pregnancy insomnia

I get that restless feeling too, but in my whole body. Like my skin is trying to crawl off or something. The more tired I am, the worse it is, and of course the harder it is to go to sleep.

I always have a hard time falling asleep, pregnant or not. What helps me is I drink my 3rd trimester tea at bedtime, spray some lavender on my pillow, and listen to a progressive sleep CD, focusing on my relaxation which we need to practice before labor anyway. There are a ton of those CDs out there, I just found a bunch in our county library system as well.

A warm bath can be good, but not within 2 hours of bedtime. You're body temp actually has to drop to a certain point before sleep can take place (always, not just during pg) and baths or showers raise your body temp. They are wonderful for relaxation though.

You might also try putting these and maybe a few other things into a bedtime routine, just like you would for a child. Routines tell our bodies its time to settle down and sleep. Reading for about 30 minutes really helps me a lot. Also, eating eggs at bedtime can help induce sleep, and you really should have a bit to eat at bedtime anyway to keep from waking up from hunger (which actually I often do even though I do eat). Make sure not to eat any sugar after dinner, if ever. Writing in a journal at bedtime can be helpful too if "running mind" syndrome keeps you awake.

I have *totally* beaten the pg insomnia, as you can tell by the fact that I'm posting at 2.37 a.m.

No miraculous cures, just commiseration. I have found that it is usually alleviated by a nap during the day, but I would hope that at 29 wks with twins, you're during that anyway!

I've tried the warm bath thing and it didn't do much for me bc I've tended to feel overheated since being pg. Probably just me, though. Sleeping in a cool room is somethign often recommended and that does help me stay asleep for longer stretches. Keeping rehydrating liquids by the bed so I can stay hydrated without getting up makes it easier to get back to sleep after night-waking, and easier to get to sleep as well.

Ironically, Dh has tried giving me back rubs and it does nothing for getting me to sleep, but giving him a massage invariably gets me sleepy! Something about the intimacy combined with using some energy but without all the issues of pg sex. I dunno. Works for me.

Those are all good suggestions so far

My only other trick to add would be a footbath before bed. I personally am too hot these days, which I think is making the insomnia worse, so a cold footbath helps me out a lot. Actually, I'm just keeping a bowl of water in my bedroom up against the wall where I can't kick it accidentally when I get up to pee. I soak my feet before I go to sleep, and then as needed before going back to bed after peeing...

Oh yeah, and turning the a/c up really high is great, too, but my DH turns into a popsicle, so I've avoided that I do have a separate fan on my side of the bed, tho, that helps somewhat!

HTH!

thanks for the suggestions. it's good to have a few more ideas to try. it seems that i find something that helps for a few nights and i get some good sleep and then that routine stops working and i have to find a new combo of things. my saving grace is that nap with DD during the day. otherwise i think i'd fall over.

best wishes to all you other gestating insomiacs too!