hello

[Amanda_George]

Good luck with getting the results today, Joe!  I'll keep you in my thoughts all day!

[milkyjoe]

hi
   had my results for thyroid. its borderline so has to be tested every 3 months. no treatment for it.

my mood has lifted considerably over last few days and had 3 good days sleeping. so overall im really pleased with my progress

just taking it day by day

[Amanda_George]

I hope you don't have problems with your thyroid, Joe!  Let us know when you have your blood test in 3 months time and I'll keep you in my thoughts for the result you want!

I'm glad you're feeling more positive and sleeping better now!  Sometimes it's hard to take it a second at a time so cling onto the positivity for as long as you can!   

[milkyjoe]

hi
   well after nearly a week of great sleep last night i didnt drop off and got really anxious. my skin was on fire. wth!! i cant believe i have gone backwards absolutely gutted.

[Amanda_George]

You haven't gone backwards, Joe, it's just a bump in the road of your life is all!  Have you tried reading a magasine or something while you're in bed to help your brain to shut off the activity of the day and get ready for sleeping?  That's what I do most nights!   

[stewart]

Hi Joe, welcome to the forums,
we are a nice friendly bunch and do not judge people,
there well always be someone who can offer tips or advice on many things

[milkyjoe]

Thanks Stewart :-) . Yeah Amanda I'm gonna try reading tonight. Got cbt on Tuesday. Looking forward to my first session

[Amanda_George]

I've got a huge pile of old magasines in our spare room that I'm slowly working through when I can't sleep... about half way down the pile so far!  lol  Good luck with the reading tonight... what sort of things do you read?  It's prolly better to read things that lets your brain shut down so no horror or puzzles or anything!     Might be wise to find something you enjoy then subscribe to it so that you know there is always something to read whenever you can't sleep without leaving the bedroom.  I'm working backwards and I'm up to 2013 now from the end of last year   

If you don't want to subscribe to magasines then maybe invest in a Kindle?  It's an expensive thing to get but you can get books and stuff for as little as 99p without leaving the house!  Amazon used to do free books on their site too, but don't know if they still do or not... you can easily find out if that interests you though?   

[milkyjoe]

Hi. Yeah I had a kindle but it packed up.my dad reads a lot so gonna get some books off him. I really hate not sleeping just feels so foreign to me when I cant do it

[Amanda_George]

Understandably!  Is it your anxiety that keeps you awake or your brain not turning off or something else?  I'm just wondering if you'd tried getting up and having a hot, relaxing drink (not coffee  ) and listening to some relaxing music until you feel sleepy again and repeat.  I haven't tried that because I keep forgetting!

[milkyjoe]

yeah its my anxiety that keeps me awake. i get into bed when im tired and then im not tired grrrr. and i start panicking that im not gonna sleep and end up watching pointless on challenge tv all night lol. i get  hypnic jerks when im anxious so i drop off only to twitch and wake straight back up.

[Amanda_George]

I haven't tried this so don't know if it works, but it's worth a try... turn your computer off a couple of hours before bed so that the TV is your only entertainment then head to bed with the intention of just listening to the music and reading a magasine.  If you fall asleep then that's good, but the intention is to slow down your brain and try to ease your anxiety.

Don't give up if it doesn't work straight away... give it at least a week before you give up but don't worry if you don't sleep, just try to find a way to reduce your anxiety without pressurising yourself to sleep... your body will force you to sleep when it's too tired, so just concentrate on easing your anxiety for a while and go to bed to rest and relax, but not necessarily sleeping.

If you meditate, try that and if you don't do it, maybe learn how to do the basics?  Maybe try yoga too?

Just a few thoughts for you, Joe   

[milkyjoe]

yeah my dad keeps saying to me not to worry if u dont sleep u will eventually catch up. but i just hate being a zombie the next day.

[SteveW]

If you are going to try Meditation there is a site that has many many guided meditations for free download . Some prefer this to Mindfulness of the Breath. I think it is easier.

     http://www.freemindfulness.org/download

If you go to the links page there are some general files on other sites, not just meditation.

[milkyjoe]

thanks a lot steve. will have a look