I am sorry about your nightmares. Last year was a year when I talked to my therapist about a couple of minor traumas (I had buried my feelings about them) and discussed my attempt (I was in ICU for a while). I did have nightmares followed by panic attacks as soon as I woke for a while. I feel like it was something I had to go through to sort of "clear my subconscious" of emotional baggage.
I am sleeping well (6 hours a night, 8 hours about once a week) mostly because I am stable and taking my medications. I do many of the things Christina recommends:
-Go to sleep a 8:00 PM every night
-Read a book if I am not sleepy at 8:00 PM
-Walk every day
-No TV in my bedroom
Plus:
-Dinner is very light/just a snack (sometimes I skip dinner), cook more at breakfast and lunch (we have lunch between 1:00 - 3:00 PM)
-No caffeinated drinks after 3:00 PM
-300 mg gabapentin pill at 7:00 PM (this definitely helps me sleep better)
-Keep the bedroom very dark (no lights at all)