Hi. Ok, I know sleep issues are discussed at length here, so apologies in advance.
Most posts I’ve read on here relate to getting to sleep. My issue is staying asleep.
My body needs 7-8 hours sleep, however, no matter what time I go to bed, I awaken after 5 hours!!! Every night, 5 hours. So sleep deprivation is my issue during the day.
Does anyone else experience this?
I’ve tried everything to stay asleep but when I waken, I start to get fidgety and have to get up. This morning I was up at 4.30am. I did do a little housework 
, and some exercise. I’m now considering just embracing it, so rather than going back to bed at 9am, I’ll get ready, take a walk, plan dinner etc. (the wife will award me lots of brownie points 
).
Please let me know if your experience is similar and how you tackle it.
Cheers.
Good morning Dusty68 … You haven’t given us a lot to go on.
Do you have Parkinson’s?
Any other ailments?
What medication are you on?
Are you active?
Do you still work?
I’m 69. I have Atypical Parkinson’s & Neuropathy. I also spent a couple of days in hospital with a rapid & irregular heartbeat. So drugs wise I am on Beta Blockers, Blood thinners, Pills for high blood pressure, Amitriptyline & of course Sinemet for Parkinson’s.
Sleep-wise sometimes I get 8 hours sometimes I am awake literally all night.
My medication can give me nightmares & I always dream. My dreams are very vivid & very real. The colours in my dream are amazing. Bright blues etc …
I know it is the medication that affects my sleep. The Amitriptyline does help me sleep as well as look after my arthritis perfectly but is mainly for my Neuropathy.
I would say that your body needs 5 hours sleep as that is what you get. I wouldn’t worry about it.
You say you go back to bed at 9am, do you get some sleep then?
I always feel quite tired during the day, again it is probably the medication I take.
Amazing that the NHS will not prescribe us sleeping pills.
I’d embrace your lifestyle. 19 hours a day to do what you want. Surely if you slept for 18 hours a day that would be worse …
Best wishes
Steve2
Thanks for the reply Steve.
I wanted my post to be fairly short. I’m just interested if people have a similar sleep pattern and what, if anything, they’ve tried to remedy it.
My body is telling me now that it needs 7-8 hrs sleep per day .
Cheers
Hi Dusty68 … I often have my computer on when I’m in bed & I listen to something I’m interested in off Youtube & then I drop off.
If I’m worrying or thinking about something that can keep me awake.
I have been told that older people need less sleep.
Steve2
True Steve, but I’m 55 
.
I sleep till 4.30/5.00 it doesn’t make any difference what time I go to bed. I get up and start my day, reading sewing painting to past the time.
I usually go to bed about 11.00 sometimes later sometimes nap for 15 mins at tea time but just embrace it
Hi i’m 66 in week and when I retired 8 yrs ago I used to sleep 11-10am most days then about 4-5yrs ago I just started waking up at around 6-7 and felt like getting up unlike when I used to sleep till 10 or later I think 4pm was the record! Around that time I seemed not feel hungry and lost some weight and eat less to this day but weight has stabilised. Although diagnosed last year from Dat scan after a hand/arm tremor for about 3yrs I can see now the sleep/appetite change 6yrs ago was early signs of PD.
Over the last year sleep has become erratic and variable sometimes OK say 7hrs other times it will be a 2-4hrs with the rest of the night very shallow sleep/resting if I’m lucky other times I feel so restless at around 2-4am I have to get up and read or watch Tv for an hour to clear my head. Anxiety and stress that cause body tension in neck caused by excessive brain stimulation from TV or PC or Phone etc or coffee are a big cause as are other health conditions that cause tension or worry. Relaxation techniques like mindfulness or exercise can help or engaging in hobbies, sports and constructive practical activities that have a positive therapeutic effect are good as well.
Hi Catherine.
I agree, embrace it. I got 6 hrs last night. So grateful. I was tempted to go back to bed but resisted. Currently having a coffee (decaf!) between housework. A walk planned later and make dinner for my wife. I’m fortunate in that I retired (aged 55), so fatigue shouldn’t be a stressor for me, I don’t need to worry about work the following day. I appreciate many people here still work with all the physical and mental obstacles PD brings.
What do you believe causes your sleep issues? I can’t decide whether it’s just the disease itself, the meds or both.
I take 2 x 25/100 co-careldopa every 3hrs between 8am and 8pm; 1mg Rasagiline at 8am and 1 x 25/100 co-careldopa controlled release at 10pm.
Have a good day
Cheers
Hi Hugh. I too used to sleep very well. Being an Armed Forces Veteran, I was honed to sleep well anywhere . I’m now beginning to realise I may need to just adapt to my ‘new’ sleep pattern.
To everyone, I’m curious, has anyone tried any CBD products to aid sleep? If so, how was it? I haven’t, but will be asking the question of my PD nurse/ neurologist.
Have a great day
Cheers
I have a similar problem about waking in the early hours, but find that if I put on a podcast (at fairly low volume) I often fall back asleep before it finishes.
I’m currently reading Michael Moseley’s book 4 weeks to better sleep - in it he says that biphasic sleep (falling asleep, waking for a while, then falling asleep again) was the norm in pre-industrial times and may well have been beneficial in pre-historic times. He also says that this is his sleeping pattern and he has now embraced it - if he wakes in the middle of the night he gets up and goes to another room where he reads, meditates or listens to music until he feels sleepy (usually about 40 minutes) he goes back to bed for another 3 hours or so of sleep. It’s important to avoid screens (blue light) or anything exciting/stimulating - the idea is to ‘bore’ yourself back to sleep.
My listening to a podcast is along the same lines (minimal screen time - just enough to press ‘play’ on the next streamed podcast), but I do stay in bed rather than get up. It might be worth giving that a try. He also says that napping can be beneficial - so if this doesn’t work and you have to get up and be active, then don’t feel guilty about having an afternoon nap.
Ruth
Morning Dusty68 … I was diagnosed with Atypical Parkinson’s about 9 months ago. Before that I used to live the 6 winter months of the year playing golf in Florida. I had been doing that for about 8 years. The last couple of years I had been suffering with health problems. Firstly I found that I could not play golf, evening riding in a golf cart, more than twice a week.
Looking back Parkinson symptoms were part of it as well as arthritis.
Two of my golfing buddies [there were about 60 of us that played together most days] were cannabis users [for medical purposes] … So I was given cannabis gummies & cannabis chocolate … They told me to take it just before I went to bed as it made you very sleepy. I’m sure it helped me, although I wasn’t using it to get to sleep.
Best wishes
Steve2
Hi Duckling.
You bring up a good point about feeling guilty. That was one of my issues and probably still is. Military mind set makes me feel guilty if I nap during ‘normal working hours’. However, as I’ve mentioned in this thread, until a miracle cure is found, I’ll try to embrace it 
. Obvs if I get too tired I’ll take a Power Nap.
Keeps the wife happy too, less housework, cooking etc, she works full time so I need to do my bit. Keeps me active too
Have a great day
Cheers
Hi Steve.
Interesting about the cannabis. Did it contain THC (the bit that ‘sends you to a happy place, allegedly’) or just the CBD that allegedly has just therapeutic properties.
Having read about it, it’s certainly peaked my interest, but just the CBD, not the illegal (in UK) THC.
Have a great day
Cheers
Hello Dusty68 … The cannabis rules in the US vary from state to state. In Florida [Sarasota] where I lived there was a Cannabis shop down a side street at a shopping mall. But I never went. I only used them if I felt I needed to. As these were bought for me, which I paid for. or given to me by a golfer buddy who had stopped using them. The gummies had a bitter taste & came in a plain plastic container. The chocolate was the best chocolate I’ve ever had & it was difficult to only have one cube. I think the strength varied. I have no idea what they contained but I know they helped a lot, certainly initially.
Best wishes
Steve2
I was always feeling sleepy and drowsy at work and would struggle to stay awake while working and would regularly sleep at the desk at lunchtimes. medication i was on was causing this and that is more than likely what caused the PD. Did not sleep well last night after a bad day due to being 90mins late taking medication which put my head in a spin. I drive a few miles today and I never felt so iffy, The DVLA warn people with PD that insomnia can cause you to blank out while while driving. I did have a hour kip at 2pm but still feel very tired and tension in the back of the neck and restlessness so not quite sure what is going on because reading last night made no difference as i feel quite light headed I did also try some exercise which has worked another time when my head is overstimulated. The mindfulness Hypnosis Anxiety videos don’t do any good either. it seems some things work sometimes but have the opposite effects at other times.
Hi Dusty68, I was diagnosed with pd 5yrs ago and am on 25/100 madopar 4x daily. I need 7/8 hrs sleep but wake up every 2hrs without fail whatever time I go to sleep. If I miss my last tablet then I take far longer to get back to sleep, normally suffering from Rls for a while. All I can say is that it’s either pd or medication related and an issue some pd sufferers are prone too. Not much help but I know where you’re coming from
Hi Hemyock.
The dreaded RLS. I can empathise with you there. I’ve tried everything to combat that but a lost battle so far. If you find a remedy, let us all know 
Cheers
Hi Hugh.
At the end of the day, I think we’re fighting a losing battle on the sleep front I’m afraid. I’m just trying to organise my day around it. 
Cheers
I am 68 and have a similar problem with sleep. I’ve had Parkinson’s since 2007 and was diagnosed after having a DATSCAN in 2009. Sleep was rarely an issue before Parkinson’s and I usually don’t have trouble falling asleep now. I take a Half Sinemet CR and 2 Amitriptyline at bedtime (10.00 - 11.00 p.m.) and sometimes a Co-Dydramol for pain. I first wake up after about 3 hours and then I wake up again about every hour until I get up for the day between 5.30 and 6.30 a.m. I think this cycle is mostly due to pain, trying to change position in bed and inability to relax my arms and leg muscles. If I find it difficult to get back to sleep, getting out of bed and moving around for a while generally helps and maybe a bit of television with the sound turned low as well. When I start nodding off, I go back to bed. If I have a busy day ahead and I feel particularly stiff, I will take a Madopar Dispersible during the night. My first Parkinson’s medication of the day is at 7.00 a.m. My daytime meds include Stalevo, Repinex and Amantadine.
I try not to nap during the day but sometimes I just have to. A 20 - 30-minute snooze seems to be sufficient for me to feel refreshed - anything longer than that can leave me still feeling tired. I have never considered asking my GP for any kind of sleeping pills as I would worry about nighttime falls. I hope you can find a regime that works for you.
Best wishes.
I have been prescribed melatonin which is helping