Quality of sleep
I'm curious to know how many people have 'quality of sleep' as their main insomnia problem? I've had sleep problems for over 30 years, with difficulty falling asleep but mainly with very poor quality of sleep. I can 'fall asleep' within maybe an hour, but very often the rest of the night I spend in light, dreamy sleep that isn't at all refreshing and I feel exhausted the next day. It sometimes feels as if I had no deep sleep at all, and I can have two or even three nights in a row like this. I've done CBTi, and this has helped (mainly the sleep restriction, I think), but the programmes I've done don't appear to acknowledge lack of deep sleep as a major issue. Professionals I've spoken to don't seem to take me seriously when I tell them about this. I'm keen to here other people's experience and anything that has particularly helped with this aspect of insomnia.
Hey
. I've been experiencing something similar. While I have "proper" insomnia, I've been managing it okay over the years. By contrast, I find it much more difficult to do something against poor, non-restorative sleep - i.e., sleep that makes me feel terrible during the day even though I fell asleep quickly and didn't wake up (a lot). In fact, non-restorative sleep makes me feel worse during the day than a sleepless night. I have the feeling that it's connected to my anxiety, but it's hard to tell. Would you still say that sleep restriction helps? Have other people had similar experiences? It does seem as if there's little on poor-quality sleep compared to actual sleeplessness. I've dealing with Insomnia since COVID and after trying CBTi my sleep onset has improved. However, my main problem continues to be waking up unrefreshed. Around 80% of the time, I wake up extremely tired, often with a racing heart, and the tiredness continues throughout the day until bedtime. Most days I wake after around 4–5 hours of sleep, then fall back asleep, but usually still wake up tired. Just like you said, non-restorative sleep is far worse than general sleep deprivation or not getting enough sleep. There are days when I sleep for 7 hours straight and then wake up dead tired, with a constant pressure on the back of my head and neck. It doesn't go away the entire day. I don't know what to do. There are so many things that can impact the quality of sleep and these can overlap with insomnia as well. Some are anxiety, the use of blue light/computer screens before bedtime, poor diet and poor-quality food, inconsistent sleep routines, pain, and the timing of physical workouts. There are so many variables and research is still needed. Do any of these seem to apply to you? All the best, Kathy (Team member)
Hi Lori, thanks for your input. I haven't had a sleep study - these seem to be very difficult to obtain here in the UK. I don't think the NHS will offer this although I suppose I could try and find a private clinic that does it. Having said that, I am almost sure I don't have sleep apnea for a number of reasons: 1) I am not overweight; 2) although I live alone, when I do occasionally share a hotel room or something I've never been told that I snore any worse than most people; 3) I would assume sleep apnea is a more or less ongoing issue, whereas my sleep problems can be terrible for weeks or months and then dramatically improve quite suddenly for a similar length of time. There seems to be a seasonal element to it and this winter has been exceptionally bad until the last week or so, perhaps in part because there are now early signs of spring. Also I have been trying sleep restriction again and this has helped. I am very confident in my 'self diagnosis' that lack of deep sleep is a big problem for me a lot of the time, and I definitely get insufficient and occasionally almost none on my worst nights. I have read that the 'z' drugs supposedly reduce deep sleep, but I actually find them quite effective although I try to only take them at most three times a week and not two nights in a row, which my doctor is willing to prescribe. I hope a few others will offer their experience too.
Hi
. This is a good question, but I can see why you are having trouble getting answers. Researchers don't agree on how much deep sleep we each need and there are no proven therapies or medications that I know of that specifically increase deep sleep. Have you had a sleep study to confirm that you are not getting enough? I ask because over-the-counter sleep trackers are not always accurate. A sleep study would also show whether you have sleep apnea, which might prevent you from falling into deep sleep. I wish I had better answers. I hope you get some input from others in the community. Best wishes. - Lori (Team Member)
