Blind and Visually Impaired Community
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Sleep issues? (self.Blind)
submitted by TechnicalPragmatist
I don’t even know if this has anything to do with blindness but I will try here, first. I am not asking for medical advice, just asking if there is anyone else and if you’ve found anything to be helpful.
It’s not even non-24. I don’t scoot back my sleep schedule by a few hours or minutes or period of time and fall asleep later. Insomnia doesn’t sound right either.
The closest explanation is I have too much energy and can’t get rid of it all. If I don’t do a lot, and even if I do I sleep maybe for another hour or two? If I have a busy day and sometimes it has to be an extremely hectic or busy day then I can sleep or if I get really upset. Otherwise if I have a lazy day or fairly relaxing day I sleep a handful of hours between 3 and 4 if not sometime it’s rarer less. And if I had a fairly busy day maybe 4 to 6 hours. If I am extraordinarily busy and it’s hectic or I haven’t slept in a couple of days it’s about 7 to 9.
I have no real circadian rhythms so I would have to run out of energy and pick a few hours out of my night, if not sometime in the morning. It’s all the same to my timeless internal clock, if there is even one. Basically I sleep when I am tired. It sometime works and then a lot of times it doesn’t because businesses during the day. There’s another problem when it comes to relationships, or sleeping in the same room as anyone else, family, significant others, sharing a room with friends on trips.
I’ve now tried melatonin. And it helps to only a certain extent and for so long. It works to go to bed for a few hours, to anchor down bedtime. But then it’s not realistic to keep taking another 10 MG just to force more sleep. Otherwise I am rolling around in bed restlessly and I get bored and 30 minutes feels like an eternity. If by myself I can get up and start working hoping to wear myself down and try to lay down later. Again this is another tactic that doesn’t work most of the time, I just work through the day and get another 4 to 6 hours in. Problem and cycle starts all over again. laying there is not helpful, because I just think of random stupid stuff and my brain gets fully awake really quick.
It’s not even non-24. I don’t scoot back my sleep schedule by a few hours or minutes or period of time and fall asleep later. Insomnia doesn’t sound right either.
The closest explanation is I have too much energy and can’t get rid of it all. If I don’t do a lot, and even if I do I sleep maybe for another hour or two? If I have a busy day and sometimes it has to be an extremely hectic or busy day then I can sleep or if I get really upset. Otherwise if I have a lazy day or fairly relaxing day I sleep a handful of hours between 3 and 4 if not sometime it’s rarer less. And if I had a fairly busy day maybe 4 to 6 hours. If I am extraordinarily busy and it’s hectic or I haven’t slept in a couple of days it’s about 7 to 9.
I have no real circadian rhythms so I would have to run out of energy and pick a few hours out of my night, if not sometime in the morning. It’s all the same to my timeless internal clock, if there is even one. Basically I sleep when I am tired. It sometime works and then a lot of times it doesn’t because businesses during the day. There’s another problem when it comes to relationships, or sleeping in the same room as anyone else, family, significant others, sharing a room with friends on trips.
I’ve now tried melatonin. And it helps to only a certain extent and for so long. It works to go to bed for a few hours, to anchor down bedtime. But then it’s not realistic to keep taking another 10 MG just to force more sleep. Otherwise I am rolling around in bed restlessly and I get bored and 30 minutes feels like an eternity. If by myself I can get up and start working hoping to wear myself down and try to lay down later. Again this is another tactic that doesn’t work most of the time, I just work through the day and get another 4 to 6 hours in. Problem and cycle starts all over again. laying there is not helpful, because I just think of random stupid stuff and my brain gets fully awake really quick.
akrazyho 4 points 1y ago
Professional Reddit user here so this is just a suggestion. It sounds like you have undiagnosed, ADHD
TechnicalPragmatist [OP] 2 points 1y ago
I have heard this suggestion a few times. Maybe I should check it out. I was talking to a disabilities office and director about some reading processing stuff. And they also suggested I may have adhd or something. Not sure what it is though but maybe.
B-dub31 3 points 1y ago
I have a similar issue, but I am partially sighted, so I'm not sure it's totally related to my vision loss. I find the best way to anchor my sleep is to eat at consistent times every day and try to go to sleep within a consistent window. Having that routine helps a lot. And I don't try to go back to bed if I wake up at like 3 AM unless I feel pretty confident I will go back to sleep. After a couple nights of sleeping four hours or so, I finally get a good night's sleep. Melatonin does help me, but I have crazy dreams and I feel kind of headachy the next day, so I rarely take it.
carolineecouture 3 points 1y ago
If you can, look into cognitive behavioral therapy for sleep. I know it sounds like a crock, but it actually worked for me. A huge part is figuring out what is keeping you awake when you want to be sleeping or staying asleep. Then the strategies to help train your body to sleep. Items such as using your bed for sleeping and not for talking on the phone, playing games, or eating. I initially went to the doctor hoping for a prescription, but they suggested therapy. It took a while, but it worked, and I still use some of the things I learned when I can't sleep now. Good luck!
codeplaysleep 2 points 1y ago
Instead of attempting to knock yourself out with 10mg of melatonin, try taking a very low dose (0.25-0.5mg) about 4 hours before bed. I remember reading a study once that it's way more effective that way. It took a bit for my body to adjust, but it totally works for me. Keeping a consistent schedule also helps a lot.
10mg would have me waking up the next morning with an epic headache.
10mg would have me waking up the next morning with an epic headache.
WorldlyLingonberry40 1 points 1y ago
You say that it is not non-24, but then you claim that: I have no real circadian rhythms so I would have to run out of energy and pick a few hours out of my night, if not sometime in the morning. It’s all the same to my timeless internal clock."
Only a doctor can diagnose. Non-24 is a recent development, so you can contact the research lab so that they may send the study results to your doctor.
Only a doctor can diagnose. Non-24 is a recent development, so you can contact the research lab so that they may send the study results to your doctor.
BooksDogsMaps 1 points 1y ago
I also have sleep issues. I‘m not fully blind, so it‘s odd, but I‘m very light-sensitive, so I have a bit of a hypothesis that my body prefers being up at night and sleeping during the day. I haven‘t got a real solution. If I have stuff to do during the day, I will get up and do it. After a few days at the latest I‘m just tired and will sleep whenever I get the opportunity. As soon as such external constraints are gone, my sleep cycle goes to morning to early afternoon after a while.
So, I can‘t help, but I feel your struggle.
So, I can‘t help, but I feel your struggle.
sunny1sotrue117 1 points 1y ago
Fully blind people have a harder time with sleep schedules because their body can’t follow the patterns of the sun that others use to tell when it’s day and night.
[deleted] 1 points 1y ago
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