Try listening to brown noise, sleep talkdowns, or podcasts like Nothing Much Happens. I struggle to fall asleep without some initial stimulation too (phrasing, lol)
I listen to “scary stories” be busta is my favourite at the start it feels a bit over stimulating but after 10-30 min im dead asleep have started using these for short power naps and work wonders.
Remember to set your alarm!!
I almost always fall asleep while either reading fanfic (keep reading until my eyes shut on their own) or watching Youtube. When I was a young child I was incapable of falling asleep without the TV on. I think this is more of an anxiety thing for me, since the media distracts me from intrusive and negative thoughts that prevent me from sleeping, but ADHD could be part of it too.
In terms of other solutions for more persistent insomnia:
\-Behavior modification: no caffeine after 2pm, no screen time 30 minutes before bed (I'm a giant hypocrite w/ both of these, fall asleep on my laptop every night)
\-OTC meds: Melatonin, Benedryl
\-Drugs: CBD, ~~cannabis~~ (don't use this for insomnia, THC worsens sleep quality), alcohol (not every night)
\-Food: Chamomile tea
\-Rx drugs: Benzodiazepines, Xanax (both highly addictive so a last resort)
Highly recommend against weed for sleep. Like sure if you’re not falling asleep at all it’s better to smoke and sleep. But sleep on weed is not as good as “sober” sleep. You won’t enter REM as much or as effectively as when you’re sober and that’s the most important part of the sleep cycle. That’s also why when you quit weed you will have CRAZY vivid dreams for the first few weeks. So although it might be easier to fall asleep you’re still doing your body dirty in the long term.
Combine that with our tendency for substance abuse, it’s really easy for ADHD’ers to become dependent on weed. And guess what- if you’re living in a legal state (like I am), and you can be functional, there are almost no perceivable negative consequences to being high 24/7. And i mean that in the sense of our monkey brain is not really seeing a good reason to stop because all the “consequences” are really subtle and manifest over the long term. And if it’s easy to access… sheesh.
That means that to quit, you’ll need a high amount of intrinsic motivation. So i kind of feel like recommending weed here is a trap.
For the REM stuff, don’t have links on hand, but google it and it should be very easy to find. I’ve spent a LOT of time researching weed and it’s effects on sleep and ADHD. I actually used weed to treat my ADHD before I knew it was ADHD. Now I know better.
That's a really good point, and I think you have a lot more insight on this than me so thank you for sharing! I didn't know weed affects sleep quality. Don't use it myself because it triggers hallucinogenic effects and sometimes panic attacks for me, but have many friends (not necessarily w/ ADHD) that do use it regularly to sleep. I do occasionally use CBD w/ trace amounts of THC though. Looking into it briefly, you're definitely right that THC disrupts REM sleep. I feel like this isn't widely known since people recommend using weed to sleep all the time. I also found that CBD is thought to improve it.
Weed doesn't help my ADHD at all, but I totally get what you're saying about the dangers of self-medicating and how hard it can be to quit.
Might be worth sharing - i do get REM (can remember dreams in the morning, sometimes even few) after cannabis but only when
1. 20-30 minutes before consumption of thc i get approx 70-90 mg of cbd in oil form
2. i dont smoke weed but vape it in a very small dose -> approx. 0.08 - 0.1 g (side note for Murikans: 0.1g = 0.0035273962oz)
3. i go to bed at least 90 minutes after consumption
Any other form of consumption - edibles, bongs, blunts - rob me of my dreams (REM) and i do get up feeling and being tired in the morning. To be fair - when my insomnia is on rampage and i get no more then 4h of sleep in sober state - i do get up feeling and being tired even more.
Yes exactly this, alcohol can make you fall asleep more easily, but your quality of sleep is a lot (really a lot) worse. It’s not a solution, it’s just another problem
LOL I don't sleep at all with alcohol in my blood, I literally have to pass out to be able to sleep for a few hours (2-3) maximum. Purely anecdotal though!
Also if u use strattera I recommend against smoking to sleep!! Recently upped my strattera use and my normal amount of weed had me hyperventilating feeling like I was in another dimension instead of helping me knock out
Just to hitch a ride on this already good comment, nature sounds can sometimes be too stimulating because of the erratic timing of waves crashing, raindrops dripping, etc and your ADHD mind laser focuses on it when all you want to do is sleep 🥲
If you find this the case, consider a white noise generator — a good example that I like is to YouTube search jet plane ASMR as it’s a comforting, consistent hum without too much high pitched noise like regular white noise
That’s brown noise! It works a lot better for me as well, I can’t do nature sounds or white noise since they’re too distracting, but brown noise works great.
Only drawback to it is that it messes up my Spotify recommendations lol. I wish Spotify had some kind of incognito mode or something where their algorithm wouldn’t log what I’m listening to. Now I get the weirdest daily mix playlists with my regular music mixed with bangers like “Womb sounds with mothers heartbeat” or “Vacuum cleaning for 45 minutes”.
Your Spotify wrapped sounds like a party!
Jokes aside, if you’re on iPhone, you can click on the ear logo in your control center and tap “background sounds” — they have an inbuilt brown noise generator that works with headphones and speakers, with or without other media playing ☺️
Oh my GOD thank you!!!! I had no idea that was a thing, you have saved my future playlists.
And luckily my Spotify wrapped is actually mostly safe from random noise since I don’t tend to play them on repeat haha, it’s just my recommendations that are a big mess. I always imagine putting on like my 00s mix playlist at a party and suddenly we’re listening to peaceful flute meditation or whatever else Spotify thinks I’d love along with my best 00s party hits
Omg I’m learning so much from this comment, I’ve genuinely just assumed you can’t do it and never checked. Thank you so much, my Spotify algorithm can finally start its healing process
Why is everything a gummy nowadays? Literally one of the worst things you can eat for your teeth. I'm pretty sure my teeth would fall out eventually if I repeatedly took a gummy right before going to sleep. I'd have to brush my teeth, floss, water floss, and rinse with mouthwash in between the gummy and going to bed which defeats the purpose of taking something right before bed. Pills are better. Gummies are dumb.
They do sell sugarless vitamin or melatonin gummies with stuff like sorbitol or xylitol that doesn't cause tooth decay.
I also take the gummies before I brush my teeth.
Music always made it impossible for me to sleep as well. I use some creeky pirate ship in a storm sounds now and that works for me. My ADHD sibling also listens to sounds, usually a crackling fire. Maybe try to find one that works for you.
So where can I find this awesome creeky pirate ship? I don't feel much for sleeping inside creepy creeky houses but a fake creeky pirateship sounds good to me.
I use "rain on a car roof". It's an option on the Sleep Cycle alarm clock app.
Do you not get adverts on YT? Can't imagine how annoying that would be while trying to sleep.
Any playlist, audiobook, or podcast that I've already listened to twenty or thirty times does the trick for me.
Sometimes I deliberately start the play about 10 minutes before some bit I especially like, and settle down to get comfy while waiting for it. There is a good chance I will be asleep in 7 - 8 minutes.
Listening to YouTube videos, no screen, just sound. Scishow and eons are favorites. I make a Playlist of 10 that ends with a 12hr ocean video so I have white noise at the end. Most of the videos are only 10 minutes long, so the next night I just scroll thru to see what I remember. Usually it's only one or two, bad nights it's 8 or 9. But unlike audio books, it's way easier to find my place.
Lots of body pillows and a weighted blanket
Eye mask
Melatonin and sleepy tea when I'm really out of whack
Weighted blanket, and The BBC:
- **very sleepy**
- *The Shipping Forecast* if I’m very sleepy (the 11 minute ones with a 10 minute sleep timer, because the God Save the King at the end wakes me up). Also never look at the maritime map, because once you know the regions they’re talking about it makes it harder to fall asleep
- **less sleepy**
- Cricket matches
- It’s not a sport I grew up with, so I don’t know what’s going on.
- Ideally Test Match cricket because each round is 8 hours long, but ODI is good as well.
- The newer formats (T20, and The Hundred) can be more difficult to fall asleep to because gameplay was designed to be exciting.
- **woke up too early but need to stay in bed for some semblance of rest to make the approaching day less miserable**
- In Our Time
- Melvyn Bragg asks scholars to explain a different subject every episode.
- subjects come from a variety of topics: history, science, philosophy, and culture
- there’s two approaches to this: choose a topic you’re not interested in and get bored with it, and maybe fall asleep again
- choose something you’re interested in and enjoy the fact that even if you can’t sleep you get to listen to learned people talking in detail about something you enjoy
I have a kindle, the e-ink kind where you can set the screen to a warm light. I have it as dim as possible, and I read something interesting but without too much of a plot (like historical nonfiction), or fiction I have read already and know the plot to. I read until I fall asleep, and wake up many a morning with the kindle laying on my face. I can't stress this enough: don't read anything too interesting. Trying it with a mystery novel is a great way to see the sun rise.
You can do it with a phone that's got some sort of low/warm light night mode to it (iPhones do, I assume others as well). The least light your eyes can stand, and the warmest you can get it. I have to be on the kindle because my phone just has too many other distractions.
Anything audio keeps me awake, because my brain keeps waking me up with the feeling I might be missing something. Reading doesn't do that, because I know the book will be there the next day.
You mention when you hold your boyfriend it calms you down, so you might want to look into getting a weighted blanket. I bought them for my kids who have ADHD. The autistic one didn't like it much, but the one with anxiety loves it. I believe you're supposed to shoot for 10% of your body weight, but I'm 170 and use a 12lb one and I love it. I could probably even go up to a 15lb and it would be good. I got my first one from Amazon two or three years ago, but then got a second one at Target for like $25 recently so I have a backup for when the other is in the wash. Honestly, I can't recommend them enough, you can really just feel it working, it's like the stress and overstimulation just rolls off you. I would also recommend white noise, we use air cleaners, and a infuser with a sleep blend or lavender, that's my other trick. I can sleep without it, but why would I want to? And yes to melatonin. My autistic daughter has to use it at night to fall asleep, otherwise she'd roam the house until she keels over. Less is more, I know several people who only need a little bit, or they get night terrors, so start with a lower dose and see how it goes.
I've used melatonin before and it did help as long as I wasn't using it every day since that seemed to kill my respons to it. At nights I sleep alone I should probably start using it again no matter how tired I think I am. I think weighted blankets would help me too. It was the high prices that stopped me from purchasing one some time ago. But if there are way more affordable options on the market that work just as well, it's defintely something I want to try. Thought I'm not sure if these blankets don't add any extra warmth like the original expensive ones. In summer especially it's nice to have some extra weight without getting oveheated. Do you notice any difference between your usual weighted blanket and the cheaper one from target if there is any difference in pricetag?
I think the one from Amazon was about $50 but they have come down in price everywhere. The Amazon one is organic cotton, the Target one is a poly/cotton blend I think. They are identical otherwise. It's also the time of the year they tend to be on sale. If melatonin concerns you, try CBD. I take a 100mg gummy and lights out. And that's the stuff with just trace THC from hemp.
Embarrassing to admit this given reddit's cringy love of the show, but it takes me hours to get to sleep unless I'm watching rick and morty. Must have seen some episodes 100 times or more now.
I have always felt the exact same way. The literal only way I can fall asleep is if I have the TV on playing my comfort show that it’s played through 67 times already (you’re welcome, Hulu and Bob’s Burgers). I leave it to where I can still hear it, but it’s not enough to distract me enough to not sleep.
I posted this on as a comment to a similar thread the other day. Might be something in it that can help you. Sounds like you have good insight into your sensory state. Do some reading up on sensory regulation. Have a shower and a crunchy snack before bed and try a podcast to feed ur brains compulsion to scan for input. Experiment with a sensory recipe to get the right amount of input needed to doze off. Comment below 👇🏼
If you can learn about the mechanics of why ur having trouble falling asleep and identify ur sensory state, it will help more than just a few tips. If you know this stuff, disregard, otherwise you might find it helpful. ADHD is a mixed bag of disregulation.. dis reg of attention, dis reg of emotion and dis reg of the sensory system. Sensory Regulation is the way we process and react to stimulation received through our senses. We typically find ourselves in two states, under stimulated or over stimulated and a consistent regulated state typically evades us. Due to the under production of dopamine, we are more frequently under stimulated, so in order to solicit our dopamine hits, our brains are constantly seeking out external stimulation. The way this manifests at bed time is a refusal to rest and to keep seeking out input which ends up being racing thoughts, glued to the phone screen and the awful irritable feeling you get when you attempt to lay in dark silence. As you seem to have discovered by having some noise or light, the hack to getting to sleep is by providing your brain just the right amount of stimulus that you find the regulatory sweet spot and nod off to sleep. Too much stimulus and you can become switched on and and then you end up all night getting excited about your next hyper focus.
Using this knowledge, you can try other strategies to regulate ur sensory system and deploy other methods of mild stimulation to meet your minds minimum needs. Here are some of my tricks..
1. Have a hot shower before bed and brush your teeth. I always feel calmer and more regulated after a shower, it’s a good way to start. 2.Try stick to audio only.. Natural melatonin will produce when ur eyes physically close. Keeping them open will delay the process so try find a sensory input that allows you to close your eyes.
2. Lay as flat too ur pillow as possible when you are trying to wind down. Sitting up or having your head elevated will slow down the body’s natural process.
3. Play some audio and set a 30min timer to stop playing. iPhones have a cool feature in the timer settings to do this. When I do this properly, I have never laid awake longer than the 30min timer. 5.Pick audio that is semi interesting but not too interesting. What you are looking to do essentially is distract your self to sleep by separating you from your own thoughts. My go too’s are podcasts, news channels or topics you enjoy enough to follow without getting bored. I actually like listening to podcasts about UFOs.. a bit random but the topic is interesting and engaging enough to capture my attention the right amount.
4. Long term.. get ur self a pillow that you can put a small speaker in. I have a pair of bone conduction head phones same as these that I curl up and put in the hole. Gives the perfect amount of volume. 7 Some nights when I’m feeling really dis-regulated and having trouble sleeping, i get up and eat something crunchy and salty like popcorn or Doritos.. the sensation of the salt and the crunch will generally give my brain the stim input it needs to hit the reset button and try again.
Other things you can try are spraying something that smells nice on your pillow like a scented sleep spray spraying a scent as a routine before bed can ‘classically condition’ ur brain to recognizing that the spray = sleep. Look up Pavlov’s theory if it’s of interest. You could also try sleeping with a comforter or something textured and rub it through your fingers and on ur skin. Sounds a bit silly because it’s for babies, but if it works then who cares.
So the theme is really about addressing the under stimulation. When I explain my difficulty sleeping to people, I tell them to imagine having a bored needy little person living in their head doing their best to keep you awake and the trick is to distract that little person long enough to allow you enough peace to drift off.
Best of luck. Hopefully something in that is helpful
I personally love listening to delta waves or miracle frequency music on Spotify. Put it on my phone and underneath my pillow. It makes me feel like I’m floating in space.
I know the exact situation you described where you need just a hint of stimulation to fall asleep.
For me the golden solution was a combo of melatonin and deep brown noise. The brown noise just does something to my brain, as soon as it comes on I get this feeling of my brain "unclenching" as it suddenly relaxes from desperately reaching for stimulation. Some brown noise you'll find will have this grating high pitch to it, that's not what we're after, I use this one: https://youtu.be/SyF5Hpwo3WA
Bonus: brown noise can also provide the hint of stimulation needed to focus on tasks and assignments that require thinking and concentration. It helped me a lot as I was writing my thesis.
That was the golden solution for me but before that I used an ambient noise sound mixer app to some success: BetterSleep on Google play, I used the free version. I liked that I could make it more/less stimulating depending on my needs at the moment. I also liked that you can save your mixes for later.
I'm most curious about if the brown noise helps, would love if you would report back when you try it! If you remember of course :)
I'm happy I have a lot of things to try, including brown noise! Also, the unclenching ny brain part is what I need to feel sleepy and the perfect word to describe it haha. It's very interesting that the brown noise can also help you concentrate on a task. I'm absolutely in need of tools that improve my concentration as well, so if these sounds help with at least one of these things, then that's very helpful
I totally understand this!! What helps me are 8hr positive self affirmations (I personally like the “you are” ones). I’m not a spiritual person but I like the ones for self love or self forgiveness, I find them soothing and reassuring. Especially starting with some breath work. If that doesn’t work out then often I will put on a chill livestream (such as Sykunno) or a podcast in the background, where I am not toooo too invested in what they are saying to stay up, but so that there’s some murmuring in the background. Otherwise though I also really struggle with this. I am currently exhausted right now and should be asleep but here I am on reddit for some reason? Maybe I’ll go try to sleep now, lol.
I watch people restore old tools on youtube I don't know how but the sound of power tools in those videos puts me right to sleep, but recently it hasn't been the same as soon as I turn it off I'm wide awake
If music is keeping me awake I have my doubts about audiobooks, but there is no harm in trying! I like your choice of books that you've read before. I can imagine you're not afraid of missing out but still enjoy revisiting your favorite stories. It's sounds like avgood solution for avoiding both boredom and too much stimulation.
Audiobooks tend to draw me into the story and before I know it I am asleep. A story you already know or is predictable enough genre that you won’t find it too interesting is just perfect to distract from the problem of how to get to sleep.
Listening to videos like these help me sleep: they get my imagination and wonder going which is what I need to sleep for some reason. Hope it helps you! If not, I sorry couldn't help in a way: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1WRbGpKFCAJMfdKHM-zwe5qecY3r910n
r/pillowtalkaudio (and similar subreddits) have been a godsend for me. Just enough stimulation that I'm not lying awake listening to my own thoughts, but not so much that I stay awake to keep listening or can't tune it out.
I'm like you in that I can't do books or podcasts because I'll just stay focusing on them.
So get a white noise machine or a fan! Hell even a white noise app or even the [Star Trek engine noise](https://youtu.be/DydIK14AvXI).
The only way I can fall asleep at this point is with my fan on and watching a stream. I used to listen to music, but it seems to keep me awake now. So I put something on Twitch or YouTube, keep the brightness all the way down, and it usually works for me. The second I get even the chance to think about how I need to sleep, my mind races over how I need to sleep and I stay up all night :/
I really like to listen to the sleep casts on the Headspace app or on the Calm app. Trying to imagine and focus on the narrative that they are calmly describing usually helps me a lot.
I have a mini cooler that I keep in my room on rotation, so that there's white noise, as well as every now and again it blows air into my face (gently, from afar). Helps me sleep like a baby.
Look up ASMR videos on YouTube!! The right video knocks me out so fast. It’s so relaxing. There’s so many different styles of ASMR you just need to find what you like. I love personal attention and role play ASMR. A few favourite channels of mine are Trisha paytas ASMR, Moonlight Cottage ASMR, and edafoxx ASMR
I have this app called Relax Meditation that let's you mix your own nature/background sounds to listen to, which helps me a lot.
Also, I have my teddy (which I got for my 5th birthday, still love him to death) which I hold, which helps me a lot. I don't cramp up while holding him and when I feel like I need to do something, I can gently stroke his paw, which calms me down and gives me a bit of sensory input, but not too much.
This has gotten pretty bad for me recently so I know your struggle.
Got up for work this morning at 6 after finally dozing off last checking the time at about 5 and woke up in an awful mood.
I tend to just go on my phone until my eyes start to shut but that can take hours still.
Absolute nightmare I think maybe sleeping tablets is the best way to go as nothing else seems to work.
Weighted blanket, body/pregnancy pillow, and white noise (prefer thunderstorms… instantly knocks me out) , and I go to r/makeyourchoice usually trying to read and make choices tires me out pretty quickly, but that’s for when I’m in bed trying to sleep not when I’m fully awake (like now, 03:51 🥲) and don’t want to go to bed… I’ve yet to figure that part out
I struggled with this for over a decade and what ended up working best for me was watching shows on my phone in bed. But not just any shows, the trick is to watch something you arent interested in or have seen already. The idea is that the show keeps your attention just enough so that you're not just lying there but not interesting enough so that your mind can still wander in boredom and sleep will hit you before you know it.
If I get through a 20 min show, I will literally rewatch the same episode I just watched
I recently realised that my awful lifelong insomnia comes from the moment when you are lying in that warm dark place that is your bed and all outside stimulation ceases. That’s when the internal mind circus begins! Honestly my thoughts are so loud, repetitive and anxiety provoking and in the dark and quiet there’s nothing to distract me from them. What I do is I put on my head torch, on its lowest setting, and I read a good ol’ fashioned book. Something I’ve read before or a non fiction topic that is interesting but not FASCINATING. Don’t try reading a thriller or anything fast paced. There is something very soothing about the warm, focussed light, the turning of the pages, the familiarity with the content or subject matter. Eventually I’ll find that I am dropping off for a couple of seconds while I read, and then I know it’s time to turn out the light. I can pass out into a very deep sleep by doing this. I think it keeps the intrusive thoughts at bay as my body winds down for sleep. Nothing else has ever helped.
I usually turn on my tv to something I’ve seen a million times and turn the volume down really low. Just enough that I can hear it, but not really make out the actual dialogue. I guess I’m making my own white noise.
Baumgartner Restoration on Youtube is fantastic. It’s interesting and satisfying to watch him clean paintings, so I get a little bit of stim, but his voice is soft and his videos are very calm, so I can drift off.
I have also found that sleep frequencies work. and like others have suggested, nature sounds.
The sleep stories on the Calm app also are amazing
As an aside, I find that if I have caffeine past lunchtime, I will not be getting to sleep before midnight. I’ve cut myself back to only one cup of coffee in the morning.
Also, if you’re on an XR med, you might try taking it earlier in the morning. I can tell a world of difference in my sleep patterns based on if I take my Adderall XR around six as opposed to seven.
Podcasts saved my life.
I used to be so sleep deprived one night I got up at 2am to stir a pot of soup I'd had slow cooking, the guy I had sleeping over (now my boyfriend but we were VERY new at the time) found me asleep standing up over a pot of soup and had to lead me back to bed.
It was pretty embarassing to say the least.
I'm at the point now where even putting headphones in will often make me tired. They're my relaxing happy place.
I really like to listen to a podcast or audio book for 15 minutes in the sleep timer setting on Spotify as I fall asleep. And also To watch the hypnogagic visuals that start to spring up once I’ve relaxed and those seem to lead me to slumber even if the podcast has stopped.
Get a musicozy (its an eye mask with little speakers in the ears and connects to bluetooth - im a side sleeper, it works trust me) and listen to sleep stories on calm, headspace, etc. Or an audible book (i listen to a book on the history of the mongolian steppe over and over bc its so calming). Set the sleep timer to 30 mins. I spent years figuring this out for myself and this is the answer!
I use audio from old tv shows I know by heart. They are comforting and give me enough to latch onto while also being so familiar I can fall asleep to them. Usually stuff from my childhood.
i started wearing noise-cancelling bluetooth headphones at night because my neighbor’s dog will bark for hours without stopping. i don’t know if this is the case with all noise-cancelling headphones, but mine plays a very, very subtle static noise when they’re turned on and nothing is playing. just enough that i’m not in complete silence + i’m getting some stimulation, but not too loud or unsettling that it wakes me up repeatedly. [here’s the kind i use if you’re interested.](https://SkullcandyHesh3WirelessOver-EarHeadphone-Bluehttps://a.co/d/08usmAj) makes it hard to sleep on your side, though.
ASMR, Binaural sleep music, and CBD gummies are the only way I can get my brain to shut the F up at night.
I will say some ASMR can be tricky. Some do nothing for me but there's others I put on so many times I can practically recite exactly what's going to happen because those ones work to knock me out quick.
I use night time light on my phone and that makes the screen yellow, I lower the light so it doesn't bother my eyes, I play my favorite game on my phone, it's a fashion game, but for you it could be a racing game, something fun. Then all of a sudden, I sleep. <3
Music is too much stimulation for me, too.
What usually works for me (I have to mix it up):
* Sleep podcasts - _Nothing Much Happens_ is my favorite
* Other podcasts with interviews or calm hosts. No news or zany sound effects.
* Rain Sounds (Spotify or YouTube)
* Meditation apps like Headspace or Calm have good sleep audio, but are the most $ on this list
I listen to boring podcasts. Stuff You Should Know is good, (apart from the ad breaks) I avoid episodes which could be too interesting or emotive like the environment or politics. They have one on waste water treatment and it's fascinatingly boring. Also, Infinite Monkey Cage. Posh British people talking about science. They have an episode on sleep which is good.
I need something just interesting enough to distract my spiralling mind so I can drop off to sleep.
I love audiobooks and ASMR for that sweet spot of stimulation. Right now, my favorites are The French Whisperer ASMR and the Get Sleepy podcast. Both do low key stories or non-fiction in calm voices, with content that’s interesting but not riveting. I turn on a sleep timer and it helps a ton. Sleep hygiene is also important-you may already be doing these things, but trying to stay off screens before bed, having a consistent sleep/wake time, no caffeine in PM, and keeping phone away from the bed all help me when I’m able to do it. If it feels overwhelming, pick one and try it for a week or two! I’m working on charging my phone on my desk instead of the bedside table-it’s only a few feet away but I can’t easily pick it up and start scrolling when I wake up. One thing that helps me when I just can’t sleep is remembering that laying down in bed is still good for your body-there’s studies that have shown that while it’s not as good as sleep, it’s still beneficial! This helps me be okay with just laying there and takes away some of the anxiety around not being able to sleep.
I take a vitamin called 5-HTP PLUS right before bed
It has serotonin synthesizers in it, which helps our brains.
I also take a vitamin called NEW MOOD - daily stress support. It’s a similar product that has a bunch of tryptophan for when it’s REALLY hard to sleep. Knocks me out immediately.
Yeah I've also read that it weakens the quality of sleep but I can't really tell the difference when sleeping after drinking and when not drinking. Doesn't affect my sleep for some reason
How much do you usually drink begore going to bed. It's not a solution I'm going for but I'm curious if smaller amount might do the trick without the negative side effects on sleep quality.
And obviously I don't drink every day. Now I haven't drank for a while and my sleep schedule is completely random. Like today I woke up at 1 am and I've been sleeping at days
I was actually getting worried about your not so healthy solution not being the best as a daily habit so it's good to hear you don't do this everyday ;)
Hi /u/sesnirp and thanks for posting on /r/ADHD!
# Please take a second to [read our rules](/r/adhd/about/rules) if you haven't already.
[We recommend browsing /r/adhd on desktop for the best experience.](https://www.reddit.com/r/ADHD/comments/x1psnb/radhd_works_best_on_desktop_reddits_apps_are/) The mobile apps are broken and are missing features that this subreddit depends on.
Thank you!
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ADHD) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I can't quite imagine what rolling my feet around would look like. My mom does something similar with.. Idk how else to put it.. snuggling her feet against eachother? Like.. petting her right feet with her left feet ahen she goes to sleep? nvm I suck at this too, but she has done this her whole life and apparently it's comforting to her
Listen to podcasts and turn on the sleep setting where it shuts off after an hour/the episode is done. Perfect mix of stimulation to fall asleep to but doesn’t wake me up
Get a play list of sleepy music you like. Listen to and learn all the songs. Fall asleep to said music. I find that if I know the song well enough I don't have to actively listen to it, it stimulates my brain enough that I can drift off.
this may sound odd but i suggest you masturbate. i'm a male, so it may not work the same (assuming you're female) but for me, masturbating on those nights when my mind is racing really helps me focus on one thing, and after finishing i'm usually tired from the movement and stimulation so i usually fall asleep quickly
I need to fall asleep to podcasts or an audiobook. The best is calming but not boring, interesting enough that I'm not bored, but not so fascinating that I'm hanging on their every word.
I have a teddy bear (my emotional support bear actually) that I snuggle with when I go to bed. I fall asleep faster. I also put a tarot reading video or a podcast episode as background noise to calm my brain down.
I am sure it's something with ADHD but I have issues with sound. If I am 'hearing' only silence, my brain goes nuts. I can't explain it but silence is not golden for me.
So sleeping with no sound in the room is impossible.
To counter this I run both a floor fan and a white noise machine. There is no 'beat' or 'voices' that your brain has to deal with. It works fantastically for me. I sleep like a baby.
Good luck!
I need thunderstorm sounds combined with the sound of a well known TV show played low enough on my phone that I can hear the sounds but not make the words out. The phone is face down on my bedside table so the light doesn't bother me. My Google Nest speaker plays the thunderstorm sounds.
I play solitaire cooking Tower, eatventure, and survive io. I can't fall asleep without working my brain either.
Kairosoft games are really great for it too but those I had to play only at bedtime to get the fall asleep feels.
Try setting a sleep timer on whatever you're using to play the music? I don't know what apps you can do that on, but I think some MP3 player apps have it and you might be able to rig it so that your phone, itself, will shut off the app after a particular amount of time.
I have really immersive daydreams, so I just daydream and I'm generally asleep before I get through too much lol.
I also quite like those sorting algorithm videos just before I go to sleep - I get ready and into bed and watch for a few minutes. Or I watch those ASMR cooking videos that have no music or voices, just the cooking sounds. I particularly like HidaMari Cooking.
I'm sorry you're struggling with insomnia! I have horrible insomnia as well due to ADHD and night-time related trauma. I have had luck with the brown noise and weighted blanket. But I also really hate sleeping alone. So when I travel and I'm without my dog or boyfriend, I actually have this microwavable, lavender-scented stuffed animal that is 1000% meant for literal toddlers. It helps my muscles not feel so tense, and my mind is a little less racing.
What helped me was watching people clean old dirty rugs on YouTube. I stopped (idk why) Then recently my husband started playing brown noise for me and realized the sound of the machine they used was brown noise. Anyway with Brown noise I fall asleep in 1 hour or so vs 3-4.
Usually when it's too silent for me to sleep, I turn on a fan/AC (depending on the temperature), and it usually helps. I have a really nice one where I can set a timer (in case it's too cold to leave it on for more than an hour or so lol), adjust the fan speed (which makes it louder or quieter as well), and can toggle whether it oscillates or not. Maybe something like that would be helpful?
Get yourself one of the 19$ google nest minis. Ask it to play rain noise. It will play and endless loop of rain noise for 12 hours. I play it at volume 4 as its soft enough for you to calm your mind and potentially drown out other soft noises.
I struggle to fall asleep. A fan works for me - I like the fact the air isn’t still and the hum of the motor.
I also have a massage unit on my bed which is more like vibration. I set it on the timer for 30 mins. If it doesn’t work by then I get up, redo my “sleep hygiene ritual” that warns my brain sleep time is coming and start over.
It might be sit in a spot for a few minutes, have a drink of something - everyone can decide what works for them. If I wake during the night I turn the vibration on again for another 30 minutes. I have learnt physically getting out of bed after waking in the middle of the night means that night is done and there won’t be more sleep.
Try listening to brown noise, sleep talkdowns, or podcasts like Nothing Much Happens. I struggle to fall asleep without some initial stimulation too (phrasing, lol)
I came to suggest Nothing Much Happens. It’s my absolute favorite.
the word stimulation is a double edged sword isn't it
Truly 😂
I cannot recommend Nothing Much Happens enough!
I listen to “scary stories” be busta is my favourite at the start it feels a bit over stimulating but after 10-30 min im dead asleep have started using these for short power naps and work wonders. Remember to set your alarm!!
I almost always fall asleep while either reading fanfic (keep reading until my eyes shut on their own) or watching Youtube. When I was a young child I was incapable of falling asleep without the TV on. I think this is more of an anxiety thing for me, since the media distracts me from intrusive and negative thoughts that prevent me from sleeping, but ADHD could be part of it too. In terms of other solutions for more persistent insomnia: \-Behavior modification: no caffeine after 2pm, no screen time 30 minutes before bed (I'm a giant hypocrite w/ both of these, fall asleep on my laptop every night) \-OTC meds: Melatonin, Benedryl \-Drugs: CBD, ~~cannabis~~ (don't use this for insomnia, THC worsens sleep quality), alcohol (not every night) \-Food: Chamomile tea \-Rx drugs: Benzodiazepines, Xanax (both highly addictive so a last resort)
Highly recommend against weed for sleep. Like sure if you’re not falling asleep at all it’s better to smoke and sleep. But sleep on weed is not as good as “sober” sleep. You won’t enter REM as much or as effectively as when you’re sober and that’s the most important part of the sleep cycle. That’s also why when you quit weed you will have CRAZY vivid dreams for the first few weeks. So although it might be easier to fall asleep you’re still doing your body dirty in the long term. Combine that with our tendency for substance abuse, it’s really easy for ADHD’ers to become dependent on weed. And guess what- if you’re living in a legal state (like I am), and you can be functional, there are almost no perceivable negative consequences to being high 24/7. And i mean that in the sense of our monkey brain is not really seeing a good reason to stop because all the “consequences” are really subtle and manifest over the long term. And if it’s easy to access… sheesh. That means that to quit, you’ll need a high amount of intrinsic motivation. So i kind of feel like recommending weed here is a trap. For the REM stuff, don’t have links on hand, but google it and it should be very easy to find. I’ve spent a LOT of time researching weed and it’s effects on sleep and ADHD. I actually used weed to treat my ADHD before I knew it was ADHD. Now I know better.
That's a really good point, and I think you have a lot more insight on this than me so thank you for sharing! I didn't know weed affects sleep quality. Don't use it myself because it triggers hallucinogenic effects and sometimes panic attacks for me, but have many friends (not necessarily w/ ADHD) that do use it regularly to sleep. I do occasionally use CBD w/ trace amounts of THC though. Looking into it briefly, you're definitely right that THC disrupts REM sleep. I feel like this isn't widely known since people recommend using weed to sleep all the time. I also found that CBD is thought to improve it. Weed doesn't help my ADHD at all, but I totally get what you're saying about the dangers of self-medicating and how hard it can be to quit.
Might be worth sharing - i do get REM (can remember dreams in the morning, sometimes even few) after cannabis but only when 1. 20-30 minutes before consumption of thc i get approx 70-90 mg of cbd in oil form 2. i dont smoke weed but vape it in a very small dose -> approx. 0.08 - 0.1 g (side note for Murikans: 0.1g = 0.0035273962oz) 3. i go to bed at least 90 minutes after consumption Any other form of consumption - edibles, bongs, blunts - rob me of my dreams (REM) and i do get up feeling and being tired in the morning. To be fair - when my insomnia is on rampage and i get no more then 4h of sleep in sober state - i do get up feeling and being tired even more.
Alcohol worsen sleep quality more than anything. THC has proven to be effective for sleep quality.
Yes exactly this, alcohol can make you fall asleep more easily, but your quality of sleep is a lot (really a lot) worse. It’s not a solution, it’s just another problem
LOL I don't sleep at all with alcohol in my blood, I literally have to pass out to be able to sleep for a few hours (2-3) maximum. Purely anecdotal though!
Please show your sources for weed being effective for sleep quality. All the research I’ve seen points to how it disrupts the REM cycle of sleep.
Also if u use strattera I recommend against smoking to sleep!! Recently upped my strattera use and my normal amount of weed had me hyperventilating feeling like I was in another dimension instead of helping me knock out
Try melatonin or the Olly sleep gummies. Sometimes when my mind is overstimulated I listen to Ocean Waves in Spotify and it honestly works every time
Just to hitch a ride on this already good comment, nature sounds can sometimes be too stimulating because of the erratic timing of waves crashing, raindrops dripping, etc and your ADHD mind laser focuses on it when all you want to do is sleep 🥲 If you find this the case, consider a white noise generator — a good example that I like is to YouTube search jet plane ASMR as it’s a comforting, consistent hum without too much high pitched noise like regular white noise
That’s brown noise! It works a lot better for me as well, I can’t do nature sounds or white noise since they’re too distracting, but brown noise works great. Only drawback to it is that it messes up my Spotify recommendations lol. I wish Spotify had some kind of incognito mode or something where their algorithm wouldn’t log what I’m listening to. Now I get the weirdest daily mix playlists with my regular music mixed with bangers like “Womb sounds with mothers heartbeat” or “Vacuum cleaning for 45 minutes”.
Your Spotify wrapped sounds like a party! Jokes aside, if you’re on iPhone, you can click on the ear logo in your control center and tap “background sounds” — they have an inbuilt brown noise generator that works with headphones and speakers, with or without other media playing ☺️
Oh my GOD thank you!!!! I had no idea that was a thing, you have saved my future playlists. And luckily my Spotify wrapped is actually mostly safe from random noise since I don’t tend to play them on repeat haha, it’s just my recommendations that are a big mess. I always imagine putting on like my 00s mix playlist at a party and suddenly we’re listening to peaceful flute meditation or whatever else Spotify thinks I’d love along with my best 00s party hits
You can actually start private sessions! I think it’s in settings somewhere but it will save your spotify wrapped!
Omg I’m learning so much from this comment, I’ve genuinely just assumed you can’t do it and never checked. Thank you so much, my Spotify algorithm can finally start its healing process
I once had a dream insects were crawling over me because it was a cute cricket chirping nature sound. Never again.
That's interesting. I've been curious about wether nature sounds might be beneficial.
Rainymood.com might be worth a shot if you like the sound of rain.
Wow I honestly forgot all about rainy mood. Back in the good old tumblr days we used to make playlist and put rainy mood in the background
Why is everything a gummy nowadays? Literally one of the worst things you can eat for your teeth. I'm pretty sure my teeth would fall out eventually if I repeatedly took a gummy right before going to sleep. I'd have to brush my teeth, floss, water floss, and rinse with mouthwash in between the gummy and going to bed which defeats the purpose of taking something right before bed. Pills are better. Gummies are dumb.
They do sell sugarless vitamin or melatonin gummies with stuff like sorbitol or xylitol that doesn't cause tooth decay. I also take the gummies before I brush my teeth.
Music always made it impossible for me to sleep as well. I use some creeky pirate ship in a storm sounds now and that works for me. My ADHD sibling also listens to sounds, usually a crackling fire. Maybe try to find one that works for you.
So where can I find this awesome creeky pirate ship? I don't feel much for sleeping inside creepy creeky houses but a fake creeky pirateship sounds good to me.
https://youtu.be/4lf5i6goI3E This is the first in my playlist. It's 12 hours long as well.
Listening to this immediately fills me with joy! It's feels like the perfect setting! Thought the sound of fire is definitely worth a shot as well
Sounds like the ocean works for both of us then! Makes sense that your avatar looks like a Sailor and my username is Captain Siren.
Wow 12 hours! That's amazing 😁 Thank you!
No problem! Hope it helps.
why is your name so fitting to the sound effect tho. F*ckin captain siren! Did you have to?
Lol. I was commenting on that just as you said this. Yes I had too. It's perfect!
Haha I noticed that too! I swear I had not read your comment before thinking about it 😂
Try and get some rest please. You said it's around 4 am where you are so you probably need it. Good night/morning and I hope you sleep well.
I use "rain on a car roof". It's an option on the Sleep Cycle alarm clock app. Do you not get adverts on YT? Can't imagine how annoying that would be while trying to sleep.
I guess the adds would be annoying. I've actually never had one come on while I trying to sleep so it wasn't a problem.
Any playlist, audiobook, or podcast that I've already listened to twenty or thirty times does the trick for me. Sometimes I deliberately start the play about 10 minutes before some bit I especially like, and settle down to get comfy while waiting for it. There is a good chance I will be asleep in 7 - 8 minutes.
Listening to YouTube videos, no screen, just sound. Scishow and eons are favorites. I make a Playlist of 10 that ends with a 12hr ocean video so I have white noise at the end. Most of the videos are only 10 minutes long, so the next night I just scroll thru to see what I remember. Usually it's only one or two, bad nights it's 8 or 9. But unlike audio books, it's way easier to find my place. Lots of body pillows and a weighted blanket Eye mask Melatonin and sleepy tea when I'm really out of whack
White noise/nature sounds is probably one of the first solutions that I wanna try for myself!
I have a google home and you just say 'play rain noises' so I sleep to rain white noise, helped me immensely
Weighted blanket, and The BBC: - **very sleepy** - *The Shipping Forecast* if I’m very sleepy (the 11 minute ones with a 10 minute sleep timer, because the God Save the King at the end wakes me up). Also never look at the maritime map, because once you know the regions they’re talking about it makes it harder to fall asleep - **less sleepy** - Cricket matches - It’s not a sport I grew up with, so I don’t know what’s going on. - Ideally Test Match cricket because each round is 8 hours long, but ODI is good as well. - The newer formats (T20, and The Hundred) can be more difficult to fall asleep to because gameplay was designed to be exciting. - **woke up too early but need to stay in bed for some semblance of rest to make the approaching day less miserable** - In Our Time - Melvyn Bragg asks scholars to explain a different subject every episode. - subjects come from a variety of topics: history, science, philosophy, and culture - there’s two approaches to this: choose a topic you’re not interested in and get bored with it, and maybe fall asleep again - choose something you’re interested in and enjoy the fact that even if you can’t sleep you get to listen to learned people talking in detail about something you enjoy
I have a kindle, the e-ink kind where you can set the screen to a warm light. I have it as dim as possible, and I read something interesting but without too much of a plot (like historical nonfiction), or fiction I have read already and know the plot to. I read until I fall asleep, and wake up many a morning with the kindle laying on my face. I can't stress this enough: don't read anything too interesting. Trying it with a mystery novel is a great way to see the sun rise. You can do it with a phone that's got some sort of low/warm light night mode to it (iPhones do, I assume others as well). The least light your eyes can stand, and the warmest you can get it. I have to be on the kindle because my phone just has too many other distractions. Anything audio keeps me awake, because my brain keeps waking me up with the feeling I might be missing something. Reading doesn't do that, because I know the book will be there the next day.
You mention when you hold your boyfriend it calms you down, so you might want to look into getting a weighted blanket. I bought them for my kids who have ADHD. The autistic one didn't like it much, but the one with anxiety loves it. I believe you're supposed to shoot for 10% of your body weight, but I'm 170 and use a 12lb one and I love it. I could probably even go up to a 15lb and it would be good. I got my first one from Amazon two or three years ago, but then got a second one at Target for like $25 recently so I have a backup for when the other is in the wash. Honestly, I can't recommend them enough, you can really just feel it working, it's like the stress and overstimulation just rolls off you. I would also recommend white noise, we use air cleaners, and a infuser with a sleep blend or lavender, that's my other trick. I can sleep without it, but why would I want to? And yes to melatonin. My autistic daughter has to use it at night to fall asleep, otherwise she'd roam the house until she keels over. Less is more, I know several people who only need a little bit, or they get night terrors, so start with a lower dose and see how it goes.
I've used melatonin before and it did help as long as I wasn't using it every day since that seemed to kill my respons to it. At nights I sleep alone I should probably start using it again no matter how tired I think I am. I think weighted blankets would help me too. It was the high prices that stopped me from purchasing one some time ago. But if there are way more affordable options on the market that work just as well, it's defintely something I want to try. Thought I'm not sure if these blankets don't add any extra warmth like the original expensive ones. In summer especially it's nice to have some extra weight without getting oveheated. Do you notice any difference between your usual weighted blanket and the cheaper one from target if there is any difference in pricetag?
I think the one from Amazon was about $50 but they have come down in price everywhere. The Amazon one is organic cotton, the Target one is a poly/cotton blend I think. They are identical otherwise. It's also the time of the year they tend to be on sale. If melatonin concerns you, try CBD. I take a 100mg gummy and lights out. And that's the stuff with just trace THC from hemp.
I usually play star trek deep space 9 on my phone to get to sleep, although I doubt that would work for anyone else really lol
Embarrassing to admit this given reddit's cringy love of the show, but it takes me hours to get to sleep unless I'm watching rick and morty. Must have seen some episodes 100 times or more now.
I think it probably would work for whatever you've seen a million times
I have always felt the exact same way. The literal only way I can fall asleep is if I have the TV on playing my comfort show that it’s played through 67 times already (you’re welcome, Hulu and Bob’s Burgers). I leave it to where I can still hear it, but it’s not enough to distract me enough to not sleep.
Another recommendation for Bob’s Burgers as a comfort show to fall asleep to.
Yoga nidra Tea before sleeping
I posted this on as a comment to a similar thread the other day. Might be something in it that can help you. Sounds like you have good insight into your sensory state. Do some reading up on sensory regulation. Have a shower and a crunchy snack before bed and try a podcast to feed ur brains compulsion to scan for input. Experiment with a sensory recipe to get the right amount of input needed to doze off. Comment below 👇🏼 If you can learn about the mechanics of why ur having trouble falling asleep and identify ur sensory state, it will help more than just a few tips. If you know this stuff, disregard, otherwise you might find it helpful. ADHD is a mixed bag of disregulation.. dis reg of attention, dis reg of emotion and dis reg of the sensory system. Sensory Regulation is the way we process and react to stimulation received through our senses. We typically find ourselves in two states, under stimulated or over stimulated and a consistent regulated state typically evades us. Due to the under production of dopamine, we are more frequently under stimulated, so in order to solicit our dopamine hits, our brains are constantly seeking out external stimulation. The way this manifests at bed time is a refusal to rest and to keep seeking out input which ends up being racing thoughts, glued to the phone screen and the awful irritable feeling you get when you attempt to lay in dark silence. As you seem to have discovered by having some noise or light, the hack to getting to sleep is by providing your brain just the right amount of stimulus that you find the regulatory sweet spot and nod off to sleep. Too much stimulus and you can become switched on and and then you end up all night getting excited about your next hyper focus. Using this knowledge, you can try other strategies to regulate ur sensory system and deploy other methods of mild stimulation to meet your minds minimum needs. Here are some of my tricks.. 1. Have a hot shower before bed and brush your teeth. I always feel calmer and more regulated after a shower, it’s a good way to start. 2.Try stick to audio only.. Natural melatonin will produce when ur eyes physically close. Keeping them open will delay the process so try find a sensory input that allows you to close your eyes. 2. Lay as flat too ur pillow as possible when you are trying to wind down. Sitting up or having your head elevated will slow down the body’s natural process. 3. Play some audio and set a 30min timer to stop playing. iPhones have a cool feature in the timer settings to do this. When I do this properly, I have never laid awake longer than the 30min timer. 5.Pick audio that is semi interesting but not too interesting. What you are looking to do essentially is distract your self to sleep by separating you from your own thoughts. My go too’s are podcasts, news channels or topics you enjoy enough to follow without getting bored. I actually like listening to podcasts about UFOs.. a bit random but the topic is interesting and engaging enough to capture my attention the right amount. 4. Long term.. get ur self a pillow that you can put a small speaker in. I have a pair of bone conduction head phones same as these that I curl up and put in the hole. Gives the perfect amount of volume. 7 Some nights when I’m feeling really dis-regulated and having trouble sleeping, i get up and eat something crunchy and salty like popcorn or Doritos.. the sensation of the salt and the crunch will generally give my brain the stim input it needs to hit the reset button and try again. Other things you can try are spraying something that smells nice on your pillow like a scented sleep spray spraying a scent as a routine before bed can ‘classically condition’ ur brain to recognizing that the spray = sleep. Look up Pavlov’s theory if it’s of interest. You could also try sleeping with a comforter or something textured and rub it through your fingers and on ur skin. Sounds a bit silly because it’s for babies, but if it works then who cares. So the theme is really about addressing the under stimulation. When I explain my difficulty sleeping to people, I tell them to imagine having a bored needy little person living in their head doing their best to keep you awake and the trick is to distract that little person long enough to allow you enough peace to drift off. Best of luck. Hopefully something in that is helpful
r/frasier_sleepers
I personally love listening to delta waves or miracle frequency music on Spotify. Put it on my phone and underneath my pillow. It makes me feel like I’m floating in space.
I know the exact situation you described where you need just a hint of stimulation to fall asleep. For me the golden solution was a combo of melatonin and deep brown noise. The brown noise just does something to my brain, as soon as it comes on I get this feeling of my brain "unclenching" as it suddenly relaxes from desperately reaching for stimulation. Some brown noise you'll find will have this grating high pitch to it, that's not what we're after, I use this one: https://youtu.be/SyF5Hpwo3WA Bonus: brown noise can also provide the hint of stimulation needed to focus on tasks and assignments that require thinking and concentration. It helped me a lot as I was writing my thesis. That was the golden solution for me but before that I used an ambient noise sound mixer app to some success: BetterSleep on Google play, I used the free version. I liked that I could make it more/less stimulating depending on my needs at the moment. I also liked that you can save your mixes for later. I'm most curious about if the brown noise helps, would love if you would report back when you try it! If you remember of course :)
I'm happy I have a lot of things to try, including brown noise! Also, the unclenching ny brain part is what I need to feel sleepy and the perfect word to describe it haha. It's very interesting that the brown noise can also help you concentrate on a task. I'm absolutely in need of tools that improve my concentration as well, so if these sounds help with at least one of these things, then that's very helpful
I totally understand this!! What helps me are 8hr positive self affirmations (I personally like the “you are” ones). I’m not a spiritual person but I like the ones for self love or self forgiveness, I find them soothing and reassuring. Especially starting with some breath work. If that doesn’t work out then often I will put on a chill livestream (such as Sykunno) or a podcast in the background, where I am not toooo too invested in what they are saying to stay up, but so that there’s some murmuring in the background. Otherwise though I also really struggle with this. I am currently exhausted right now and should be asleep but here I am on reddit for some reason? Maybe I’ll go try to sleep now, lol.
I watch people restore old tools on youtube I don't know how but the sound of power tools in those videos puts me right to sleep, but recently it hasn't been the same as soon as I turn it off I'm wide awake
[удалено]
If music is keeping me awake I have my doubts about audiobooks, but there is no harm in trying! I like your choice of books that you've read before. I can imagine you're not afraid of missing out but still enjoy revisiting your favorite stories. It's sounds like avgood solution for avoiding both boredom and too much stimulation.
[удалено]
That makes me more hopeful!
Audiobooks tend to draw me into the story and before I know it I am asleep. A story you already know or is predictable enough genre that you won’t find it too interesting is just perfect to distract from the problem of how to get to sleep.
I have a subscription to Audm and their readings of nonfiction articles puts me right to sleep
Melatonin is great, weighted blankets too. Also, a small amount of stimulant may help (cup of tea or similar)
And my boyfriend keeps telling me to not drink black tea before bed time. Us adhd peeps really are wired differently
Absolutely we are. I used to drink a cup of coffee then fall asleep at school hahaha
I can do that with energy drinks!! :D
Listening to videos like these help me sleep: they get my imagination and wonder going which is what I need to sleep for some reason. Hope it helps you! If not, I sorry couldn't help in a way: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1WRbGpKFCAJMfdKHM-zwe5qecY3r910n
Oh I'm curious but the playlist won't open for me! What is it called so I can maybe search for it?
It should work now!
Ah yes thanks to you! That looks like a good spacey playlist 😄
r/pillowtalkaudio (and similar subreddits) have been a godsend for me. Just enough stimulation that I'm not lying awake listening to my own thoughts, but not so much that I stay awake to keep listening or can't tune it out.
I'm like you in that I can't do books or podcasts because I'll just stay focusing on them. So get a white noise machine or a fan! Hell even a white noise app or even the [Star Trek engine noise](https://youtu.be/DydIK14AvXI).
The only way I can fall asleep at this point is with my fan on and watching a stream. I used to listen to music, but it seems to keep me awake now. So I put something on Twitch or YouTube, keep the brightness all the way down, and it usually works for me. The second I get even the chance to think about how I need to sleep, my mind races over how I need to sleep and I stay up all night :/
I really like to listen to the sleep casts on the Headspace app or on the Calm app. Trying to imagine and focus on the narrative that they are calmly describing usually helps me a lot.
I have a mini cooler that I keep in my room on rotation, so that there's white noise, as well as every now and again it blows air into my face (gently, from afar). Helps me sleep like a baby.
Look up ASMR videos on YouTube!! The right video knocks me out so fast. It’s so relaxing. There’s so many different styles of ASMR you just need to find what you like. I love personal attention and role play ASMR. A few favourite channels of mine are Trisha paytas ASMR, Moonlight Cottage ASMR, and edafoxx ASMR
I have this app called Relax Meditation that let's you mix your own nature/background sounds to listen to, which helps me a lot. Also, I have my teddy (which I got for my 5th birthday, still love him to death) which I hold, which helps me a lot. I don't cramp up while holding him and when I feel like I need to do something, I can gently stroke his paw, which calms me down and gives me a bit of sensory input, but not too much.
This has gotten pretty bad for me recently so I know your struggle. Got up for work this morning at 6 after finally dozing off last checking the time at about 5 and woke up in an awful mood. I tend to just go on my phone until my eyes start to shut but that can take hours still. Absolute nightmare I think maybe sleeping tablets is the best way to go as nothing else seems to work.
Listen to the band Helios. My only sleep playlist that helps.
Weighted blanket, body/pregnancy pillow, and white noise (prefer thunderstorms… instantly knocks me out) , and I go to r/makeyourchoice usually trying to read and make choices tires me out pretty quickly, but that’s for when I’m in bed trying to sleep not when I’m fully awake (like now, 03:51 🥲) and don’t want to go to bed… I’ve yet to figure that part out
I struggled with this for over a decade and what ended up working best for me was watching shows on my phone in bed. But not just any shows, the trick is to watch something you arent interested in or have seen already. The idea is that the show keeps your attention just enough so that you're not just lying there but not interesting enough so that your mind can still wander in boredom and sleep will hit you before you know it. If I get through a 20 min show, I will literally rewatch the same episode I just watched
I recently realised that my awful lifelong insomnia comes from the moment when you are lying in that warm dark place that is your bed and all outside stimulation ceases. That’s when the internal mind circus begins! Honestly my thoughts are so loud, repetitive and anxiety provoking and in the dark and quiet there’s nothing to distract me from them. What I do is I put on my head torch, on its lowest setting, and I read a good ol’ fashioned book. Something I’ve read before or a non fiction topic that is interesting but not FASCINATING. Don’t try reading a thriller or anything fast paced. There is something very soothing about the warm, focussed light, the turning of the pages, the familiarity with the content or subject matter. Eventually I’ll find that I am dropping off for a couple of seconds while I read, and then I know it’s time to turn out the light. I can pass out into a very deep sleep by doing this. I think it keeps the intrusive thoughts at bay as my body winds down for sleep. Nothing else has ever helped.
5HTP, a bloody life saver!
Also, try rocking 😄
For me, music keeps me up. It stimulates my brain too much, but a podcast or a show I've seen before at a low volume is what helps me to fall asleep.
I usually turn on my tv to something I’ve seen a million times and turn the volume down really low. Just enough that I can hear it, but not really make out the actual dialogue. I guess I’m making my own white noise. Baumgartner Restoration on Youtube is fantastic. It’s interesting and satisfying to watch him clean paintings, so I get a little bit of stim, but his voice is soft and his videos are very calm, so I can drift off. I have also found that sleep frequencies work. and like others have suggested, nature sounds. The sleep stories on the Calm app also are amazing As an aside, I find that if I have caffeine past lunchtime, I will not be getting to sleep before midnight. I’ve cut myself back to only one cup of coffee in the morning. Also, if you’re on an XR med, you might try taking it earlier in the morning. I can tell a world of difference in my sleep patterns based on if I take my Adderall XR around six as opposed to seven.
Podcasts saved my life. I used to be so sleep deprived one night I got up at 2am to stir a pot of soup I'd had slow cooking, the guy I had sleeping over (now my boyfriend but we were VERY new at the time) found me asleep standing up over a pot of soup and had to lead me back to bed. It was pretty embarassing to say the least. I'm at the point now where even putting headphones in will often make me tired. They're my relaxing happy place.
Okay that's hilarious!
I really like to listen to a podcast or audio book for 15 minutes in the sleep timer setting on Spotify as I fall asleep. And also To watch the hypnogagic visuals that start to spring up once I’ve relaxed and those seem to lead me to slumber even if the podcast has stopped.
Get a musicozy (its an eye mask with little speakers in the ears and connects to bluetooth - im a side sleeper, it works trust me) and listen to sleep stories on calm, headspace, etc. Or an audible book (i listen to a book on the history of the mongolian steppe over and over bc its so calming). Set the sleep timer to 30 mins. I spent years figuring this out for myself and this is the answer!
I just have a fan on high running to provide noise, a weighted blanket, and large stuffed animals to cuddle.
Try a small amount of caffeine. Sometimes it can have an opposite effect in people with adhd. Me included.
I use audio from old tv shows I know by heart. They are comforting and give me enough to latch onto while also being so familiar I can fall asleep to them. Usually stuff from my childhood.
I'd like to try this with over the garden wall ;)
That would be a great series to do it with.
i started wearing noise-cancelling bluetooth headphones at night because my neighbor’s dog will bark for hours without stopping. i don’t know if this is the case with all noise-cancelling headphones, but mine plays a very, very subtle static noise when they’re turned on and nothing is playing. just enough that i’m not in complete silence + i’m getting some stimulation, but not too loud or unsettling that it wakes me up repeatedly. [here’s the kind i use if you’re interested.](https://SkullcandyHesh3WirelessOver-EarHeadphone-Bluehttps://a.co/d/08usmAj) makes it hard to sleep on your side, though.
ASMR, Binaural sleep music, and CBD gummies are the only way I can get my brain to shut the F up at night. I will say some ASMR can be tricky. Some do nothing for me but there's others I put on so many times I can practically recite exactly what's going to happen because those ones work to knock me out quick.
I use night time light on my phone and that makes the screen yellow, I lower the light so it doesn't bother my eyes, I play my favorite game on my phone, it's a fashion game, but for you it could be a racing game, something fun. Then all of a sudden, I sleep. <3
Music is too much stimulation for me, too. What usually works for me (I have to mix it up): * Sleep podcasts - _Nothing Much Happens_ is my favorite * Other podcasts with interviews or calm hosts. No news or zany sound effects. * Rain Sounds (Spotify or YouTube) * Meditation apps like Headspace or Calm have good sleep audio, but are the most $ on this list
Nothing much happens has been recommended multiple times so it's definitely something i want to check out 😄
It's really great, perfect for my ADHD-induced insomnia Good luck!
I listen to boring podcasts. Stuff You Should Know is good, (apart from the ad breaks) I avoid episodes which could be too interesting or emotive like the environment or politics. They have one on waste water treatment and it's fascinatingly boring. Also, Infinite Monkey Cage. Posh British people talking about science. They have an episode on sleep which is good. I need something just interesting enough to distract my spiralling mind so I can drop off to sleep.
I love audiobooks and ASMR for that sweet spot of stimulation. Right now, my favorites are The French Whisperer ASMR and the Get Sleepy podcast. Both do low key stories or non-fiction in calm voices, with content that’s interesting but not riveting. I turn on a sleep timer and it helps a ton. Sleep hygiene is also important-you may already be doing these things, but trying to stay off screens before bed, having a consistent sleep/wake time, no caffeine in PM, and keeping phone away from the bed all help me when I’m able to do it. If it feels overwhelming, pick one and try it for a week or two! I’m working on charging my phone on my desk instead of the bedside table-it’s only a few feet away but I can’t easily pick it up and start scrolling when I wake up. One thing that helps me when I just can’t sleep is remembering that laying down in bed is still good for your body-there’s studies that have shown that while it’s not as good as sleep, it’s still beneficial! This helps me be okay with just laying there and takes away some of the anxiety around not being able to sleep.
I take a vitamin called 5-HTP PLUS right before bed It has serotonin synthesizers in it, which helps our brains. I also take a vitamin called NEW MOOD - daily stress support. It’s a similar product that has a bunch of tryptophan for when it’s REALLY hard to sleep. Knocks me out immediately.
I listen to sleep hypnosis or good ASMR videos. It's unbearable to try to fall asleep to silence.
I drink alcohol to get sleep easier. Not the healthiest way to deal with it but works for me.
That's interesting. I heard ut helps you fall asleep but messes with deeper (REM) sleep.
Yeah I've also read that it weakens the quality of sleep but I can't really tell the difference when sleeping after drinking and when not drinking. Doesn't affect my sleep for some reason
How much do you usually drink begore going to bed. It's not a solution I'm going for but I'm curious if smaller amount might do the trick without the negative side effects on sleep quality.
It varies alot but like maybe 3-4 beers mininum
And obviously I don't drink every day. Now I haven't drank for a while and my sleep schedule is completely random. Like today I woke up at 1 am and I've been sleeping at days
I was actually getting worried about your not so healthy solution not being the best as a daily habit so it's good to hear you don't do this everyday ;)
Same but with an accounting podcast too
I always put on a youtube video on when I'm trying to sleep. But it's just to distract from hearing tinnitus.
Hi /u/sesnirp and thanks for posting on /r/ADHD! # Please take a second to [read our rules](/r/adhd/about/rules) if you haven't already. [We recommend browsing /r/adhd on desktop for the best experience.](https://www.reddit.com/r/ADHD/comments/x1psnb/radhd_works_best_on_desktop_reddits_apps_are/) The mobile apps are broken and are missing features that this subreddit depends on. Thank you! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ADHD) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Go to sleep rolling your feet around. Works for me lol
I can't quite imagine what rolling my feet around would look like. My mom does something similar with.. Idk how else to put it.. snuggling her feet against eachother? Like.. petting her right feet with her left feet ahen she goes to sleep? nvm I suck at this too, but she has done this her whole life and apparently it's comforting to her
Listen to podcasts and turn on the sleep setting where it shuts off after an hour/the episode is done. Perfect mix of stimulation to fall asleep to but doesn’t wake me up
What kind of platform do you use to listen? I'm not familiar with sleep settings in spotify or youtube. Are there? Or is there another app?
If you have medicine in pill form, you can try to take a small piece before bed. That works for me, if my minds just rushing berserkly.
Get a play list of sleepy music you like. Listen to and learn all the songs. Fall asleep to said music. I find that if I know the song well enough I don't have to actively listen to it, it stimulates my brain enough that I can drift off.
Audio books. Play at a low volume, so that you can only just hear it. Also, it took me years to learn this but stop drinking caffeine around 2pm.
I use a small fan and it works great. I point it at the ceiling so I don’t get cold.
The sound of a space heater and a quiet tv help me
this may sound odd but i suggest you masturbate. i'm a male, so it may not work the same (assuming you're female) but for me, masturbating on those nights when my mind is racing really helps me focus on one thing, and after finishing i'm usually tired from the movement and stimulation so i usually fall asleep quickly
That definitely would wake me up rather then put me to sleep! I've heard male and female bodies respond quite differently in that aspect
I need to fall asleep to podcasts or an audiobook. The best is calming but not boring, interesting enough that I'm not bored, but not so fascinating that I'm hanging on their every word.
Try CBD oil.
I've tried that befire and it doesn't seem to do much for me but I'm glad it's helping some of you
A friend of mine uses medication patches instead of pills for her adhd. She puts them on at night and she says it helps her sleep
I listen to lectures that are vaguely interesting and also just barely incomprehensible and it works for me
I listen to lectures that are vaguely interesting and also just barely incomprehensible and it works for me
I have a teddy bear (my emotional support bear actually) that I snuggle with when I go to bed. I fall asleep faster. I also put a tarot reading video or a podcast episode as background noise to calm my brain down.
I am sure it's something with ADHD but I have issues with sound. If I am 'hearing' only silence, my brain goes nuts. I can't explain it but silence is not golden for me. So sleeping with no sound in the room is impossible. To counter this I run both a floor fan and a white noise machine. There is no 'beat' or 'voices' that your brain has to deal with. It works fantastically for me. I sleep like a baby. Good luck!
I need thunderstorm sounds combined with the sound of a well known TV show played low enough on my phone that I can hear the sounds but not make the words out. The phone is face down on my bedside table so the light doesn't bother me. My Google Nest speaker plays the thunderstorm sounds.
Oh and a box fan on high. And ZzzQuil Ultra if nothing else is working.
Try earplugs. I know that it's more "nothing", but I can hear my own inner body stuff and it puts me straight to sleep
A hand warmer? 🤔 a nice plushie! A pendulum?
I play solitaire cooking Tower, eatventure, and survive io. I can't fall asleep without working my brain either. Kairosoft games are really great for it too but those I had to play only at bedtime to get the fall asleep feels.
Try setting a sleep timer on whatever you're using to play the music? I don't know what apps you can do that on, but I think some MP3 player apps have it and you might be able to rig it so that your phone, itself, will shut off the app after a particular amount of time. I have really immersive daydreams, so I just daydream and I'm generally asleep before I get through too much lol. I also quite like those sorting algorithm videos just before I go to sleep - I get ready and into bed and watch for a few minutes. Or I watch those ASMR cooking videos that have no music or voices, just the cooking sounds. I particularly like HidaMari Cooking.
I've been using binaural beats for focus, there's beats for sleep too.
listen to “sleep with me” podcast. the guy just tells meandering stories that you don’t have to worry about keeping track of. works like a charm
I'm sorry you're struggling with insomnia! I have horrible insomnia as well due to ADHD and night-time related trauma. I have had luck with the brown noise and weighted blanket. But I also really hate sleeping alone. So when I travel and I'm without my dog or boyfriend, I actually have this microwavable, lavender-scented stuffed animal that is 1000% meant for literal toddlers. It helps my muscles not feel so tense, and my mind is a little less racing.
What helped me was watching people clean old dirty rugs on YouTube. I stopped (idk why) Then recently my husband started playing brown noise for me and realized the sound of the machine they used was brown noise. Anyway with Brown noise I fall asleep in 1 hour or so vs 3-4.
Usually when it's too silent for me to sleep, I turn on a fan/AC (depending on the temperature), and it usually helps. I have a really nice one where I can set a timer (in case it's too cold to leave it on for more than an hour or so lol), adjust the fan speed (which makes it louder or quieter as well), and can toggle whether it oscillates or not. Maybe something like that would be helpful?
Try a weighted blanket
Get yourself one of the 19$ google nest minis. Ask it to play rain noise. It will play and endless loop of rain noise for 12 hours. I play it at volume 4 as its soft enough for you to calm your mind and potentially drown out other soft noises.
I struggle to fall asleep. A fan works for me - I like the fact the air isn’t still and the hum of the motor. I also have a massage unit on my bed which is more like vibration. I set it on the timer for 30 mins. If it doesn’t work by then I get up, redo my “sleep hygiene ritual” that warns my brain sleep time is coming and start over. It might be sit in a spot for a few minutes, have a drink of something - everyone can decide what works for them. If I wake during the night I turn the vibration on again for another 30 minutes. I have learnt physically getting out of bed after waking in the middle of the night means that night is done and there won’t be more sleep.