chapter IV – solutions

Chapter IV
Still working on my solution to a difficult problem:
– I hope I explained why I think it is difficult to understand scientifically why sleep can be so elusive despite being such a primary way to restore our body.
– Why sleep can be so elusive despite being a natural function
– Why current solutions do not work easily or long term
There is some hope. I read so many forums where people discuss each other’s sleep problems and how they looked at solving the problems, but I also see very little success. I feel bad that in today’s world so many people are having sleep difficulties. It might even explain why many people are making so many poor life choices these days with demonstrations, divorce rates, disrespect in general, doubt, insecurity, and poor political choices. Maybe the world would be a better place if we could just all sleep better.
So, I keep motivated to find a sleep solution. One thing about being a senior with delayed sleep disorder I can change my life to accommodate wake up calls that drift into the daytime. Not all appointments can be made in the afternoon and sometimes it is better with wake with the birds, but if my heart seems to not race so much by getting an extra ninety-minute sleep phase or two while others go about their business, well its easier when older. This not my preferred solution to improved sleep but at least a solution towards improved health as a result more restorative time in bed.
Journaling and simple mood enhancements, such as thinking about five best of the day happenings just before bedtime, does make one feel overall better.
Making positive attempts to understand daytime sadness due to poor sleep is not really about sadness. Exercise and fresh air can do wonders with immediate impact if you understand why, you are feeling sad in an otherwise great or supportive environment.
My current direction with hope for solutions is directed at understanding abnormal cortisone levels because of anxiety. For me it would help if I knew that it really was cortisol levels that was high at sleep time but our current medical plans in Canada do not pay for cortisone testing. My physician tells me any test only spots tests and you body levels cycle to the point where results would be ineffective, and the tests are expensive. My pharmacist was unsure what I meant by cortisol let alone find me a private test. The internet has some tests available. Typically, you send in various samples taken at allocated times in the day and you can average out the results, but these are quite expensive. I must think about whether they are worthwhile. I found an article that told of new testing methods discovered that can determine cortisol levels over time by testing hair samples. I look forward to finding us more about this process as it become more readily available. In the interim I can just assume my levels are high and it might be the problem and I can work at ways to improve and slow down my amygdala production. I am hopeful there.
I read somewhere from what I considered a respected source at the time, that all the solutions like mindfulness and imagery and relaxation take months of practice and routine to make any worthwhile impact. I believe that but my ADHD brain type finds it extremely difficult to keep up the practice long enough to provide beneficial results. With everything I have read and from many respected sources I believe that all the mind-based techniques are the way to go including settling down a distracted brain. I have hope for the future and pleased in the interim I have found ways to minimize the negative impact of poor sleep.