Waking up!

[Anonymous]

I have always been incredibly difficult to wake and get going in the mornings. I’m predominately inattentive and figure that has allot to do with it. The other part is my sleep schedule. I don’t have one. I get home from work by 8:30pm most nights and a couple hours before going to bed just doesn’t work for me. I have so much I feel I should do (and don’t anyway). It’s like I’m wasting time sleeping, especially when no matter how much sleep I get I wake up the same. I can sleep 10 or more hours and feel the same as sleeping 5 hours.

Any ideas?

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[Anonymous]

Oh my goodness, I could have written your post word-for-word! I hope someone replies with some ideas because I think this is the worst issue I’m facing – getting up and getting out to anywhere on time in the a.m.

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[Patte Rosebank]

I was prescribed a very small nightly dose of Seroquel (Quetiapene) several years ago, during what was then-diagnosed as a hypo-manic episode. It did calm me down considerably, and, for the first time in years, I could fall asleep quickly & easily, and stay asleep. And, if I got up during what are appropriately known as the “wee” hours, I could fall asleep again very quickly, instead of lying there for over an hour, trying to fall asleep. Plus, I can easily reach the deep REM phase of sleep, the phase that leaves you feeling truly rested when you wake up after it—a phase I hadn’t been able to reach for many years before starting on Seroquel.

I’m still taking the Seroquel, and it’s still helping me tremendously with my sleep habits. The dose is very low. Only 25 mg (or 50 mg, if I’m under a lot of stress), taken a couple of hours before bedtime. Then, I dim the lights and do activities that will help me to relax. Only when I’m feeling so sleepy that I can hardly keep my eyes open, do I go to bed. And I only use my bedroom for sleeping, not reading or watching TV. I have blackout curtains on the windows, and I shut the door, so I’m in near-total darkness. Then, I listen to radio comedy shows, very quietly, on my docked iPod, with the docking station in 30-minute Sleep mode. Within 10 minutes or less, I’m in dreamland, and I stay in dreamland.

In the morning, I awake, almost exactly 8 hours after going to bed (10 hours after taking the Seroquel). There’s no residual drowsiness, unless I didn’t get 8 hours of sleep. When it’s time to wake up, I turn on the lights, and go sit in front of my Daylight therapy lamp for half an hour. If I don’t get up right away, I’ll drift off to sleep for another couple of hours, and really screw up my sleep-wake cycle.

The only weird thing is that I have a very strong internal alarm clock. If I have to do something important at a certain time in the morning, my internal alarm clock will begin waking me at half-hour intervals, starting around 5:30 a.m. And there’s nothing I can do about it, Seroquel or not!

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[Anonymous]

I’m jealous, Larynxa, I have NO internal clock

I’ve tried a sleeping medication, I can’t remember what it was, that just made me zonk out but not really sleep – or at least it didn’t feel like it.

The best luck I’ve had lately is with a small dose of ativan before sleeping which seems to allow me to go back to sleep if I wake up. I think the ativan must help with when I wake up in the middle of the night, and my thoughts run so I get anxious and can’t get back to sleep.

I just wish I could get that truly rested feeling, I’ve gotten it so rarely in my life! Believe it or not, the only times I felt truly rested – and perhaps because I got REM sleep, not sure – is after waking up at 8 or 9 a.m., knowing I didn’t need to go anywhere, I’d not get up but would allow myself to enjoy sleeping for another couple hours.

Although I haven’t tried that in many years, because I can’t/won’t let myself relax and go back to sleep deeply at that point. Unfortunately I just have too much to do!

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[Anonymous]

ShaneG, have you had a sleep study done? There are many things that can cause the sleep problems besides ADD.

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[turbo]

In his lecture series Dr Jain spoke about the importance of maintaining good “sleep hygene”. He said it is even more important for people with ADD.

Among the tips I remember:

1) set a bedtime and stick to it. Go to bed at the same time every night (or 6 days per week) and set your alarm to awake at the same time in the morning. Over-the-counter sleep aids like melatonin can help you fall asleep at your set time until your body takes the routine on itself;

2) do not use any electronic devices within 1 hour of your “bedtime”. His rule was, if it plugs into the wall, avoid it. He says any additional stimulation to your brain at this point can keep it motoring on for hours after you get to “sleep”, preventing your brain from getting the “rest” it needs;

3) Instead of watching TV, listening to music or playing games he said read a bit. Not a good book either, because you don’t want lots of stimulation or to get hooked wanting to read the next chapter. Instead go for magazines with short articles, or even heavy reading like the tax act;

4) develop a night time routine. Putting stuff away, getting in your PJs, brushing your teeth, etc – and do the same routine every night. He said your body will eventually begin to recognize it’s “bed time” once you start your routine.

As for waking up in the morning, he reccomends splashing cold water on your face immediately. This triggers a chemical reaction inside your brain to “wake” you up fully and avoids a slow, groggy start to your morning as your body wakes up slowly.

The other posts here make some important points too. If someone is having difficulty getting good rest a sleep study can help rule out or identify other conditions. Some of these, like sleep apnea, can also be very dangerous.

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[Anonymous]

I’m the same but here’s the kicker – If you’re a guy or girl for any matter, I find it is all adrenaline based. I am dead to the world for at least 2 hours after getting up or having an afternoon nap. I believe this may be related to *depression*. I play hockey about once a week, and that game determines my outlook for the next 3 days or so. Sounds weird, but before every game I feel like shit. Tired and sluggish. But, if I score a goal, or have a good couple of shifts, everyhting changes. Energy comes out of nowhere, I get pumped and that seems to last through the course of the game. I will usually sleep well that night, and feel pretty good for a few days. I seem to get this watching my young kids as well. If I see them having a really good time, laughing and playing, I’ll get another high. From what I’ve read regarding depression symptoms, this correlates with having a mild form of depression. Highs and lows. They say it all over this website, that the two go hand in hand with adult ADHD. I feel I’ve been catching up on sleep since I was a pre-teen. It’s starting to get so bad that I find my meds are fighting with my tiredness all the time.

I do know a very simple solution to all of this that has worked for me in the past, though I’ve been too ADD to keep it up. Vigorous work-outs. Slowly work your way over a month or two, to at least 3 or 4 workouts a week. Never too close to bedtime. ShaneG, not getting home til 8:30 kinda sucks because if you start working out after that, your body might take too long to recover/relax after. But, it truly is the “free” way of solving the problem. St. John’s Wort for the depression has shown positive results although I’ve never tried it myself. I have an anxiety and phobia text book that, decribes alot of this to just not being active enough, and not eating properly. I think alot of us ADDers just won’t admit that we abuse ourselves quite a bit by being too inconsistent with our lifestyles.

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[powcat]

I’ve had a horrible time trying my best to establish any kind of sleeping routine for the past, like, 8 years. who knew, but a stimulant might have been the answer?!

things are still being worked out, but for the last couple of weeks, since I started Concerta, sleep has definitely been more regular – and nocturnal. I used to HAVE to take a nap almost every day. now, I wake up pretty quickly if I take the meds as soon as I get up, and they keep me going until the evening. by 10pm I am pretty sleepy and by midnight I am in bed and I sleep all the way through the night!

the last few nights have been different, unfortunately, because there’s a lot of emotional-type changes happening at the moment which have caused me to nap again, which have, in turn, caused me to stay up late doing nothing. but I’m giving this dosage a few more days. wish me luck.

PS: a note on exercise: if you are a procrastinator and don’t enjoy exercise, it is next to impossible to start! I find it really difficult to go out of my way to exercise and haven’t done it in at least 2 years, even though every doctor has suggested it would help me sleep better. stimulants might help with this, too. double-whammy. better sleep…

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[Rick Green – Founder of TotallyADD]

My solution was to simply force myself to get up, cross the room, drink a glass of water, stretch for 20 seconds, pee, and then hopefully, I was awake enough I’d keep going. Within a few weeks, I no longer dragged myself out of bed. My body was trained.

But then I’d feel overwhelmed as I thought about everything I had to do.

What really made the difference was creating a goal. One that inspired me more than, “I’ll get a head start on my bills!”

Now I get up each morning to make my wife breakfast (Okay, it’s just toast and tea) and bringing it to her. She is always grateful. Amazingly so.

It’s about motivation.

If I think ahead too much, about what I have to do today… I’ll slump over dead and drag the blankets back over me for another hour.

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[Anonymous]

i hate going to bed, and waking up.

i’ve always been a night person, i can’t think straight until i’m tired -and then i can think awesomely at about 1am (grrr!), and 2 am to 4am is my optimum ‘go to sleep’ time. i’ve struggled to get it set to an earlier point in the evening, repeatedly, but it apparently just aint gonna happen, so i’ve finally accepted my body clock as it is.

i have a big struggle with getting myself actually into bed- i feel like i might miss something while i’m asleep (in that ‘6 year old kid not wanting to go to bed’ kinda way!) and i suddenly come across numerous ‘urgent’ things that need attending to at bedtime- the dishes, the catlitter, something i shoulda printed, organising for a meeting the next morning- you know the drill. the routine really helps there.

…..so does having a BF who i’ve trained to bug the hell out of me from about midnight with occasional variations on “you know what time it is?”…. “you seriously need to go to bed now babes”….. “you have to be up in 5 hours, you know…”….. ” its 6am- why aren’t you in bed yet?!” ….” go to bed!” …. “GO TO BED!”….. “don’t make me call your mum on you and have her tell you off!” …. to the point of actually walking me there and tucking me in and turning off the light and saying “shhhh! go sleep!” when he finds me flapping over a mountain of dishes at 6am and pleading “but i just need to mop the kitchen floor- it’ll only take a minute- look- its REALLY dirty!”….

i’ve never struggled to get to sleep once i’m in bed, or stay asleep once i’ve drifted off- new meds withstanding- one thing i’m awesome at is being asleep- i’m out cold. when it comes to getting up, however- i’m absolutely dreadful. shocking, even. i’m talking horror-movie exorcism-requiring stuff.

taking straterra has helped a LOT with my waking up issues. i’ve somehow gone from spending 12 or 14 hours out cold with really vivid effexor-induced dreams, followed by quite tearful angsty groaning and several hours of pleading for “just 30 more minutes!” more of the snooze button- with yelling and gnashing of tooth if there is any argument about being allowed to sleep a bit longer… and a bit longer… and a bit longer… ending in eventual early afternoon sullen staggerings to sit infront of the tv and ‘sober up’ grudgingly under a blanket, to walking up like a lightswitch in my head is turned on or an oven timer pings on after about 8 hours kip, or whenever a needy cat in search of breakfast starts to enthusiastically stomp up and down on my head. its very novel indeed. i definately approve of it.

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[Anonymous]

I hate going to bed and waking up too. That’s why it is now 3:51am and I am still on the internet, in spite of the fact that restless leg has set in and is driving me crazy(er).

If I get home from work too late, or if I have gone somewhere after work (which I rarely do), it can take me several hours to unwind. I usually have to work from home the next day.

Question: Is restless leg syndrome related to ADHD–or is it coincidence that I have it too?

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[trashman]

Ihave no trouble going to sleep or getting up .The bigest struggle I have is if my routen is to change .I get up at 5am and then I am up till 9pm or 10. if I don’t go to bed on time its hard to stay awake and I am cranky till I get back in my routine. sometimes I wonder why I am so diferent then the rest of the masses.

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[Anonymous]

Yeah. No clock at all. I’ve always said I don’t “feel” time. I’m turning 35 this week and it feels like I am still in my 20’s. It’s like I stepped into a wormhole and stepped out a few minutes later but to everyone else it’s been 10 or 20 years! Can be an odd feeling to be sure.

I can go to bed with the clear intent of waking up at a certain time, getting out of bed right away and going. I do it often. When wake up time comes I’m not there Man! I would almost have to be grabbed and pulled out of bed and walked out of the door. Even then I would be the walking dead…

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[Anonymous]

I have a love – hate relationship with sleep. I fight it at night. I stay up till the wee hours most nights. Way too late to go to work the next day. My son, who is ADHD, is the same way. On the weekends he never goes to bed before 5 a.m. My father is the same but denies that he might have ADHD.

My employer has moved my shift start time to accommodate my tardiness. (Her boss disagrees with that tactic.) My shift starts at 9:30 in the morning. I hate getting off of work at 6 pm but I am grateful that I still have a job to go to.

I do not hate mornings. In fact I LOVE morning time. I am happy in the morning. What I hate is actually getting out of bed. Always have hated it and it has always been a problem. The truth is though, I am acutely aware of the clock. I always know the time. My thinking is that I can do something in less time than it actually takes me. So while I’m aware of the time on the clock I am unaware of how to move through time in an effective way.

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[Anonymous]

Sleep??? Whats sleep???

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[Author]

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