Severe Sleeping Problems...Advice?

[OceanicWitch]

Hey ya'll!!

Okay so I've seen two doctors and both of them couldn't help. I thought it was I wasn't getting enough sleep at night, and I would feel dozy in class or during the day, even while driving. And last febraury it got really bad when I fell asleep at the wheel of my car, and crashed into two parked vechiles, no one else was hurt.

And since then the sleeping was getting worse and worse, Ive cut all caffinee, sugar from my diet, Ive even tried running before sleep, and even tried going to sleep and waking up the same time each day. But now, I am getting really bad headaches as I wake up from whenever I sleep, and I am running out of opitions.

I will fall asleep at 10 or 11pm and wake up an hour later totally wide awake, and this will repeat sometimes 3 to even as much as 6 times a night. I have even bought a new bed, nothing has changed. And during the day is when I actually sleep well, between the hours of 10 am to 2pm, and its always between these hours, I have uncontrolable sleeping spells. These were so strong, I had to drop out of my fall classes because I was sleeping through the entire class, and embrassing not only me, but the professor as well.

And this is becoming rediculous.

Both doctors I have seen have said, it was a phase (and that was a year ago) and they are still refusing me furthur medical action or advice (thank you to my HMO program, from my work).

So I was wondering if anyone else has had these problems and what they did to get back to a healthy sleeping cycle. thanks ya'll!!!

 

[bullwing413]

Crashing into cars from not getting enough restful sleep is not normal. You need to find a certified sleep clinic in your area, usually the academic medical centers have them. Make an appointment wih a board certified sleep specialist. You can have sleep apnea, or a host of other sleep disorders. You're not crazy, you need a good evaluation. I can't believe these doctors said it was a phase! Let your HMO know that you've crash your car and if anything happens because of a undiagnosed sleep disorder you will hold them completely responsible. What nonsense! Suppose you hurt someone or yourself?

 

[Puzuzzu]

I'm no doctor, but did you try sleeping pills?

 

[Yngbldhwk]

I second the advice about seeing a sleep specialist and the possibility of your having apnea. An overnight sleep study (usually done in a hospital-type setting) could confirm this. Many sleep specialists are also neurologists and they could determine whether you have narcolepsy (a sleep disorder). Uncontrollable sleepiness is a symptom.

You may have to try and petition your insurance to let you go around your primary care doctor(s) or convince the docs themselves to let you see a specialist. Bring up the incident about falling asleep at the wheel and the car accident, if they're not already aware of this. If that doesn't convince them, probably nothing will.

 

[Lestat62]

I agree that you may have sleep apnea. Get your doctor to prescribe the sleep study. Your insurance should cover almost all of it. If you are diagnosed with sleep apnea you will have to go back for a second sleep study where they monitor you the same way as the first study but this time with a breathing machine called a CPAP or VPAP. These stand for Constant Positive Air Pressure and Variable Positive Air Pressure. It takes some time to get used to wearing a mask but the end result is restful sleep and no dozing off during the day.

If you have any question, feel free to ask.

 

[KaraBulut]

You need to have a sleep study. An internist or neurologist can order one for you.

Don't be surprised if they find that you have sleep apnea.

 

[racer2438]

My b/f has the same problem, doc said he had insomnia, they gave him Ambien. But he thought it was two long lasting so he uses Tylenol PM and it works great form him..

To much stress,is a big culprit..

 

[cityboy-stl]

I have exactly the same thing caused by my food allergy to soy. It totally screws up my sleep cycle and I constantly wake up and feel awful during the day. I had any number of stupid doctors tell me it was all in my head. At times I felt so mentally fatigued I couldn't function but at the same time I felt physically torn apart like I'd taken 10 valiums with 10 cups of coffee (that's just an example, I've never actually done that). If I stay on a strict diet I never have any problems.

The theory goes that you unknowingly become addicted to the foods you're allergic to and you go through a cycle of consumption and withdrawal that causes all the problems. I'm not saying that is your problem, it was mine and it sounds similar. Is there any particular food you always crave and that makes you feel better? That might be a good place to start.

Like I said, it's just my experience.

 

[OceanicWitch]

I have been looking around for sleep studies, there is one at UCLA i am highly considering. they're doing an active sleep study until the end of next year.

and yes I have tried sleeping pills and other things, not tylenol pm, which I will give a try, but I have tried Benadryl and other generic forms of it...and it helps, but it doesn't let me sleep through the whole night.

thanks for the advice ya'll, if anyone has anymore to share please let me know thanks!!!

 

[bullwing413]

Tylenol PM and other OTC remedies are made with anti-histamines which rely on their side-effect of drowsiness to put you to sleep. They may be OK for occassional use but not good for regular usage and they will make almost any sleep disorder like apnea or narcolepsy worse. Besides with Tylenol PM you're also getting a dose of acetominophen which you don't need unless you're in pain.

Don't confuse a "Sleep Study" which is a routine test done everywhere with sleep studies that are experiments in sleeping behaviors. You don't need to go to UCLA. I recommended academic centers because they have the best sleep specialists --almost all hospitals have sleep labs where you can get a routine sleep study also called a polysomnogram.