Sleep Quality Tracker started by Antibenzo7

[[Tr...]]

Hi goforit,

 

I just used Google: "benzo free podcast pelvic floor"  and many pages came up.

 

I like P.D. Foster,  but there are many others to listen to.

 

Good luck.

[[Lo...]]

I got 8 hours sleep In a 4 day period. Last night finally slept 7 hours. Everytime I make a cut my sleep suffers...when I do sleep I feel ok.

[[Tr...]]

Hi,

 

Sleep has been more or less the same for quite some time now: most nights some 6 hours. Still wake up around 5 am. But not because of pain for a while now. Staying in bed until 7 is getting easier because of this.

 

Had a series of better days with only one bad day ( last Sunday was a day of pain, followed by fatigue for some reason).

Leg muscles still not much improvement. Feet neuropathy changing almost by the hour.

 

Spending lots of time outside, enjoying the beautiful weather. But from tomorrow it's going to be colder with rain for a week or so.

 

Nightengale,

 

Hope you're still getting better nights. How's your knee doing? And the feeling of having a "wooden" body?

Wishing you all the best. Take care.

 

 

 

 

 

[[ni...]]

MY sleep went way down again after the good week last week. Now it is ever so slowly coming back, again.

I am hopeful.

 

TS that is such good news about the better sleep.  Sorry to hear about the pain, leg muscles and nephropathy. 

 

The time outside is nice.  I've been enjoying the lovely weather, also. We have two bird feeders, which is always fun to observe. 

 

Over the weekend, I had no knee pain at all. The stiffness, though not totally gone, was much less.  The pain returned on the 3rd day along with the relentless body stiffness. Strange..

 

[[ni...]]

Between 5 and 6 hours last night. I'll take it.

 

I have a virtual appointment with the rheumatologist on Monday.  Beings I didn't get any physical therapy for my knee during the stay at home rule, I'm curious to see if she has anything else to suggest. I no longer feel it comfortable leaving my husband home alone. I don't have anyone to check in on him on a regular basis.

He is OCD which means he is constantly in motion.

 

Hang in there everyone.

 

 

 

[[Tr...]]

Hi nightengale,

 

Between 5 and 6 hours of sleep is great! I hope this is going to be the first of many good nights to come.

How was your virtual appointment last Monday?  Did she recommend physical therapy for your knee?

I understand the worry you have regarding your husband. Is there a possibility of the physical therapist making house calls?  Overhere in the Netherlands that is an option. I hope you"ll find a solution for this issue.

 

My walking is really painful at the moment,  because of my feet. Every step hurts like hell. For some reason it has become much worse in a matter of days. My guess is the Paroxetine. Instead of walking I grab my bike and go for short rides. Makes a nice change. As well as taking the car for a spin almost daily.

The last two weeks I felt better than I have done in a long time. Must be partly or mainly because of the Paroxetine kicking in.

I'm going for an EMG next Friday.  Perhaps they'll find out what's wrong with my muscles and feet this time.

 

Wishing you a better day. X

[[ni...]]

I got at least 7 hours of sleep last night!!  No particular reason, except I didn't have anything on my mind.

Anyway, I am thankful for the sleep.

 

When I went to the rheumatologist, she said that I must get more than a few hours of sleep a night for my body to heal. She then wanted me to go see my PCP for some sleep medication. I reminded her that I had been on clonazepam and ambien for almost 20 years and this was causing so many of my problems, trying to recover from those drugs.

Then I asked her what she suggested I take. LOL

She then backtracked and said melatonin and Benadryl.

I told her I had tried both.

Then she talked about having a quiet, dark, bedroom, etc., etc.,

 

I was really shocked she mentioned prescription sleeping meds. My guess is she forgotten what I told her four months ago on my first visit.

 

Next Tuesday I will get a shot in my knee. I'm not looking forward to that, as I always get bad injection site reactions.  She said she could give me some cortisone for that. 

 

I need to call around to see which PT places will do in home visits. I just have not done that yet.

 

The medical profession is still in the dark concerning benzos it would seem.  She told me I needed between 8 and 10 hours of sleep at night. 

 

TS I am sorry about your foot pain.  The bike and car rides sound nice. 

Hopefully the EMG will shed some light on the muscle and foot problems.

I still have the stiff body going on. I feel like it is from the pain when I walk and that is my body's reaction, but neither my PCP or my rheumatologist has commented on what they think is going on.

 

NG

 

 

 

 

[[Tr...]]

Hello nightengale,

 

So glad you slept well again! Maybe you've had the worst and sleep will continue to improve from now on. Looking back at your posting it sure seems that way. Let's hope for the best.

 

I had my best sleep in over a year and a half last night: 7.5 hours! Wow! Didn't see that coming, but so grateful for it!

 

Some doctors just never learn, do they? Unbelievable she could even suggest taking benzos again. Good of you to take a firm stand!

 

I hope you"ll find a PT that does home visits.

 

The EMG showed I have polyneuropathy. Not too bad, but enough to cause these issues. She couldn't find a medical reason for it.

I hope  Diazepam caused it and it will pass when I have finally tapered off this stuff.( prof. Ashton mentioned it in her manual).

 

Hopefully the injection is going to be helpfull and won't give you too much issues.

 

Most people never get 8 to 10 hours of sleep. Certainly not older people. It's being questioned nowadays if we even need that much sleep. 7 hours would be great,  right?

 

Wishing you a wonderful weekend.  X

 

Trochsetter

 

[[ni...]]

Last night I slept between 5 and 6 hours after maybe an hour the three nights before. I wish this would even out more. This November I will be three years off of clonazepam.  I finished Ambien way before that. I've felt so awful the last few days.

 

TS, that's good they found the polyneuropathy, but then it doesn't show enough to cause your issues. Perhaps it is the diazepam.

The Ashton manual is very informative.

 

Stay strong

 

 

[[ni...]]

Another decent night of sleep. Around 5 hours.

Today I have the shot in my knee, so thought I may be awake because of that, but thankfully I was not.

 

I woke up at 2:30 and could tell sleep may not come after that, so listened to a sleep video. It put me to sleep, but then I awoke with another one playing.

It was a guy that time and so I got up and turned everything off.

 

I wish when the video finished it would just be quiet instead of running a new one from someone different.

 

Hang in there everyone.

 

[[Tr...]]

Hi nightengale,

 

Hopefully all went well with your shot. I hope it makes the pain go away.

5 hours of sleep isn't too bad.

Any news about physical therapy at home?

 

The outcome of my EMG test was I have polyneuropathy. I hope the antidepressant I 'm on can ease the pain. Walking has become really painful,  like walking on burning coals.

So I started to go for a bike ride most days. Makes for a nice change as well...I' m doing an online course with my therapist to try and live with chronic pain. It's called ACT: acceptance and commitment therapy.  Seeing some small results, but still a long way to go.

 

Wishing us all good nights and better days.

 

Stay strong.

[[ni...]]

I slept between 5 and 6 hours last night. Almost 3 hours the first time and perhaps 2.5 the second time. This is rare, as I typically sleep for one hour and wake up for for three or more hours and back to sleep for another hour or two.

My knee is not painful, but last night I did feel a slight wave of pain. The muscle spasms are so far gone, as is the RLS. My body stiffness is still there.  The shot definitely helped. I wonder if the body stiffness is the stress of dealing with my husband and Alzheimer's,  I need to try to relax more about everything. 

 

I've still not called the therapy place about in-home PT. Not sure why I am procrastinating about this, but I am. 

 

 

TS, the painful walking sounds awful. I can't imagine the feeling of burning coals. The bike ride sounds quite nice. The online course for dealing with chronic pain is good. I'm glad you are seeing some small results.  The mind is a powerful thing, so give it a chance to work for you.

 

NG

[[Tr...]]

Hi,

 

Hope you're all getting some better sleep.

Not much going on here btw.

 

My sleep is around 6 to 6,5 hours most nights.

Last week I had a night of 7 hours sleep!  Wow. And even managed to go back to sleep after that. Amazing experience.

Having been on Paroxetine for 6 weeks now, I can truly say, I 'm feeling so much better mentally. The old "me" is back. Health anxiety has gone for more than 95%. Pain in feet and muscles is still there, but changing. So hoping for the best.

Really enjoying my bike rides.

I started to taper again as well. So far, so good.

 

Nightengale,

 

How are you? Are your physical issues getting a little better? I sure hope so. Did you manage to find a PT that does home visits?

How's your sleep at the moment?

 

Wishing us all a nice day.

 

Trochsetter.  X

 

[[ni...]]

Two days ago I tried CBD cream and water based oil for my knee and reacted poorly to that. The sales person said it should help me with sleep, but it only made things worse. Last night I could barely walk and did not sleep at all.

 

I should learn..

 

TS, glad you are sleeping so much better and feeling better, too! That post made me smile.

NG

 

[[bo...]]

Do you find that your sleep is almost like thinking very light , could it be bc Im still on an ssri ... this is also why I took the klonopin  to be able to take it bc it was to stimulating.... so I wonder is if  now Im feeling the side effects  of it... my sleep is really light, waking up and ruminating  also not deep

maybe get 4-6hrs if I'm lucky

[[ni...]]

Hi bonty, not sure if that comment was for me, but I'll respond anyway.

I suppose I have some very light brief sleep.  My mind tends to race at night or at least the thinking won't shut down.

Clonazepam was only used for sleep with me, so never noticed any stimulation. 

Four to six hours is not bad. I'd take that.

 

I know I need to just accept what little sleep I get, but when I have so many other things going on, such as with my knee and lack of energy, it is difficult to put needing more sleep out of my mind. 

NG

[[Tr...]]

Hi,

 

My sleep is still some 6 to 7 hours per night. Which is great. Hope it stays this way.

 

I' ve had a couple of better weeks with the occasional really good day. Very grateful for that. Unfortunately, Monday things took a turn for the worse again: lots of symptoms, that had been much less or even gone, are back. Ughh. Must be another wave. I hope it isn't going to be too long, before I start to feel better again.

 

Nightengale,  How have you been doing these last days, sleep, knee and stiffness wise? I hope you feel better.

 

Stay strong!

[[ni...]]

Hi TS, I am happy your sleep is doing so well. I hope it stays that way, also!

 

The two weeks of occasional good days sounds like such a plus.  Hopefully the good days return for you, which they should.

 

Last night I slept around four hours, so I am feeling mighty fine today, at least mentally.

The stiffness is still there but the pain is so much better, which I am happy for. 

I still have not tackled the physical therapy issue, but who knows, I might do it today or not.

 

Staying strong is always a great option!

You do the same.

 

NG

[[...]]

Hey friends, been a while since I was here. Nothing has changed. Still waking up at 4am every night regardless of degree of exhaustion. Not sure what to do. Sleep apnea machine did nothing, cortisol supplements did nothing. Maybe a sleep doctor who specializes in sleep maintenance insomnia? Do those even exist? Probably waste of time. I know it’s the benzos and I hate myself every day for taking them a second time. I’m in shock daily.

 

Hope you are sleeping better.

[[Tr...]]

Hi DBM,

 

Sorry to read you still have sleeping issues.  Horrible.

Despite all the things you tried, still no improvement.

Don't hate yourself, hate those effing benzos.

I hope you may soon see better sleep return, you so deserve! 

 

 

[[Tr...]]

Hello nightengale,

 

Glad you slept four hours. A better sleep makes so much difference as to how we start the next day.

I hope those four hours will soon be followed by five, six and seven hours!

Glad to read the pain is so much better.

 

Wishing a nice day. 

 

[[ni...]]

My sleep is somewhat better. At least I am headed in the right direction.

Last night it was 4 hours or so. 

When I went to sleep at one point, I had a dream of sitting on a bench with Prince Charles while Camilla hung around. LOL

I've never cared much for PC or Camilla. Diana was such a breath of fresh air. 

 

TS, I do believe I will one day sleep like I used to.  Perhaps my age will keep me from getting 8 or more hours, which is okay.

My knee is still much improved which I am quite happy about.

The body stiffness is still with me.  Hopefully that resolves itself soon.

NG

 

 

[[bo...]]

Hey friends, been a while since I was here. Nothing has changed. Still waking up at 4am every night regardless of degree of exhaustion. Not sure what to do. Sleep apnea machine did nothing, cortisol supplements did nothing. Maybe a sleep doctor who specializes in sleep maintenance insomnia? Do those even exist? Probably waste of time. I know it’s the benzos and I hate myself every day for taking them a second time. I’m in shock daily.

 

Hope you are sleeping better.

I'm also waking up around 4am take an antihistamine maybe get another 2-3 hrs more,  buT Im still waking up exhausted , I also have dreams and palpitations... I also took benzo for a 2nd time....  and I hate the little support I have  very lonely...I have to focus on a day to day basis...

[[...]]

7 hours last night, my friends. Thought I’d share the good news. I took a combination of .3 mg melatonin, cortisol manager, and 1 Advil.

[[ni...]]

DBM, wow, that is amazing news!! I am so jealous! ha

Well, there is hope for us all.

Thanks for sharing!

 

DBM what is cortisol manager?