First of all, thank you to everyone who has sent me messages, commented on this post or the post on FB, etc. I now have a list of things to research as I get the energy.
The biggest suggestion seems to be acupuncture… and it sucks that it isn’t covered by my insurance. (I’m discovering that if something might actually help, it’s not covered.) Luckily, my doctor’s practice has an acupuncturist on site, and hopefully will be willing to work with me on payment. (If not, I’ll search for another solution.)
So, why am I writing about insomnia again? Because, of course, I’m suffering it again after being up all night last night, because I fell asleep around 1pm and slept til bedtime – when I woke up. Yay! (not.)
So I read everyone’s comments, made my notes, and thought about the things I’d forgotten to include in yesterday’s post. (Sleep deprivation also makes you forgetful. And stupid. And I, personally, have no idea what day it is… time is a weird thing when your schedule is so out of wack and your brain is messed up.)
Another thing I have tried for my back is heating pads. Which are nice and cozy – until I start having a freaking hot flash. And I start to sweat, and have to fling off all the covers and the fur-varmints who insist on curling up on me with their heated bodies. (And seriously? My CHIN sweats!!!! What the heck?!??!) But apparently my hot flashes have nothing to do with menopause or peri-menopause, which I haven’t started; they’re just a fun part of being me right now.
If I use an ice-pack, the pain basically feels like the ice planet from Doctor Who. Yeah, fun.
Found on http://walkiria.soup.io. I’m pretty sure the planet’s gonna smash into me, not the other way around.
Also, I wish I could say that my insomnia is new, and only because of the pain, but sadly, it’s not. I’ve fought insomnia since high school. Oh joy unbounded.
Maybe in another post I’ll tell you all the tricks I use to try to thwart it. Sometimes they work, sometimes they don’t. Darnit.
In the meantime, I want to share the comment that Miranda Kate shared on yesterday’s post, because it is definitely a big lesson for me to learn, and some of you out there may be helped by it too:
But the lesson? let it all go, the world won’t end, you won’t be worthless, let others pick up the slack and see that you are supported. And also, the other lessons, even if you only achieve one thing a day, you will find that it is enough. That is what I found – even if that one thing was doing the washing-up. I actually found that everything still got done. I learned to let myself relax and ‘be in pain’ so to speak, do what my body was asking me to do.
