sleep/wake cycle | ADHD Information
Hey guys,the weird dreams are the same. I have no trouble sleeping, so I don't know why I get such a vivid imagination while I'm asleep. If I could have just one night w/o some bizarre dream...
Also, insomnia hasn't been a problem since I reduced my sleeping time from 12-13 hours to 7-8 hours. Now, waking up is becoming the main problem again, and I don't really know what to do about it...any suggestions?I don't know whether this is ADD or not, but I can't sleep, sometimes I'll go to bed at 10 and fall asleep b/w 1-2 AM. If I don't have to get up, I will stay in bad until about 11AM-1PM, depending on how late I fell asleep the night before. Once I'm asleep, I'm out like a light for 10-12 straight hours. But practically every night, I have strange dreams; to give you an idea, in one of my dreams several years back, I was walking on the bridge with my dad, he told me to look out at the river, and I fell off the bridge.
In another dream I was playing major league baseball with this woman who is a local news broadcaster on TV here (we were the only girls on a men's team). In real life she is a BoSox fan, and I don't care much for baseball. In my dream we were playing with the Yankees in an oversized batting cage (against the BSox), in the World Series.
Having dreams like this every night actually gets kind of scary, especially since I have no idea where they're coming from. Sometimes when I can't wake up early it's because I'm in the middle of one of these dreams and I feel really graugy.
Many people here mention melatonin; I don't know if it would help me, but I might ask my doc about it when I see him in a few weeks. The thing with melatonin, though, is I don't know if it would help me feel more refreshed in the morning, so I can wake up, or actually make the problem worse. So far the waking up part has been considerably easier since I'm not as depressed about school and work overload, and because I take concerta to help with that. But I'd still like to sleep without laying in bed for 5 hours beforehand, with my thoughts racing about anything at all. And these really out-there dreams can get pretty annoying every single night. So I think the waking up issue has been resolving very well, but if I don't take the med to help me out I'd probably be screwed. People can't believe when I tell them I need at least ten hours of sleep a night, and usually sleep 11-12 hours.
Someone mentioned in another thread that wellbutrin has helped them wake up in the morning. I take effexor right now but my doc has been considering putting me on wellbutrin since I started going to him in february. I think that would have a slight advantage over a stim for helping me wake up because I won't have to actually wake up to take it and then wait for it to start working.
one last thing--"strange dreams" is listed as a side effect of effexor, but I've had strange dreams before I ever started on effexor, and at a time when I was off of meds completely for several months (this was 3 years ago). So I've almost completely ruled that out as the culprit.
Does this sound ADD-related at all? Anyone with suggestions or similar experiences?
thanks for reading yet another of my long posts
I use Melatonin for Jet lag frequently and it does not make you groggy in the morning like sleep meds. Melatonin is natural, something your body produces anyway and in small doses (1-2mgs max)helps tremendously with sleep issues. I'm a "wild dreamer".
There's another option you could consider.
Learn from your dreams. Strong dreamers are hard to come by
I try to analyze my own dreams and see how they could possibly connect to real life, but I can never make much sense out of them. It would be fine if it was occasional, but every night?
I already am graugy in the morning so I thought maybe melatonin would exacerbate that and I don't want to take any chances until I have a better idea of how it will affect me. Funny, I never mentioned to my doc that I can't fall asleep, only that I couldn't wake up. But going to sleep is now the bigger issue so I have to mention that to him. He didn't know at the time I asked about melatonin, so he asked me why I would want a heavy-duty "tranquilizer" if I can't wake up in the AM as it is? That's why I'm a little skeptical about it now.Melatonin is not a heavy duty tranquilizer. I take it, and if I wake up during the night( kids) I am fine, and I generally go right back to sleep. i wake up alert and happy.
I am the one taking Wellbutrin who now has an easier time in the morning. Unmedicated, I am somewhat like you, requiring 9-10 hours of sleep/night. However, falling asleep is not an issue for me. Getting up is. Wellbutrin has made a HUGE difference in that. I can get 7 hours of sleep and function just fine. I don't get sleepy during the day while I am driving like I used to. My P-Doc recommended Wellbutrin because he thought I could use the dopamine boost. He thought I slept too much (which is true). I now feel awake during the day which is GREAT! It is much easier to get my butt moving in the morning too.
And it is somewhat typical of ADD to be up very late and sleep in - having a rough time getting up when we do.
Dreams could be an effect from one of the meds you are taking, or not. My husband had some vivid dreams while going on Strattera, but doesn't anymore. I dunno whether that is typical of ADD. I know I wake up exhausted when I have vivid dreams....
My child took melatonin before he started guanfacine. It helped him fall asleep, but it did not affect his energy level in the morning. I say it's worth a shot!Now that I look back at what a hard time I was having waking up, I say I can't blame myself! To drag myself somewhere I really didn't want to be, where I felt socially isolated, couldn't stand doing schoolwork for 6 hours because I couldn't focus on anything, and then came home and would immediately do my work, rushing to finish so I'd be done early enough to get at least 10 hours of sleep, like by 9-10 PM..and then not finishing until 11PM and not falling asleep until midnight only to wake up and do it all over again...no wonder I had no motivation. I just wanted it all to end, which is why I just couldn't do it anymore and stopped altogether. Who would want to wake up to a day like that, every day, and then listen to everyone telling me how smart I am and how great I'm doing, and how there's nothing even wrong with me and it's all in my head...Anyway, I don't get a lot of work now in summer school and the meds help wake me up, plus now I have a new school to look forward to in september (hopefully). that's why now, I'm more concerned about the dreaming and the falling asleep whereas before waking up was my main priority. This is what I meant when I always told my parents that my depression is "environmental", rather than "biological".
And here's a perfect example of the risks of untreated ADHD.
soberxinsanity39270.4459953704Sounds like your Dr. doesn't know what Melatonin is! It's a Natural Supplement found in Health Food Stores/Drug Stores in the Vitamin Section. I personally have to take 5mgs (Extra Strength) Melatonin and if I'm really stressed, like right now.. it doesn't seem to help as much as when I'm at my normal stress level
(I'm always stressed so that's why I said that). Anyway.. I've seen it come in 1mg, 3mg, and 5mg strength. 3 and 5 are the most common around my area.. but I get the 1mg from GNC for my daughter, and she takes 2 of them when she's taking her Ritalin during the school year. BTW: I have a hard time waking up no matter what medicated or not.. always been that way. Normally I also have a hard time falling asleep too. It had been great until the past week, falling asleep easy and staying asleep.. but Last week and up until the 27th I'm under some serious deadline pressure workwise so I'm stressing more which causes the insomnia effect again.