Quote Originally Posted by Catrin View Post
I really appreciate all of the helpful comments and I am going to try several of them. I think everything goes back to my mom's illness and the stress of not being able to see her AND having to move in 3 weeks. I do feel a bit better after making some changes that have happened in the past - and if my sleep doesn't improve soon I will need to do something else. This is situational, whatever else one might label it, and will eventually pass. I think getting the move behind me in 3 weeks will take care of a significant portion of it, and I've scheduled a trip home to see my mom a couple of days after the move. 2 weeks off work

I've a co-worker who is convinced I've sleep apnea and the only thing that will work is a c-pap machine. She has this problem and can't conceive of any other reason why we can't stay asleep - it reminds me of the old adage that when all you have is a hammer everything looks like a nail
How very true, Catrin! I am quite sure sleep apnea was not my problem either. I was suffering from quite a bit of anxiety, and getting to sleep was my problem -- that was back in 2005/2006 after my dad's sudden death in a car accident.

Then later, I started going through perimenopause and had a lot more problems staying asleep, as you're experiencing now, so I re-started the Ambien for awhile, but I didn't think it smart to stay on it for too long, so I stopped that. I'm still having problems staying asleep as I go through menopause, and my PCP asked me if I wanted another Rx when I saw her in August. It took a lot of willpower to say no, but I knew how easy it would be to fall back into that routine of taking Ambien, which I didn't want to do. It isn't addictive, per se, but because of the rebound insomnia, it can become a crutch. I didn't like that. For short-term stressors, though, I don't have a moral issue with taking it, just didn't want to rely on it long-term.

Glad it appears that things will get a bit easier for you after your move, and that you'll be able to spend time with your mom soon thereafter as well. Hopefully that will help as much as anything with the sleep issues you're experiencing.