The lost art of sleeping

I used to sleep. Even after I had kids, I slept most of the night through, waking maybe once. My husband once asked me how much sleep I needed a night, and I said "until 8". And I slept, peacefully, until 8:00, every morning. And woe to those who woke me up!

And then... 40 happened. I know from a lot of my post-40 friends that this isn't unique to me. Probably the single biggest aging complaint I've seen is about sleeping. We just can't do it! Sometimes I can't fall asleep because, even though I couldn't keep my eyes open 10 minutes earlier, the minute I turn off the light my mind starts racing. Sometimes I fall asleep in minutes, but wake up in the middle of the night with my mind racing. Here lately, I am sleeping just fine, thank you very much, when I get a hot flash. Or ten. (And it's not just women... My husband wakes up at 3:45 and can't go back to sleep for an hour or two most nights.)

I don't know about you, but I get darned cranky when I have a few nights in a row with broken sleep. I really need 8 1/2  to 9 hours a night, every night, to have energy and a clear mind (well, take that with a grain of salt...). When I'm up 2 or 3 - or, like last night, 7 or 8 - times a night and get no real deep sleep, I'm less than a joy to be around. And then I become like a senior citizen, moping around telling everyone about my bad night's sleep, my insomnia, my *stupid* hot flashes. I'm sure that's scintillating conversation for my 15 year old son...

Remember when you were young and could sleep, anywhere?

Over the years I've tried everything. Ambien will definitely knock you out, but I only get about 5-6 hours sleep with it, and then I go back to the broken pattern, and I don't like that groggy feeling, so my experiment with that didn't last long. Benadryl or Nyquil will work when you're desperate, but who wants to take medicine you don't actually need, just to sleep? (OK, me, sometimes... but not as a general rule!) Melatonin works when I can't GO to sleep, but doesn't do much for the waking in the middle of the night. The only thing I've found that works like a charm, and only for 1 night, is jet lag. Seriously. If you stay awake for 47 hours, you get one amazing night of sleep!

This is my son with jet lag... Oh to be young!

What about you? Have you found anything that works, or are all of us over-40s walking around like zombies? Does it get better? I know my 98 year old grandmother sleeps like the proverbial log... Do we have to wait for our 80s for that to happen?!

Closing in on 47...

I'll be 47 in a few months, and while I don't mind the number, there are certainly things about this lovely "middle age" that I could live without. (Guys, this isn't for you, although you might want to get your wife.)

* Unpredictability. Gone are the days of wondering if too many days since the last "recent unpleasantness" means pregnancy. Also gone are the days of having some clue, either by a calendar or PMS, when the next "recent unpleasantness" will appear. 21 days? Check. 37 days? Check. PMS-like symptoms not connected to anything whatsoever? Check check check.

* The heat of the night. I was standing at the deli counter at Harris Teeter yesterday, waiting on my roast beef, when the lady next to me mumbled something. The meat slicing seemed pretty slow, so I thought she was complaining about it, and said, "Excuse me?" She said, "Oh my gosh, these hot flashes are killing me!" Her entire face was pouring sweat and turning red. "They put me on hormones but they aren't working yet!" She wiped her brow with a handkerchief. Poor thing! I don't have this problem yet, but some nights I go from freezing cold to HOT in the blink of an eye. It doesn't last long, but it wakes me up,  and I have to take all the covers off, and then, when it passes, I have to pull them all back on. It's really annoying. Just sayin'.

* Slogging through the day. Some of this is winter, I realize. I have struggled through every winter since I moved to NC. And days like today, with gloomy cold rain are the worst. But in general, my energy level is way below what it used to be. Not that I was ever a dynamo... I've always been laid back. But some days it's like trying to walk through chest-deep molasses, and I haven't found a lot - yet - to help. Except the 3 days I was on a Prednisone taper's full dose and felt GREAT. But I don't think staying on Prednisone is the answer...

* The weight goes where?? Until I was post-45, if I gained weight, it went in predictable locations. Backside, hips, belly. I stayed about the same weight for a long time, but that winter-5 would sneak up on me from time to time. Now it goes to really weird places like the back of midsection. What?? It's a backwards muffin top! Not attractive.

* My feet don't work. I have had plantar fasciitis since May. I have gone to the doctor 3 times, have $450 custom orthotic inserts, wear unexciting shoes, don't walk too much... In general, all the things I'm supposed to do. My right foot is mostly ok unless I do a lot of walking or Zumba or something, but my right foot got about 60-70% better and quit. So most mornings I hobble around, any exercise hurts it, and I feel much more limited, not to mention have a very hard time getting any exercise. I started PT today (my tendons are "ridiculously tight" in my feet, according to the therapist...wonderful...). I'm hopeful. But it makes me annoyed, nonetheless.

On the other hand, there are a lot of great things in my life, and they very much eclipse all this. It's just... distracting. When I want to be working on my book edit, or painting, or taking a walk on the occasional lovely winter day, sometimes I just can't. I'm tired, my feet hurt, and my brain is a little... fuzzy.

So one of my main goals in 2012 is to get all this figured out. I know that a minimum of 20 min a day of exercise can help my energy level, so the foot issue has to come first. I'm going to work my way through some alternative medicines to see if I can help the irregularity and night flashes. I'm doing my post-holiday and vacation get-back-to-normal-eating program and using Sensa to help me account for my slower metabolism. We'll see how it goes - I'll let you know!

How about you? How's the over-40 era treating you?