i am so tierd

[susie]

anxiety is with me every day witch is hard to deal with apart from taking my dog for a walk every morning i cant go out alone its been like this for many years .now im awake every night somtimes 3 this morning it was 4 and i cant get back to sleep i wake up very anxious .ive seen my gp but she said its anntidepresants or nothing i was on seroxat for 14 years but started to self harm it nearly cost me my life i had to have brain surgry for an abbcess on my brain .i take nytol one a night every night or temazapam now and again but my anxiety want stop .the support for mh here is very poor does anyone have any advice please

[NoraB]

Hi Susie,

It's crap when you can't sleep so I can really sympathise with you here.

I'm in the process of trying different things in order to get some sleep in. I've found that diet definitely influences my anxiety levels during the night. I try and make sure I don't eat refined sugar or have caffeine and I have a piece of toast about an hour before I go to bed. This stops my blood sugar spiking in the early hours. I've also bought myself a pair of wireless headphones and I'm going to try some white noise to distract my mind when I wake up with the thoughts racing. It's all trial and error but I am desperate for a good night's sleep.

I'm in the middle of a relapse at the moment but I do know that a few weeks ago, I'd started to improve and the only thing that was different was that I'd been practicing mindfulness. So I need to start doing that again. Last night I had a bath and used my autistic son's light show. I turned off the light and watched the colours change. For a few minutes I forgot my symptoms. Small steps...

Your thoughts throughout the day will pay you a visit in the early hours so be mindful of them. Distract yourself with some easy view TV. No drama or bad news. Your brain needs some happy. If you like to read, read a humourous or uplifting book.

There is plenty that you can do but it all requires effort and I know that some days, especially when sleep deprived, we just don't feel we can do it and recovery seems impossible but pushing ourselves on our worst days is the key to recovery in my opinion.

Hope this helps you in some way lovely.

[susie]

hi norab thank you for your reply ,yes its hard isnt it i dont stay in bed if im awake i get up make some coffee and go on the computer .i bought a book cbt for dummies ,im also doing a life book where i put all the good and bad things in my life ,i also listen to classical music aswell .this morning me and my dog went for a loverly walk along the beach its so peacefull .im diabetic so at night i just have a snack to stop my sugars from dropping .can i ask you where i can get some imfo on mindfullness please ,again thank you for your help

[NoraB]

hi norab thank you for your reply ,yes its hard isnt it i dont stay in bed if im awake i get up make some coffee and go on the computer.

Is that decaf coffee or regular? The reason I'm mentioning it is that caffeine can have a big impact on anxiety and sleep. Decaffeinated also has it's issues because of the chemical process used in removing the caffeine from the tea/coffee.

i bought a book cbt for dummies ,im also doing a life book where i put all the good and bad things in my life ,i also listen to classical music aswell .this morning me and my dog went for a loverly walk along the beach its so peacefull .im diabetic so at night i just have a snack to stop my sugars from droppin

The life book sounds good. I keep a little journal myself but I focus on three things every day that make me happy. Sometimes I have to dig deep but I can usually come up with three. On my bad days, I look through the book and remind myself that I can feel happy. I find it helps.

I have Classic FM on all the time, especially love Saturday mornings. Have a bit of a thing for Titchmarsh but we'll leave that one there ha ha

.can i ask you where i can get some imfo on mindfullness please ,again thank you for your help

Mindfulness is the psychological process of bringing one's attention to the internal and external experiences occurring in the present moment,[1][2][3] which can be developed through the practice of meditation and other training.

Swiped from Wiki but that's it basically. It's about bringing your attention into the present moment.

The best book I have is Mindfulness: A practical guide to finding peace in a frantic world by Mark Williams and Danny Penman - it's about £6 on Kindle or £10.49 on Amazon.

Also, there are mindfulness courses available. I had the option to do one after my CBT finished but I can't cope with groups (due to other issues) but if you are able to attend one, it might be good for you?

[MyNameIsTerry]

Susie,

Have a look at the link in my signature. I put together some resources for Mindfulness in there and they are all downloads. The book Nora recommends is the one I have, professor Williams also has a website for it which is in that link and be provides the downloads from the book on there.

Nora, there are a couple on there which are not in the book too.

[NoraB]

Nora, there are a couple on there which are not in the book too.

Brilliant! Thanks Terry!

[susie]

thank you both ,norab i have full caff coffee just 2 cups a day,im going to get me that book it sounds good and give mindfullness a go .i will also have a look at the link on your signature terry thank you