[jesusplay]

I skipped my night meds for the first time in months. I'm usually out by 9pm 11pm at the latest. I feel the coming on me, I'm comfortable in my bed, then bam I wake up in the morning.

I feel tired, but I am full of thought, if I layed down it wouldn't make a difference.

I think I might go to the river and watch the sun rise.

[Blitter2014]

Having a regular routine is really important to staying stable. Not sure what time it is where you are...but can you take your meds now rather than waiting for tomorrow night? If its only a 3-5 hours past your normal time then you should be able to take them ok.

At very least make sure you get some rest. They say laying down practicing mindfulness or relaxing and tensing musle groups is nearly as good as actual sleep, so if you can give that a try along with any other coping strategies you know.

If none of that works....enjoy your dawn sunrise!

[Manic Trance]

Man. Me too. Went to be early, but my wife woke me up when she climbed in and wanted to talk, etc... Then couldn't go back to sleep, racing thoughts, etc... laid in bed a while working from my cell phone, tried to sleep again, **** it! I'm up, made this massive bowl of popcorn, bout to listen to NPR and catch up on email til my daughter gets up.
Not feeling terribly bad at the moment, just cannot sleep. The racing thoughts were bothering me, but now I am acting on them! Ha! so it seems OK, that said, I know I will be very tired tomorrow, and that this is overall destabilizing.
Not much I can do now.
All that is to say, I feel ya!
MT

[Crazy Hitch]

Make the most of the sunrise then.

I can't see a one off forgetting the night time meds causing any major disruption - stick to your 9/11pm sleep schedule.

Who knows - maybe you will be able to take a power nap during the day. Just don't make a habit of it if a power nap isn't part of your normal routine.

Be well.

[jesusplay]

it's 5am, I forgot what time the sun rises!

[jesusplay]

I got like 2 hours, how do I find east 103?

[Blitter2014]

Is that somewhere in Australia. ...if not sorry I can't help....

[4ALittle]

[QUOTE=Blitter2014;

At very least make sure you get some rest. They say laying down practicing mindfulness or relaxing and tensing musle groups is nearly as good as actual sleep, so if you can give that a try along with any other coping strategies you know.

I know for me, "they" were quite wrong. If I just lay still in quiet meditation. I can get up and go all day the next day. Then, by night two, I'm starting to think maybe for just me, sleep is optional....
It's a great path to a full blown psychosis with hospitalization.
My short answer to when to go to sleep is, after I take my medicine.
Hope you get some sleep. Don't be tempted by the idea that you can do without it. They have a great saying in AA rooms which translates well here : "we never graduate from being human."

[Sprite22]

Once my sleep falls apart, so do I. I used meds to stay in check. But it has it's price tag of bills.

[cupcakesncrossbones]

There is a GREAT over-the-counter medication out right now called Alteril...i mentioned it to my psychiatrist...she hadn't heard of it...but after I told her about it, she wrote it down and said she was going to look into in and possibly recommend it to her other patients...you do need to be 18 to purchase it (i'm not quite sure why)...but it has Melatonin and Chamomile in it...makes you sleepy and you're not groggy the next morning. The Chamomile also has a calming effect...you can even try drinking Chamomile tea before bed. I love it...and my husband even uses it!!!

[jesusplay]

god my sleep cycle got messed up, I took my night meds at like 8am

[~Christina]

Do you have a pill holder that has a AM amd PM box? That can cut down on confusing meds.

[Blitter2014]

Originally Posted by Blitter2014

Having a regular routine is really important to staying stable....

At very least make sure you get some rest. They say laying down practicing mindfulness or relaxing and tensing musle groups is nearly as good as actual sleep, so if you can give that a try along with any other coping strategies you know.

I agree that resting without sleep is not a long term solution but rather a short term coping strategy for those odd occasions where nothing seems to work.

I admit, three or four nights of little sleep and I will take some meds to get some sleep.....and i will keep taking them for about a week to reestablish a sleep pattern. In instances where there is prolonged lack of sleep over a period of time, there is absolutely no substitute for sleep.

I should have posted more clearly. Sorry.