For years I have had trouble falling and staying asleep or wakening and unable to fall back asleep. I have a particularly stressful job and I would change my circumstance if I could afford to do so, but that's not happening anytime soon. I am a coffee drinker and though I have quit and resumed many times, I never found that avoiding caffeine helped my issue. I also have mild depression and these days have had success in minimizing it. I take OTC antihistamine to help me fall asleep, and that works 80% of the time, but there are times where nothing seems to help. I have tried everything from prescriptions to melatonin supplements. Even recently I had a pulled muscle where the hydro-codeine painkiller could not even help me fall asleep. When I awake in the night I have mentioned jokingly to coworkers that the "committee" called a meeting to discuss all things worrisome. Published: September 10 ::

For the past month I have had trouble falling asleep. There is a lot going on in my life and so I think it's because of stress. I stay up until 11am-12pm in the days and only manage to sleep for 2 hours in the days. I realize also that my back aches so badly and no matter how much I sleep my back is never rested. I am unable to focus properly and I’m usually zoned out when someone is talking to me. Also I think I have difficulty remembering sometimes. I feel extremely weak and worried about my health. Insomnia is a very serious illness and I wish more people were aware of it. Published: March 12 ::

I have been having trouble sleeping since this past summer. I can stay awake until 7 or 10 in the morning. I can stay up all night. I try really hard to fall asleep, but it just doesn’t work. I take sleep meds, which sort of work, but I want to stop taking them and just sleep like I used to. Insomnia is the worst. I feel like I’m being tortured by this condition. Published: February 24 ::

Firstly, I would like to say that if taking 4-6 deep breaths is all you need to get off to sleep, then you do NOT have insomnia!!! I have tried everything from prescription sleeping tablets to cannabis. The doctors in the UK are absolutely rubbish at dealing with insomniac patients. Mostly they sprout patronizing sleep hygiene garbage. Do you really think I haven't tried all that years ago? I am fairly certain that my problem is psychological and stress/anxiety related, but after therapy, yoga and a variety of healthy and appropriate life style changes I am still in the throes of insomnia. I have had this for six years and counting. I am now pregnant, so I avoid using cannabis, which is the only thing that has had a measure of success for me. Unlike legal prescription drugs, it enables me to fall asleep within a reasonable amount of time (about half an hour) and allows for a good night’s sleep without the horrible side effects that I have suffered from prescription drugs!!! Let's not forget that sleeping tablets are less effective each time you use them so the dosages have to be increased. Sleeping pills like leave you feeling drugged the next day like there's a heavy fog smothering the brain and not to mention the awful taste in the mouth that no amount of brushing or otherwise will remove. I can categorically state that sleeping tablets do not enable a refreshing sleep and the following day is always hard work. Basically they don't work! I would prefer not to resort to illegal activities to be able to sleep, but anyone who has genuinely experienced sleep deprivation will understand. Published: February 08 ::

I was a heavy prescription user for quite a long time. When I started to build a tolerance and it took more and more meds to help me sleep, I decided it was time to tackle the problem head on. I weaned myself off of the meds over a period of about 2 months and had some really long nights. I then started to use a natural sleep aid and found that after I got the meds out of my system, the natural sleep aid worked very well for getting me to sleep. I'm still working on the staying asleep part, but am confident that it will work. Published: January 26 ::

A small suggestion: Sometimes it helps to relax the body by taking 4-6 deep breaths. Exhale slowly while trying to fall asleep - sometimes this does wonders. Published: January 04 ::

Over the past 20 to 25 years I have suffered from chronic insomnia of which gradually gets worse as time goes on. For the past three and a half years I have been unable to work due to lack of energy, depression and anxiety. I have seen many people over the years and have tried the majority of the prescribed drugs available. The specialist that I am now seeing has given up on the tablets as they do not work for me. Published: December 17 ::