I was born an insomniac and have been one my entire life. I sought help for it in my early forties when I couldn't function anymore. After a sleep study in which I slept 3 hours and had 3 minutes of REM sleep, the doctor recommended that I see a psychiatrist. This did not help in any way. I truely believe that there is something wrong with my "sleep center". Antidepressants make me so hyper that I can't sleep. I'm being treated for RLS and take klonopin for my bruxism and Restoril for sleep. I'm sure that the lack of sleep has contributed to my many other helath problems. My lifelong wish has been that there would be a real solution to my problem. Hopefully someday there will be if I can just hang in there long enough.
I have vascular dementia and am going through yet again another time of being unable to go to sleep. I did manage to get in eight good hours last night...after nights of fitful sleep. Tonight, however, I have not been able to get to sleep. Been up almost 24 hours. When I lay down, my mind is whirring and visions are fleeing through my mind. I take Aricept and Cymbalta for the dementia and depression ( and to help me focus better). I try to follow all the steps to creating a good sleep pattern...but to no avail. Do sleep difficulties routinely go hand in hand with dementia? Is this just something I have to put up with? What are your suggestions?
I am an architect. When entering competitions long days with short stints of sleep are necessary. The last week of a competition sleeping an hour a day is typical.
I went to the lab to get some blood tests. My results came back and my sugar is at 100 for fasting and triglycerides at 240, hdl low at 34; ldl normal at 98 and total cholesterol normal. My arms go numb at night while sleeping and sometimes i get facial numbness and cranial numbness on my right side of my head. I have changed my diet and to almost all raw, except for the occasional lean meat- which I seem I can't do without.
I am wondering if not sleeping directly caused all this. Thank you.