Tag: chronic fatigue syndrome

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Fatigue and Energy in Fibromyalgia -Fibromyalgia Framework Series Part Seven

Welcome to part seven – fatigue and energy in fibromyalgia! I hope you’re enjoying this series and have made some progress.

Fibromyalgia framework series part seven fatigue in fibromyalgia

We have discussed: 

The Fibromyalgia Framework
Diagnosis, Misdiagnosis and Fibro Books
Tracking Your Progress
Sleep
Central Nervous System
Pain Management

FATIGUE AND ENERGY IN FIBROMYALGIA

I hope that by improving your sleep, managing pain as well as possible and meditating that fatigue is also reduced. In this part we will discuss some extra energy boosters, energy saving pacing and supplements that may help. Severe, ongoing fatigue issues that are not mitigated by good sleep and management of pain will need a real partnership with a doctor to work through.

PACING FOR FIBROMYALGIA

Pacing simply means to alternate rest with activity in a manner congruent with your pain and energy levels.

Before I had begun my journey to wellness, when I was still just trying to cope with being a young woman in terrible levels of pain and fatigue, I had this glimmer of hope in the form of reduced work hours. I had begun to conceive of the idea of pacing and boundaries before I knew anything else. Reducing my work hours to ¾ time and cutting the two hours of commuting each day was the beginning of my wellness journey and such a vital step.

HOW TO ASSESS YOUR BOUNDARIES AND IMPLEMENT WISE PACING?

  • Write it down!
  • Write down what you do each day and track your pain and fatigue levels – look for the patterns over a two week period.
  • Listen to what your body is telling you. Grab an empty piece of paper and a pen and free write about your ideal day, see what your intuition is telling you.
  • Or, to start, take what you can get. Perhaps the first step you can make is to drop one afternoon or one day off work? Start there!

THE CFS/FIBROMYALGIA RATING SCALE

For a long time, I prided myself on being a 60 on the CFS/Fibromyalgia Rating Scale, “Able to do about 6-7 hours of work a day. Mostly mild to moderate symptoms” despite pain levels more in line with a 50, “able to do 4-5 hours a day of work or similar activity at home. Daily rest required. Symptoms mostly moderate.” (My italics)

I pushed myself to 6-7 hours per day minimum and suffered moderate symptoms. I had missed the key as suggested in this article on understanding our situation: “What is the highest level of functioning I can sustain without intensifying my symptoms?” (My italics) If my pain is at a moderate level, then I should not be striving to work the hours of a person with more mild symptoms, especially given that I go home to small children as opposed to being able to rest. You need to take into account your symptom level and your situation.

These articles are from the website CFIDs and Fibromyalgia Self-Help. They run a free course that takes the idea of pacing into more detail.

SUPPLEMENTS FOR FATIGUE AND ENERGY

See this blog post for more information about supplements for Fibromyalgia energy.

Affiliate notice: Please note that some of my links are affiliate links. I may make a small commission at no extra cost to you if you make a purchase using these links.

Some things that might be useful for fatigue:

Action: I’d love to hear your favourite energy boosters, feel free to come and join Melissa vs Fibromyalgia Facebook group and let us know.

Do you wish that you could have all of the parts of the Fibromyalgia Framework Series, along with the templates to help you plan with space for notes in one place? There is! The Fibromyalgia Framework Series Workbook is available here. Find it physically here.  Please note that some of my links are affiliate links and I may make a commission at no extra cost to you.

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Necessary Baby Items for a Fibro Parent

There are a multitude of nursery items and almost as many articles about which ones are necessary. Here’s my recommendations for a fibro parent, or really, any parent!

Some of my links are affiliate links, I receive compensation at no extra cost to you if you purchase using these links. I never promote anything I don’t 100% support myself.

necessary baby items whether you have fibromyalgia or not

Below are some the items I found indispensable for a mama with Fibromyalgia:

My boy in his bouncy when he was teeny tiny
My boy in his bouncy when he was teeny tiny

Cot. With an easy to put up and down side, or an opening in the front.

Bassinet. We tried a different option with each baby. Both were easy to move and that was very helpful. I wished for a beside bassinet with fold down side so I didn’t have to get in and out of bed so much and to make co-sleeping a safe option. This 3-in-1 is a great idea, it is a bedside crib and a pack and play.

Changing table. We weren’t going to buy one, I had thought that I could get by without one. But, being given one has been a lifesaver. I have everything I need to change them on the shelf and can lay them down at the right height for changing. You could even use a set of drawers that are the right height with a change mat on the top and the top drawer full of your supplies.

A rocking chair. My husband and I clashed about this one. He didn’t think it was necessary. I believed with all my heart that it was. I ended up getting a second hand one and it has been so useful. For nursing, expressing or just rocking when you’re too tired to stand, it was worth it. Nursing for a mama with Fibromyalgia can be tricky, so a comfortable place to nurse is a good idea – check out my post on nursing with Fibromyalgia here.

Other parenting posts:
Pumping or Expressing for Your Baby: Parenting (Fibromyalgia or Not)
Pregnancy Diaries 2018: The First Trimester of Pregnancy with Fibromyalgia
Coping with a Toddler (Fibro or not!)
Fibro Mama Interviews: Natalie from Surviving Lifes Hurdles

Pushchair. We loved the City Mini Baby Jogger (we have it in black). I found it very easy to steer and lightweight to put up and down. You can also get the universal baby jogger parent console for phones and drink bottles, this goes over the handle. I have recommended this pushchair to everyone, but especially fibro parents as it is so easy to lift, put up and down and steer. I am so sad that we got the last of the old model which means the handle is shorter so we can’t employ the glider board – it would have gotten so much use as each time we had a new baby the older one was not quite old enough to walk everywhere.

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Out and about with our City Mini

  • Infant capsule seat with folding pushchair frame. We didn’t get one before Noah was born because I thought it would be too heavy for me to lift. I was right, very quickly it became a real burden to carry. However, with the frame and the fact that Noah was not a good napper, it turned out to be invaluable. At some stage early on I noticed that he was tired by about 9 in the morning, but struggled to get to sleep. So we began leaving the house (rain or shine) either via the car or walking. He learned to nap this way. The seat and frame meant that I could seamlessly move from car to shops to car to home easily.
  • A Boppy pillow/feeding pillow. I loved this, it was so useful for nursing and to let the boppy feeding pillowbaby’s lie down and watch the world go by. It was a real lifesaver when the boys were small to sit them on it and let them watch me potter around the living area. It was also great for Wyatt with his reflux, he took some of his naps on it. We always used it with supervision because there is a chance of baby slipping down and cutting their airway off by pushing their chin forward.
  • A front pack. This is a difficult one. On the one hand, you are going to hold the weight anyway, so why not distribute it more evenly. On the other, from about six months my little guys became too heavy for my shoulders to bear for too long. I absolutely loved having the Boba wrap with number three and I was so sad that I hadn’t heard of it for the first two. For more about baby wearing see this post.

I loved the Gemini Beco – it goes from 7 pounds/3kg, which both of my babies started off at!

A bath seat. This has meant that I don’t have to hold their weight while they were in the bath and it’s far more easy to wash them.

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Noah enjoying his bathseat

Jolly Jumper. We used this once his neck was strong, at about four months. This was lovely for me when he was super fussy and I was super tired. It gave me ten minutes of time out from holding him.

One thing they can use to pull themselves up with. When he started to develop the ability to pull himself up, we got a table type toy where he can stand and play. This is a useful thing to let them stand without you holding them.

We got one similar to this. Again, this lasted for both of our boys.

Baby seat. This was something I wanted but didn’t purchase until he was already baby bumbo seatsitting on his own. It would have been useful before this as he loved to sit and see so it could have bought me more non holding time. Now we use it, strapped to a chair as his highchair. We can also take it when we go away. He will be able to use this until he’s tall enough to sit on a chair at the table, without the space a highchair takes.

We used a seat very much like this. We bought it for Noah and have used it for both Wyatt and Nathaniel.

Bouncinette/Electronic Rocker. This was one of those things that buys you some non holding time that you so desperately need when they’re clingy or your sore or you need to get stuff done.

Breast pump. This was a lifesaver for me with nursing my children. I had to exclusively express for my first and then expressed a fair amount for my second. For my third, I have chosen the Avent breast pump in the above link because I will only express once or twice a day – with three children four years old and under, I won’t have the ability or energy to express more. Our favourite bottles were Avent too – because the teats were shaped more like breasts and therefore helped us to avoid nipple confusion.

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Noah in his electronic rocker

Something to make baby food with. My nutribullet has been a lifesaver for the puree stage. It is so easy to steam up some fruit and vegetables (say, silverbeet, apple and kumara) and then puree it in the nutribullet with some of the cooking water. I also use it for my plant based milks too so it is far more than just a baby essential.

Did you know that Amazon has a baby registry? You can sign up here Shop Amazon – Create an Amazon Baby Registry It’s basically a mobile registry (available anywhere!)and you will be eligible for discounts and rewards. If you’re going to purchase some of your items from Amazon, you may as well sign up.

Is there anything else to add? Was there one awesome thing you would not do without?

For more information about pregnancy and Fibromyalgia:

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Pregnancy andFibromyalgia_resources

definitive edition pregnancy and fibro
My book is everything I have researched and learnt over two pregnancies.

Some of my links are affiliate links, I may receive compensation at no extra cost to you if you purchase using these links. I never promote anything I don’t 100% support myself.

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Energy Revitalization Formula

energy-revitalization-systemA lot of protocols/treatment plans/advice for Fibromyalgia advise starting with a high quality multivitamin.

The Energy Revitalization Formula is a high potency multivitamin that focuses on the key vitamins, minerals and amino acids that research shows people with Fibromyalgia can benefit from. You can find the full list of ingredients here
https://secure.endfatigue.com/store/products/supplements/berry-splash#tab-2

I have been taking it since December 2015 and found it be very useful in assisting my energy levels, keeping my immune system up and getting all of the vitamins in one drink. https://secure.endfatigue.com/store/products/supplements/berry-splash/

It costs approximately $30 for one to two months supply – I take half a dose as I find it difficult to get a whole dose down. It is jam packed with nutrients. I get mine from evitamins.com as it is difficult to get these things shipped to New Zealand.

Dr Jacob Teitelbaum is one of a few prominent physicians who treat Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. He wrote From Fatigued to Fantastic! And has developed the SHINE protocol to help manage the illnesses. An important part of the SHINE protocol is nutrition. Based on research, Dr T found that people with Fibromyalgia/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome tend to be short on some key nutrients, including B complex, vitamin C and D and magnesium. http://vitality101.com/health-a-z/simplifying-nutritional-support-in-cfs-and-fibromyalgia-2015-10

He has written an article on coping with pregnancy and suggests this is suitable to continue with for pregnancy. The doctor will probably recommend iodine, folic acid and iron to make up the full schedule. http://www.ei-resource.org/expert-columns/dr-jacob-teitelbaums-column/pregancy-in-chronic-fatigue-syndrome-and-fibromyalgia/

I am loving the combination in this supplement and will continue to take it to make the base of my nutritional plan.

Have you tried it? What has your experience been?

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Giant Meditation Post: Meditation for Chronic Illness

I have been exploring the benefits of meditation for those with chronic illnesses recently. I am curious because Yoga Nidra, a guided meditation, makes a real difference to my day. After a 20 minute session my pain levels can drop to as low as 4/10 and decrease my fatigue levels to a similar place. The effects help me get through the busy evening period with my toddler.
Blue one way traffic sign

It’s not easy to carve out 20 uninterrupted minutes between work and the toddler. But when I see a gap, I snatch it up.

Want more about natural options for fighting fibromyalgia?

Natural Pain Relief: Supplements for Fibromyalgia Pain

Essential Oils for Fibromyalgia

Yoga for Fibromyalgia

A theory about Fibromyalgia, is that the sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight response) may be stuck in overdrive. Meditation promotes a calming of this system, allowing the parasympathetic nervous system to activate.

The benefits of meditation are probably due to 20 minutes of:

  • Lying down
  • Using my heatpack on my neck
  • A break from noise
  • Time alone
  • Complete focus on my body, accepting it as it is
  • Not struggling to nap, which I can’t, so using the time calmly and effectively
  • The body’s response to complete relaxation, allowing the sympathetic nervous system to slow down

It is a tool for well being that I keep close, it is something that transcends simple pain/fatigue relief and gives me time to focus on myself as a whole – my san culpa (mantra/goal of practice) is, “I am well; physically, spiritually and emotionally.”

Elaine R. Ferguson, in her book on holistic healing agrees: “Practicing this [mindfulness] meditation affects your mind, brain, body and behavior in ways that promote whole-person health.” P83 Super Healing: Engaging our Mind, Body and Spirit to Create Optimal Health and Well-Being.

And it’s vital that we don’t neglect our spiritual and emotional components of self in the quest for relief from physical issues. I feel there’s a close tie between my emotions and my pain/fatigue levels – fear or sadness have an effect on my sympathetic nervous system, which affects the body physically. So I am researching both body and mind effects on Fibromyalgia.

When you join my newsletter list you will receive access to my free resources which includes a report on Meditation for Fibromyalgia and my You vs Fibromyalgia micro course which includes a section on the central nervous system!

Meditation and Me

It took me a while to appreciate meditation, years, in fact, for me to consider giving up precious reading time for it.

Suddenly, in 2014, I read a book about mindfulness meditation, found a YouTube video of a Yoga Nidra session that I particularly liked (avoiding the spiritual/religious aspects of it) and then I was away running.

I have meditations, body scans and Yoga Nidra of varying lengths that I switch between as I like. I also use the body scan technique most nights to relax into sleep. The focus on the breath is like second nature to fall into.

Funnily enough, when I am more fatigued, I need the short and sweet practices – to avoid falling asleep and feeling groggy and gross when I wake. When I have slightly more energy (and time), I opt for longer ones. My usual best length is 20 minutes.

20 minutes seems to be a good number for me, I respond well to 20 minutes of yoga or Pilates, 20 minutes of walking and 20 minutes of meditation.

For some links to get your practice started see this post:

Fibromyalgia framework central Nervous System Overload How Meditation Helps

Meditation provides true rest for body and mind and I think that is what I so desperately need in my day.

I am so into meditation that I have created a lot of resources about it:

There’s a chapter about it in my book. Please note this is an affiliate link, if you make a purchase using this link I will make a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Your simplest mindfulness practice FB

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Necks & Backs, Some Coping Mechanisms

Anyone who follows my blog or Facebook page knows that I struggle the most with my neck. I may not have it under control, but I have a multitude of coping mechanisms for it. I thought I’d share some.

1. Swiss ball – if you have one, sit on it and gently lean backwards over it so that your back is laying on it and let your head relax. Good right?! You can also lean forwards onto it. These stretch out your upper back and shoulders which have a big impact on your neck.

Swiss ball
My swiss ball & foam roller.

2. Foam roller – this is a nifty tool that I haven’t yet come close to fully utilising. One good use for it is to put it under your neck and just chill out for a couple of minutes. Your head is heavy enough so you don’t  need to apply pressure or move about. You can turn your head gently from side to side (like saying no) and hold for a time on each side. Google foam rollers for neck and back and you’ll find a few tutorials on the uses for a foam roller.

3. Stretching – I stretch a lot, it’s a natural coping mechanism for me. The ear to shoulder stretch and the chin to throat stretch are nice neck stretches. But full body stretching is great for general fibro management.

4. Yoga – you can really utilise all different parts of yoga practice for Fibro bodies – just see this post I wrote about it. But for my neck I like cat and cow pose, forward bend pose, downward dog pose and child’s pose. If my whole back is being an issue then half legs on a chair (or couch) pose is a goodie.

5. Heat – I have my heatpack every morning, whenever I can in the day and before bed. It’s a favourite. A hot bath or shower is also good.

6. Rubs and massage – I have an antiflamme cream with natural ingredients to massage into the affected area/s which can be useful. The cream and the quiet time massaging the area are soothing.

7. Rest – sometimes the neck and back pain means I need to rest and cut back. This is part of pacing and general management of fibro.

8. Medicine – this is relatively new for me, I have a difficult relationship with medicine, but I am trying to remind myself that if judiciously used, medicine can reduce my misery. I have several lines of defense from paracetamol, to ibuprofen, to a paracetamol/low-dose codeine combination, to muscle relaxants. I very rarely allow myself the muscle relaxants but it does help when my back and neck have gone to custard.

A mix of these combined with general living well mechanisms (exercise, healthy eating, reducing stress etc.) Are the best ways I know to try to cope with my neck and back. Do you have any others?

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Amitriptyline – Off and On Again

Amitriptyline is a tricyclic antidepressant that, when taken at a lower dose, can help with the sleep disorder and the pain associated with Fibromyalgia. I had been on it for nearly 10 years, since before I was diagnosed. medicine-thermometer-tablets-pills

Struggling with restless nights (losing 50-70 minutes a night to awake/restless times), I asked my doctor what else may help and he suggested I increase my dosage. But I didn’t want to do this.

I also wanted to be sure it worked, I had a fear of being stuck on it forever, without really knowing it worked. It was also a scary proposition to go off it and not sleep.

I sucked up the fear and started my experiment in November 2015 and tapered off by 5mg at a time. In the reductions from 50mg down to 30mg my sleep actually improved. But the fatigue increased, I became very fatigued and struggled to stay awake during the day.

By the time I got to 10mg at the beginning of January 2016, I was sore, sensitive and (more) exhausted. My sleep was light and it was difficult to get to sleep and back to sleep when woken.

On my first night completely off it, it took a little while to get to sleep, I slept deeply (I think, I didn’t take my Fitbit on holiday) from 12-6.30am and then my son got up. I was exhausted and sore.

As I continued it took longer and longer to get to sleep, except for the few nights when I was so miserable and exhausted I fell asleep fast and slept like the dead.

I tried 5-HTP and SleepDrops and lavender massage oil. I tried keeping the same bedtime routine, hot baths and no caffeine after lunch. I tried meditation, yoga and any pillow set up possible.

I was experiencing more wide spread pain, near constant headaches and worsening fatigue. I wasn’t coping.

I went back onto 25mg of amitriptyline and had a big sleep on the first night. And a normal sleep, albeit with a six hour block on the second night.

Within a week I was back to getting to sleep well, sleeping restlessly (mostly due to pain), but getting (a broken) eight hours. This doesn’t seem like a win, but it’s the same situation as before with half the dose of amitriptyline, which is a win. The headaches have mostly receded and the generalised, all over pain has quietened. The fatigue is more manageable.

I can only conclude that amitriptyline is working for me at the moment and I am happy enough with that. It has a valid place as the base of my wellness plan.

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Curcumin for Chronic Pain

When I came across using curcumin for chronic pain, I found the specific product Curamin, I was becoming rather despondent about my neck pain and the effects it has on my life.Curaminb

It felt like my neck was getting worse and progression is the closet worry of a mama with Fibromyalgia (it’s not supposed to be progressive, but it developed over a period of ten or so years before plateauing for several).

Affiliate notice: Some of these links are affiliate links, I may make a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend what I support.

I was curious and also wary. Nothing ever seems to give me the effect advertised, or noticeable positives.

The ingredients in Curamin

Curamin “is a blend of all natural ingredients such as DLPA, boswellia and nattokinase which are proven anti-inflammatory compounds. DLPA boosts the effectiveness of endorphins and enkephalins (pain relievers already in the body), nattokinase boosts circulation and alleviates muscle pain by balancing fibrogren levels in the body while boswellia has been known to remove pro-inflammatory compounds.”

Dr Teitelbaum recommends it as one of his favourite 10 supplements for Fibromyalgia/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

My experience

From the first day I noticed a change in my neck, it brought the pain levels down a point on the pain scale.

It also helped me in the night. Recently my neck was becoming so bad that I woke several times and needed to change pillows multiple times. I was waking with extreme stiffness causing severe headaches.

The Curamin enabled me to get better blocks of sleep and this has translated into more energy – it lasts me longer into the day.

I still, however, started to get sleepy very early. I have learnt that there’s a difference between fatigue and sleepiness.

I have revelled in feeling just a bit less soul-crushingly fatigued.

The true test for the difference it makes came when I ran out before the new bottle arrived, I slept poorly (the restless/awake time shot back up to an hour with less blocks of sleep), felt super exhausted upon waking and my neck pain went up a level.

It is so nice to have found something that helps. Unfortunately, neither curcumin nor boswellia is recommended for pregnancy or breastfeeding, so mamas who are going down that path will have to give it up for a time.

For me, the cost is worth the effect. I completely understand that nothing works for everyone, but, if you’re not allergic to these ingredients, then it may be worth a try.

What are the options?

The “original” Curamin that I tried

Curamin PM for nighttime relief

Curamed is curcumin without the three bonus ingredients (DLPA, boswellia and nattokinase).

curcumin for chronic pain

Update August 2019

Having been pregnant and nursing for the past 1.5 years I have not been able to take this (turmeric in food doses is all that is recommended). I have been taking MSM, you can check out my post about this here.

Has anyone else tried this? Or other things that have a similar effect?

For help with your fight:

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Tiny Mission Sleep – Melatonin

After declaring war on my sleeplessness, I have formulated a new series of Tiny Missions to attempt to get some sleep. To get 8-9 unbroken hours per night with as few restless/awake periods as possible.yawning dog

Recently, I have tried chamomile tea, SleepDrops and altering the time I take my amitriptyline in order to see if I can effect better sleep.

Through my observations I have managed to learn that my neck tends to be what wakes me up and keeps me restless. So it’s part sleep, part pain that make sleep so elusive.

Having heard personal reviews from people in a Facebook group and coming across research in support of the use of melatonin in Fibromyalgia, I decided to give it a try:

“Melatonin has been reported to improve sleep, severity of pain, tender point count, and global physician assessment in patients suffering from fibromyalgia. One commentary describes how melatonin 6 mg was given to 4 patients with fibromyalgia. After 15 days of treatment, patients reported normal sleep and a reduction in pain. At this time, hypnotics were withdrawn. Other medications such as analgesics and antidepressants were withdrawn after 30 days. They continued to report normal sleep patterns, lack of pain and fatigue and improvements in behavioral symptoms, such as depression.”

On the first night I took 3mg of melatonin in addition to my usual amitriptyline dose. It was a pretty positive start to this experiment! I achieved 8.5 hours of sleep, with only 30 minutes wasted on awake/restless times. Both significant awake times were my husband’s fault. I felt like I slept soundly, so was surprised at the presence of any restless times. And while there were – I managed a few blocks of sleep long enough to be a full sleep cycle! I woke at 630 and was unable to get back to sleep, but unlike usual occurrences, I’d managed to get enough sleep already.

Night two was not as good as I hoped after such a good first night. My neck caused me to be quite restless until 4 when my husband woke me when he got up for the rugby final. I was stuck awake and in a lot of pain. I wonder if the melatonin wears off making it harder to get back to sleep when woken. It was a miserable morning.

Night three made me acknowledge that my sleep cannot get better until I can manage my neck. I had a few blocks of one or so hours sleep, but still lost an hour to awake/restless times. I felt a bit heavy in the head and didn’t want to get up. But otherwise quite relaxed (apart from the neck).

The fourth night was somewhat better. I had a five hour block with very few restless lines in it! My neck was very stiff and sore after this though, it took 15 minutes of trigger point massage to get back to sleep. My pain level in my neck was 7/10 when I woke at 630 and I felt extremely groggy.

The feeling of having slept soundly is a very nice one. On the fifth night I woke, earlier again, to a feeling of having slept and my neck wasn’t super tight, it was about a point below the usual first thing pain levels. My Fitbit sleep chart showed a block of four hours sleep and a block of three hours with only 45 minutes restless/awake in total. It did take half an hour to feel less foggy and be able to get up, but it was quite a relaxed feeling.

After a few nights of my son and a few other external factors interrupting my sleep, I was not feeling well. However there were continued periods of more thorough restful sleep spots – 2-4 hours of almost complete rest.

My sleep deteriorated over several nights, but I persevered for a few more nights, really wanting to see if I’d adjust, but I had to realise that sleep is paramount.

After 12 nights of increasing pain and fatigue, I checked with the pharmacist and agreed to reduce the melatonin to 1.5mg and leave the amitriptyline as it was in order to try and stabilise.

After two further nights of greatly interrupted sleep on 1.5mg, and days of headaches and extra tension, I took a break from the melatonin.

The first night off melatonin and I had a seven hour block of sleep! There was only 15 minutes awake/restless. I managed eight hours total. One thing that I did was have my husband help me to stretch my neck, so it felt less compacted, that made a big difference.

It was a worthwhile experiment, but, for me, melatonin is best saved for a once in a while sleep help and only for a couple of days.