Sleeping

Evy and I did go for a morning bike ride this morning.  It was a bit later than I intended.  We went out at 10am and it was 90 degrees already.  We just went out about four blocks and back.  That was about all Evy could take at this point pedaling her big trike, it was her first ride on a road, and it was just really wiltingly hot.  We spent some time in someones sprinklers at the halfway point.

When we got back Sheldon had a client so Evy and I retreated upstairs with our respective apple devices.  I browsed a while and then proceeded to sleep for SIX hours, right through to the evening.  I even convinced Sheldon to sleep through part of the afternoon.

Not getting enough sleep and not sleeping well has been a HUGE deal for me for about the past, hmm, 9 years but I even got MORE problems with it in the past few.  Here are all the things that can mess up my sleep:

• I have hypothyroidism, which causes me to need/crave more sleep.

• I often have a hard time getting to sleep.  I can be very tired, but I always seem to be wide awake at the time I should go to sleep.  I'm often wakeful after I lie down, and have a hard time getting comfortable.

• I have sleep apnea, so I have to wear a c-pap mask.  It's pretty comfortable and I'm used to it, but sleeping in a mask with a long hose attached is really not as nice as just sleeping "naked."

• I probably have a bit of PTSD type stuff going on still.  I have nightmares often.  I think I probably have them every night, but thankfully I remember just a few dreams a week.  Dream after dream of being chased, hunted, stalked, threatened, and ones where I somehow have to go back to my former life.  I really don't think it's restful.

• Once in a while I get uh, like stuck half asleep but paralyzed.  It's an AWFUL feeling.  It's probably something to do with PTSD or anxiety.

What's saved me is that I don't have any problem *staying* asleep or with falling back asleep if I wake up.  It's only the initial starting to sleep that's tricky.  Exercise seems to help too, so exercising more should have a positive effect on my sleeping.  Losing enough weight to get off my c-pap would be an ultimate goal.