Problems sleeping through the night

Sprinkle16 · June 2016

Ughh!!! It seems I can't sleep through the night anymore. >sigh< I'm up between 2-3am and stay up the rest of the day.

Any suggestions or fellow sleepless pregos out here? 22/23 weeks

UponAStar16 · June 2016

I guess it depends on the reason why you can't sleep but, I find it helpful as soon as I get comfortable before letting my mind wander or think about the fact that I can't sleep, to do some really basic self-hypnosis...there are probably videos or scripts that describe it better but like, counting breaths on my fingers and with each breath imagining myself sinking deeper and deeper into sleep

mothernorth · June 2016

I find it incredibly hard to fall asleep because I just can not get comfortable and my legs won't let me. Once I do, I eventually wake up having to pee urgently, usually around 2 or 3. After I go, I end up laying in bed for what seems like an eternity until I fall asleep again. Then the wicked alarm clock goes off at 6:15. It must have been 5am or later before I fell back asleep, and here I am now. I think I may try the hypnosis advice above tonight. There is nothing I can do about comfort, I just need a new mattress badly.

Tara0604 · June 2016

i bought a snoogle pillow and that seems to be helping me quite a bit. I got it at bed bath and beyond but i have seen it in babies r us. it has alleviated some of the leg, hip and back pain i was having.

ignoscemihi · June 2016

This may be TMI, but the one thing that really helps me when I either can't fall asleep initially or if I wake up early and can't get back to sleep is an orgasm. I'm not sure if it just takes my mind off my sleeplessness or restless legs or if it's the endorphins, but it really does help.

Edited for grammar.

mothernorth · June 2016

@ignoscemihi Same, pretty sure it's all the endorphins... Helps with Migraines too if anybody cares to know.

AshleyGemini24 · June 2016

My trouble is not being able to stay asleep. Then once i wake up for whatever reason, i have a hard time going back to sleep.

CopperBoom86 · June 2016

Same as @ignoscemihi. I don't have a ton of trouble sleeping, but when I do, an orgasm usually helps.

ETA- This could've easily been posted in the weekly symptoms thread. Read the rules; follow them. It keeps the board free of clutter.

mrskratt · June 2016

I can't sleep thru the night either

I fight with my snoogle, I tried a dozen pillows and my dreams are so vivid and out of control.

kathleenkat · June 2016

Seconded the snoogle.

Also I have an adjustable bed frame, feet and back go up just like a recliner, so I can still sleep on my back if I find that more comfortable.

Also, as far as being randomly wide awake, talk to your doctor about melatonin... it gets me a solid 8 hours easy, although I haven't taken it while pregnant so I'm not sure if it would keep you sleeping through the pee breaks.

queen_frostine · June 2016

I take a small amount of melatonin (usually 0.75mg) to fall asleep. This was okayed by my doctor. I weaned myself down from 5mg, but can't get any further down without sleep problems.

Even so, I still had a similar problem to you for a while, although at least I usually made it until 4 or 5am! The doctor said unisom was safe, so I took it, and it helped, but when I did wake up on schedule I felt more exhausted than usual, so I stopped.

It may not be true in your case, but I sometimes find I have more trouble sleeping if I'm not doing enough or something strenuous enough in the day to actually get me tired. I sleep more soundly now that I'm off vacation. You may want to try exercise or something to help wear your body out more.

Something else that helps me relax when I'm freaking out about not getting sleep is to concentrate on resting. Like, even if I'm not asleep, I'm still getting some rest out of laying down quietly.

klv · June 2016

Same here! I either can't fall asleep until 1-2am or I fall asleep at a reasonable time but then I'm wide awake at 3am. It's awful!

I teach high school, so I am thankfully on summer break. But I made a deal with my 5yo. My husband takes her to preschool in the morning and he wakes up at 8:00. I told my girly if she lets me sleep until 8, then I will style her hair while DH is showering. She is super girly and LOVES looking fabulous so it has worked great!

PrimRoseMama · June 2016

Welcome to Parenthood!

mothernorth · June 2016

If it makes anybody feel any better, this is only temporary. And even when the wee babes are born, the sleepless nights are only temporary as well. The Slumber Lords shall once again smile down upon you, in due time.

vanessa11411 · June 2016

Sleeping has been a thing of the past for a while now. It's either crazy dreams, leg cramps, having to pee, or noises that wake me up. I'm constantly tossing and turning. I have a pregnancy pillow and I usually kick it to the floor half way through the night. I'm also still taking unisom every night and use a sound machine but I think I'm just going to have to deal with not getting a lot of sleep. Sleep will return to me eventually

Schell2013 · June 2016

It is gonna get much worse before it gets better. Then you'll have the joy of a newborn who keeps you up all night!

F47 · June 2016

I don't have any real tips. But, I will say that with my last pregnancy, sleep was almost completely out the window in the last 6-8 weeks of pregnancy. I would be up every hour. Sometimes because I had to pee, sometimes because I was hungry (seriously, I would make a middle of the night bowl of cereal), but mostly because I was SO uncomfortable. I would switch back and forth between my bed, and a recliner in the guest room. Both would be temporarily comfortable. I'd take a "nap," then get up and move.

I think it was worse than when I had a newborn. Because, at least when I was up then I wasn't in pain and I had a cute little baby to look at while he fed.

UponAStar16 · June 2016

Oh boy @F47....third trimester sleeplessness sounds like an even bigger reason convincing me to go ahead and buy a luxurious glider ASAP

and maybe to move a mini-fridge into the bedroom too

cd92007 · June 2016

Another sleepless OCT16 mom here... but honestly, as a 2nd time mom, I can tell you that I think sleeplessness during pregnancy is nature's way of getting you ready for having a newborn. You're pretty much used to waking every couple hours (especially to pee, if you're like me).. so it's not such a shock to your body when baby gets here!

ibabyloveb87 · June 2016

@F47 @UponAStar16 A friend of mine who had her baby in May said she slept in a recliner for almost the entire third trimester. It was the only way she could get comfortable. I haven't told my husband that I might be taking over his chair yet!

kathleenkat · June 2016

I had been having trouble sleeping to the point it was impacting my function at work, so my doctor recommended Unisom as a safe sleeping aid. Maybe it will help some of you...

krzyriver · June 2016

@ibabyloveb87 Someone recommended a recliner to me too. Unfortunately I can't fit one in my house, so I might be sleeping at my mom's for my whole third trimester. I am SO uncomfortable, I need to find a way to sleep!

von1976 · June 2016

I was sleeping great until baby decided to start using my uterus as a punching bag at 3am. I hardly slept at all last night!

Schell2013 · June 2016

I sleep good usually. But the last two nights I've been having trouble falling asleep and if I wake up to go pee my mind starts racing and it's hard to fall back asleep. Thankfully my girls were game to watch cartoons in my bed while I had a one eye closed nap after they woke up. I'm just dragging my ass every morning. It sucks.

Divallyn · June 2016

I have heard that 90% of pregnant women wake multiple times a night or suffer some degree of insomnia. I wake two or three times a night but I am grateful as at least I can go right back to sleep (compared to when the baby Is born).

Blonde1817 · June 2016

I struggle with waking up a lot (usually needing to go to the bathroom) and sometimes it's easy to fall back asleep, sometimes it's not. Usually when I can't fall back asleep I'll do my body scan meditation (from the stop, breathe & think app ... I do it almost every night when I get into bed) and/or I will turn on netflix and watch something I've seen a million times before. It helps distract my brain! But I make sure to put the screen on the darkest setting and set the sleep timer so it doesn't stay on all night.

@AllyTheKid If you can't afford a new mattress, I would highly recommend a memory foam mattress topper. We got one from amazon a couple years ago and it has made a world of difference. I love it!

queen_frostine · June 2016

@blonde1817 do you find it's hot? Ours make the bed more comfortable, but retain heat like a mofo. We still go with it but damn if they invent one that stays cool I will be all over that.

emmaaa · June 2016

@RainMira9e We have a Serta memory foam topper. It doesn't get too hot though. We did buy a cooling, waterproof mattress cover and it helps so much and also protects the topper.

kathleenkat · June 2016

We have a tempurpedic mattress with adjustable bed frame, so it's essentially a queen sized memory foam recliner. Yes, it retains heat more than a typical box spring and mattress. But, I can still sleep comfortably on my back at 22 weeks. I bought it at mattress discounters so it was a previous year's model. The entire setup (frame, mattress) was about $2500. Steep price, but best investment I've made given my back problems. It also has a 40 year warranty (wtf??? People have shorter warranties on roofs) so it's built to last.

Of course pregnancy is a whole new game and I still need sleeping pills in spite of the comfort. My brain just doesn't know when to quit.

mrsdj19 · June 2016

I've been having trouble getting comfortable in bed having to lie on my side. I'm a back and stomach sleeper mainly. But I ordered this from Amazon and tried it last night and omgosh I got the best sleep I've had in weeks!!!!

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004W02YMG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I love it so much it's soo comfortable!!! It kept me propped on my side and it was easy for me to reposition left and right. I don't think I will be able to part with it even after the baby is born.

ibabyloveb87 · June 2016

I just don't struggle with my Snoogle at all. Maybe I'm using it wrong, but it seems to work for me. I stay comfortable throughout the night and it keeps me from lying flat. DH does call it the Great Wall though because it does separate the bed space.

My neighbor is really short so she didn't like the Snoogle because it was just too long for her body.

von1976 · June 2016

ibabyloveb87 said:

I just don't struggle with my Snoogle at all. Maybe I'm using it wrong, but it seems to work for me. I stay comfortable throughout the night and it keeps me from lying flat. DH does call it the Great Wall though because it does separate the bed space.

My neighbor is really short so she didn't like the Snoogle because it was just too long for her body.

OMG, I HATE the Snoogle. My husband bought it for me, and I really have tried to like it... But the cover is scratchy so I don't want it on my face, and putting a pillow on top puts my neck at a weird angle. I can only sleep on a side for maybe 2-3 hours at a time before my shoulder falls asleep, so each time I wake up with the Snoogle, I shave to throw back the covers, untangle myself from the Snoogle, flip myself over in bed, reposition the Snoogle, and cover back up again. It's way too much work. My husband is very hurt that I'm not using it, but it's just such a pain.

My SIL absolutely loved hers. If it works for you, more power to you... I just can't make it work. And I'm not short!

kathleenkat · June 2016

My snoogle is great. I'm able to fit the top under my head and bottom between my knees regardless of which way I'm facing. I prefer it in the hugging position to the spooning position but it works either way for me. I have the basic white cotton one which is not scratchy at all.

mrsdj19 · June 2016

The Leachco Back 'N Belly Chic is great b/c it's basically 2 snoogles that envelopes your body for maximum support and is super soft and comfy. It's worth a try!! I love mine so much!!!

samkins · June 2016

Hate the snoogle!! Not good for someone who moves a lot at night and it was so hot!!

And was that a joke about this should be on symptoms board? Hope so... looks like the thread is doing just fine on its own.

Mintz1982 · June 2016

I have not slept all qnight in months between my hips hurting to bad I feel like I was in a car accident, the baby rolling, my 3 year old needing 100 things from going potty water and apparently monsters, and my husband being all hands I get maybe 3 hrs I usually need a nap by lunch time.

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Problems sleeping through the night

Re: Problems sleeping through the night

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