There are so many things I want to do and never enough time to do them in. There are books to read, movies to watch, and blogs to post to. There are all those unfinished craft projects that I start and, well, never finish. There are all sorts of topics that I want to research and learn about (currently I'm brushing up on my French while I commute). Plus, there are tons of sources of information for my profession, which I just don't get around to looking into due to lack of time.
My body has long encouraged me to figure out how to get by on less sleep. I have been an insomniac of sorts most of my adult life. My chronic back pain has just exacerbated my inability to fall asleep and stay asleep. And, over the last three years, I have been flirting with a new enabler: night sweats.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with this phenomenon, check out Wikipedia's entry on hot flashes. While I rarely have an episode during the day, the last week has been a virtual overnight carnival of perspiration and lack of sleep.
Amusingly enough, one of the pharmaceuticals that I have taken for years to help with my general insomnia, Neurontin is sometimes prescribed to assist with hot flashes. I think I've grown somewhat resistant to the influence of Neurontin, since I've been taking it for about three years now. I have taken it before bed every night in the last week, and have been woken around 3 a.m. thrashing around in soaked covers.
When I wake, I use the bathroom, drink some water, and try to get back to sleep. Usually, I get another 30-45 minutes worth of sleep before I wake up again. Not very restful, folks.
So, I pine for an existence where I can fully function on four to five hours of sleep. That really would be convenient and optimum for me.
Starbucks helps in the morning, somewhat. A new variable comes into play, however. If I stop at the store closer to my house, I will definitely need a rest room before I get to work. However, I am less likely to nod off before I actually make it too work.
Menopause is tough. Next up, lets tackle parenting a teenager while getting little sleep due to massive hormone fluctuations, and actual mood swings also due to said fluctuations. (Maybe Henry VIII had it right ... kill the women off relatively young, after they've lost the majority of their appeal and before they become a royal pain in the ass.)
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3 comments:
Wow, you sound miserable. Wish I could offer something other than sympathy. Perhaps violence is the answer. ;-) Get a punching bag an exhaust yourself to such a degree that you couldn't possibly wake up.
OOOHHH night sweats! Me too. Nothing like waking up in the middle of the night soaked to the skin. I was just tested to see if I'm menopausal. The answer came back NO, not yet. This is just a precursor to the real thing. Nice, huh!
I'm feeling your pain! Hot flashes are no fun, I'm loosing lots of sleep because of them also. It's hell being a woman sometimes.
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