I’d been suffering fragmented sleep for a couple of months and couldn’t see an end to it. I would go to sleep and suddenly wake up after only two hours. This was usually accompanied by an urge to urinate. Why was I waking up after two hours when I was previously a good sleeper for at least six hours?
I’ve addressed some of my TMS problems in the past with non-TMS solutions. I’m not entirely sure what category this falls in.
Before the fragmented sleep began, I was having naps in the afternoon. Each time my wife would wake me, I would ask her “How long have I been asleep - one or two hours?” She would answer 5 or 10 minutes. What??! I’d be in shock and check the clock to confirm it. This happened constantly and I felt that I could no longer trust my perception of time.
There had been a disruption to my body-clock and I had to find a way to fix it.
I began counting one minute on a clock. I said to myself “That’s a minute and that’s what a minute feels like. I did another one minute’ count a short while later and recited the same thing.
As I went to bed, I told myself “I don’t want to sleep for 120 minutes (i.e. 2 hours); I want to sleep for 300 minutes.
I woke up 2 ½ hours later! I was pleased that I had progressed beyond 2 hours. The following night, I went through the same routine and I again woke up after about 2 ½ hours.
On the third night, I counted 5 minutes on the clock and said to my brain that this is what five minutes feels like. As I went to bed I told myself “I don’t want to sleep for 30 blocks of 5 minutes (i.e. 2½ hours); I want to sleep for 40 blocks of 5 minutes”. This time I slept for 3½ hours.
The progression continued with the more recent bed-time thoughts being “I want to sleep for 80 blocks of 5 minutes, or when the sun shines through the blinds”
Everything is back to normal. If the urge to urinate ever presents itself, I repeat at least twice “Now is not the time wake up; morning is the time to wake up” and unless the bladder’s full, the urge disappears quickly.
I found hot chocolate milk very disruptive to my sleep and yoghurt very beneficial. Beginning my sleep on the left side also appeared to be helpful. I am posting this thread on both TMS websites.
Cheers,
Gary (aka Jackmat)
I’ve addressed some of my TMS problems in the past with non-TMS solutions. I’m not entirely sure what category this falls in.
Before the fragmented sleep began, I was having naps in the afternoon. Each time my wife would wake me, I would ask her “How long have I been asleep - one or two hours?” She would answer 5 or 10 minutes. What??! I’d be in shock and check the clock to confirm it. This happened constantly and I felt that I could no longer trust my perception of time.
There had been a disruption to my body-clock and I had to find a way to fix it.
I began counting one minute on a clock. I said to myself “That’s a minute and that’s what a minute feels like. I did another one minute’ count a short while later and recited the same thing.
As I went to bed, I told myself “I don’t want to sleep for 120 minutes (i.e. 2 hours); I want to sleep for 300 minutes.
I woke up 2 ½ hours later! I was pleased that I had progressed beyond 2 hours. The following night, I went through the same routine and I again woke up after about 2 ½ hours.
On the third night, I counted 5 minutes on the clock and said to my brain that this is what five minutes feels like. As I went to bed I told myself “I don’t want to sleep for 30 blocks of 5 minutes (i.e. 2½ hours); I want to sleep for 40 blocks of 5 minutes”. This time I slept for 3½ hours.
The progression continued with the more recent bed-time thoughts being “I want to sleep for 80 blocks of 5 minutes, or when the sun shines through the blinds”
Everything is back to normal. If the urge to urinate ever presents itself, I repeat at least twice “Now is not the time wake up; morning is the time to wake up” and unless the bladder’s full, the urge disappears quickly.
I found hot chocolate milk very disruptive to my sleep and yoghurt very beneficial. Beginning my sleep on the left side also appeared to be helpful. I am posting this thread on both TMS websites.
Cheers,
Gary (aka Jackmat)
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