Sleep and Chronic Mental Illness

Sometimes for me the only vacation I can afford is a few nights on the couch

Sleep is such an important part of who we are. Without being able to sleep and dream, we wouldn’t be able to live in just a short amount of time. Having healthy sleep can mean giving up things. I never had healthy sleep until I quit drinking and thus didn’t have the desire to go ‘out on the town’ every night. I found I felt a lot better and functioned a lot better when I took my medications on time and went to bed at a reasonable hour.

Most of us have had problems sleeping. Some have gone to their family doctor or psychiatrist and I hope before prescribing pills the physicians mentioned a few of these things:

1. Get up at the same time 7 days a week
2. Don’t nap
3. Don’t drink caffeine in the evening, say after 6:00pm
4. Get black-out curtains in your bedroom
5. Don’t do anything but sleep and intimacy in bed

Some doctors, especially when they get to know a patient and believe they are not at risk of addiction, will prescribe sleeping pills or tranquilizers to help their patients sleep. I have been on these and still occasionally take them, but I have found that the quality of sleep I get increases greatly when I don’t take anything that sedates me before bed. I am no doctor or expert, but I think it has to do with the amount of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep you get when you sleep without sleep aids.

If you have a mental illness, you may experience something similar to what I have experienced. I take my medications at night, they hopefully calm me down and then after an hour or so I am tired enough to go to bed. In the morning I wake up and then take, (among other pills), some Prozac, and often I am so fatigued I go back to bed for hours sometimes. Something about taking Prozac makes me have really sweet dreams, so this is a part of sleep I have a hard time letting go of.

One of the best things you can do to wake up is first splash cold water on your face to wake you up, then take a shower and eat a healthy morning meal, then plan to get at least 30 minutes of exercise in that day. These simple tactics can do a person a world of good. It is my opinion that if you don’t have much to do in the morning, say if you are unemployed because of disability or any other situation, exercise is the next best thing you can do that will help you stay mentally and physically healthy and happy.

It took me a long time to condition myself to be able to do it, but I like to take walks that are as much as an hour long. I also have the amazing benefit of having a membership to a pool and gym. There is nothing that makes you feel better than a swim in the morning and a few minutes in the hot tub or steam room.

This is something I feel I am going to have to do a lot more, going to the pool. I have been gaining weight in the past few months and my MD told me I need to get 3 hours a week of Cardio in, and since I have knee problems that prevent me from running, I am going to have to either swim or use an exercise bike more often.

The great thing about this increased Cardio is, now I will be more tired and sleep better. Still, I have a problem of oversleeping. As I mentioned, it takes me a lot to get to sleep, especially if I socialize by talking on the phone or doing anything that excites me before bed. I can lay in the dark for hours sometimes waiting to fall asleep, then when I do get to sleep, I sleep in after waking up early for a long time. This is because I haven’t been following my own advice.

If you do take sleep aids and want to stop taking them, I suggest transitioning away from caffeine, towards more exercise, and then trying to only take your sleep aid every second night. Some pills are so addictive you may have to cut them in half or ask for a lowered dose. Be sure to tell your doctor you are slowing them down so he doesn’t prescribe extras. It is never good to keep large amounts of sleeping pills handy.

There is another thing that can be a little controversial, even though it is legal all over Canada and many US States. I am talking about the cannabis plant, but I am not talking about getting high. As nicotine in cigarettes (another thing that you should quit to help you both sleep better and exercise more) is the active ingredient, THC is the active ingredient in Cannabis products. I have learned that by taking cannabis oil without THC, which is listed on the package in mg/mL of cannabinoids, I don’t get high and I get better sleep. One of the things I have found about the cannabinoids that is amazing is that not only do I sleep much better, but also I have less “road rage”. I used to always look for things that ticked me off, people used to bother me. I would go to my dad’s place to help him with his computer or TV and it would be so frustrating I couldn’t stand it when he would look over my shoulder and comment, even though he was trying to help. Since I started using cannabinoid pills for sleep, that anger has almost completely gone away.

Of course, not everyone can use cannabinoids. Some are allergic, some can’t afford the cost of buying the gel caps every few weeks. Other people also may have a harder time getting off sleeping pills. The important thing is that everyone does need to know how their own bodies operate in prime conditions and how drugs and medications affect them. There are a couple of things I have learned about sleep that I hope can benefit everyone:

1. I have found that taking a multi-vitamin before bed can lessen nightmares. Even taking one if you wake up from a bad dream can help.
2. No amount of alcohol is a safe amount for people on psychiatric medications. Alcohol mixed with pharmaceuticals can badly harm your internal organs and even cause relapses of your condition if you drink to excess.
3. Though it costs more, it can be helpful to buy decaf tea or coffee to drink after a set time before going to bed.
4. Don’t drink a lot of tea or coffee directly before bed, even if they are decaf. The time from when you lay down to when you sleep has to start over if you need to use the bathroom.
5. There are many great ways to start the day. One of them is Yoga, another is a swim or gym workout. Meditation can be helpful. I suggest not working out or doing Yoga on your own at least to start because there is a lot to be learned. The best thing is to sign up for classes at a local YMCA or other facility that offers a discount to those with low-income.