around here of late. Happy to at least see different flowers blooming. Always disgusted by all the garbage. The world has become very trashy because of fools. I just don't know what's gotten into people. No common sense or sense of responsibility at all.

    Take care.

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  21. Lovely pics from your walk, Linda! Your lawn is looking nice. Looking forward to see what you are making for your DIL
    I have insomnia as well. I sleep anytime between 11:30-1 but my waking time is already set at 6:30 due to certain house tasks. I have stopped thinking about it and if I feel too sleepy, I try to take a short nap in the afternoon. Sometimes even that is not a success :) and if it is a success, it disturbs the night sleeping pattern again:)
    I tell my mind - you got enough sleep, don't think you didn't. Yes, I also feel groggy, I just splash water and try to smile to wake myself :D It worked many times.

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