<p>I am an incredibly light sleeper, and in college I lived for 2 years in an apartment that was about 30 feet from a train track and 100 ft from a RR crossing. I never completely slept through the trains, but I did get to the point that I would only half wake up, then drift back off. To this day, train whistles are like certain rock songs - they give me an instant feeling of being 20 again.
I recommend exercise no later than 2 hours before bedtime, and NO caffeine. Also, no naps after 2 pm. Keep in mind that you may have to train yourself to stay up later and sleep later, vs simply not getting enough sleep.</p>
<p>Sleep suggestions from our family:</p>
<p>Younger generation’s suggestion: Tell yourself, as you are in bed not sleeping, that it is okay not to be sleeping, that you are getting some nice rest anyway. (If you worry about being awake and needing to get some sleep, it will keep you more awake.) Like cptofthehouse’s husband’s idea: rest if you cannot sleep.</p>
<p>My suggestion: I tell myself, it is crazy to be here in bed but wide awake. If I’m not back to sleep in 15 minutes, I am going to get up and do something productive (ironing, reading something dry that I need to read for work, sorting magazines for recycling). If I tell myself that my choice is either to sleep or to iron, I often end up falling back asleep. </p>
<p>Grandma (my mom’s) suggestion for sleep in a hotel: Get ear plugs from the “hunting” or “target practice” area of Wal-Mart, not from the ear drops etc., area. You want ear plugs that will really stop noise from bothering you and ear plugs meant to protect your ears when you are in a shooting area will do that.</p>
<p>Another thought: My daughter used to bring an extra “top sheet” to camp (the darker color the better) to make a sort of canopy around her bed so she could sleep without light in her eyes. If you have something to attach a sheet to, maybe this would help, too. An “isolation pod” of sorts.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Another vote for earplugs, and the fact that they are not all alike. My D uses her cell phone on vibrate to wake up. She ( and I ) have always been light sleepers, but I at least, don’t seem to suffer much from it. Worrying about not sleeping has been shown to make things worse. The ear plugs work specifically to block out H’s snoring, but don’t nevvesarily help much otherwise.There is data to support melatonin as helpful when there is shift in timing of the sleep cycle (i.e. jet lag).</p>
<p>The purple earplugs that you can get at Wal-Mart work pretty well for me. You just have to make sure you get them wedged in your ears well.</p>
<p>The light thing was always a bigger issue for me when I had a roommate…my first one didn’t really care when I was trying to sleep, but thankfully the second one was great and we always went to bed around the same time.</p>
<p>Jmmom-- Yes!! The Mack’s are the ones I have and I really love them. I totally recommend them.</p>
<p>When my children were small, there were many sleepless nights, especially since one of mine had a life threatening condition. My problem was napping during the day. I never could do so. Once I was fully awake, it is very, very difficult for me to get back to sleep and then if I do manage to fall asleep, I wake up with a hung over feeling. Had to get over that. Had to somehow get the sleep I did not get at night when I could get it. Ended up doing a lot of resting which was agonizingly difficult. But it does help, though I doubted it often. Now I can nap fleetingly though not as well as many can do. It still is not my preferred way to get sleep but you do what you have to do.</p>
<p>My D’s problem is falling asleep rather than staying asleep. Although the benefits dropped off after awhile, I found her a hypnosis CD for insomnia on line. I use it, too, sometimes.</p>
<p>My son’s problem is also falling asleep. Like your D., his meditation CD worked for awhile and then the benefit dropped off—he uses it periodically now. One thing that helps him, other than the white noise machine is to have a little desk fan right by his bed.</p>
<p>My personal opinion is to encourage them not to take any sleep medications. A dr. in student health my son’s freshman year, gave him Ambien. His roommate said that s. was up all night wandering, would visit in other rooms and make phone calls—he had no memory of this the next day and would swear that he never left his bed or woke up. After we witnessed this sleep-walking and strange behaviors when he was home on break, I discarded the medications.</p>
<p>Music works (jazz, easy listening, classical). Also try to practice meditation techniques.</p>
<p>Hopefully one of the solutions previously suggested have helped. Years ago I found that as long as I slept for 8 hours within 24 I was ok (adding up hours slept at night and naps). It also seems to help re: jet lag.</p>
<p>I had a family member with an easier problem to solve - he moved from the city to the burbs and couldn’t get to sleep because it was too quiet! The sound machines (ocean, etc.) worked for him.</p>
<p>My D also had a frightening experience with Ambien. She got up and started sleep eating and then got some meds confused with the mini-M&Ms and ended up in the ER. She had taken 75 mg of Ambien and about 35 attivan. We are lucky she isn’t dead.</p>
<p>Try melatonin.</p>