Hey there Dan…good to see some pics up. Looks like you’ve definately got some growth there in the delts!! Keep at it! Your attitude is great!!
AG
[quote]AG1 wrote:
Hey there Dan…good to see some pics up. Looks like you’ve definately got some growth there in the delts!! Keep at it! Your attitude is great!!
AG[/quote]
Thanks for the compliment. I appreciate it.
-Dan
I think you’ve made amazing progress in 2 months and with 11 weeks to go I have no doubt you’ll meet your goals if not, surpass them; you’re attitude confirms that. Keep at it, we’re all watching you and cheering you on : )
As far as the sleep is concerned, can’t help you there as I have no problem falling asleep, its staying asleep, now for me I’ve had 3 nights I think it is of excellent sleep which hasn’t happened in months and there’s no reason for it that I can see; maybe this thread is jinxed with sleep or its contagious??? Just superstitious?
I have used Gravol for years and I know many many people that do as well. One thing about Gravol though it will either make you very very sleepy or it will have the opposite effect and you’ll be buzzing around all night - now doesn’t that sound tempting???
Good work, Dan…keep bangin’.
[quote]Flower217 wrote:
I think you’ve made amazing progress in 2 months and with 11 weeks to go I have no doubt you’ll meet your goals if not, surpass them; you’re attitude confirms that. Keep at it, we’re all watching you and cheering you on : )
As far as the sleep is concerned, can’t help you there as I have no problem falling asleep, its staying asleep, now for me I’ve had 3 nights I think it is of excellent sleep which hasn’t happened in months and there’s no reason for it that I can see; maybe this thread is jinxed with sleep or its contagious??? Just superstitious?
I have used Gravol for years and I know many many people that do as well. One thing about Gravol though it will either make you very very sleepy or it will have the opposite effect and you’ll be buzzing around all night - now doesn’t that sound tempting???[/quote]
Flower,
Thanks for the compliment. I appreciate it. I think you meant to say 11 pounds, not 11 weeks.
Glad to hear you’ve been getting better sleep. I’m hopeful that I can resume my normal sleeping patterns soon. I’m changing up my nighttime routine and instead of watching TV, I’m going to read from 9-10 p.m. and also take a Melatonin. We’ll see how it goes. I think I need to stop thinking about it so much and just let my body rest.
Boy, that Gravol does sound tempting…not!
Thanks again for your support,
Dan
[quote]gottatrain wrote:
Good work, Dan…keep bangin’.[/quote]
Thanks for the compliment. I’m just trying to catch up to you, gottatrain. Hopefully I’ll get close sometime soon.
-Dan
[quote]Djwlfpack wrote:
gottatrain wrote:
Good work, Dan…keep bangin’.
Thanks for the compliment. I’m just trying to catch up to you, gottatrain. Hopefully I’ll get close sometime soon.
-Dan[/quote]
We’re all trying to get better bro’…that’s why we’re here.
OK, time to vent.
Last night I thought I had everything all set for a good night’s sleep. The computer was turned off by 7 p.m. and the TV was off by 8:30 p.m. My wife and I spent about an hour and 15 minutes reading and I was dozing off towards the tail end (I had taken a Melatonin at 9 p.m.). So we both decide we’re ready for bed, turn the lights off and guess what? NO SLEEP! I just couldn’t fall asleep. Weird thing was is that every few minutes I felt the need to swallow. Think it might be sinus drainage and a bad pillow, as it’s very flat and almost angles my head downward, which would cause some drainage I suppose. I tried doing some deep breathing to relax myself and while I felt relaxed, I couldn’t doze off. Finally after several hours of lying there my body must’ve given up because next thing I know it’s morning. If I had to guess I probably got 3-4 of sleep. This is the second night in a row this has happened and it’s very frustrating because I hate waking up in the morning feeling like crap and that makes me not want to do much of anything, including lifting. Yesterday I did manage to squeeze in a nap and that helped make me feel better but what I really want is to be able to get a good night’s sleep.
I realize it’s probably going to take a week or two for my body to get used to not having the Xanax in its system and I know that the lack of drugs is probably a reason for my restlesness but I’m sure you all can understand my annoyance with this.
For those that have tapered off of medication, did you all experience the same thing in regards to lack of sleep and if so, how long did it last?
How long does Melatonin take to start having an effect. I’ve taken it 2 nights in a row and haven’t noticed it working much.
Any tips to help me sleep would be greatly appreciated. I really don’t want another night like the last two.
Thanks for letting me vent,
Dan
Dan, i have not stopped by the thread in awhile, but first yes that’s me in the avatar, thanks for the compliment. As far as sleep aids, i never got much from melatonin, just did not seem to do anything. 500mg of valerian root works pretty well for me if i take it about 1 hour before i lay down.
As far as staying on paxil to BIGR, i would say those of us with true chemical based depression it needs to be treated life long, i don’t really even consider going off the anti-d’s any more.
[quote]morepain wrote:
Dan, i have not stopped by the thread in awhile, but first yes that’s me in the avatar, thanks for the compliment. As far as sleep aids, i never got much from melatonin, just did not seem to do anything. 500mg of valerian root works pretty well for me if i take it about 1 hour before i lay down.
As far as staying on paxil to BIGR, i would say those of us with true chemical based depression it needs to be treated life long, i don’t really even consider going off the anti-d’s any more. [/quote]
Morepain,
Dude, you’re huge. Awesome job! Thanks for the feedback on Melatonin. I’m going to my therapist tomorrow so I’m going to definitely be talking about my lack of sleep.
Hey guys,
Well, surprisingly after 2 nights of little sleep, I don’t feel half-bad. I’ve taken the last 2 days off from lifting, though, because I don’t want to half-ass it in the gym. I’ve also discovered that I do have a bit of sinus drainage so that explains the constant swallowing feeling last night. I took some Sudafed and will pop a few lasanges before bed and hopefully that will help things. I’ve also switched pillows, too, so my head won’t be tilted downwards, thus inducing the drainage.
I’ll let you know how it all goes tomorrow. Hopefully I’ll be well-rested and back in the gym kicking ass.
Later,
Dan
[quote]Djwlfpack wrote:
Hey guys,
Man, I had another rough night of sleep. Don’t know what’s going on. I’m tired at night and feel sleepy, yet when I lay down and turn off the lights, I can’t seem to fall asleep. Maybe I’m thinking about it too much or something, I don’t know but last night I hardly slept at all and today I feel like crap. I tried taking some Melatonin last night but I probably waited too long for it to have any real effect.
This is so frustrating b/c I feel fine during the day and at night yet for some reason I can’t fall asleep.
I’m going to try and take the Melatonin about an hour before I go to bed tonight to see if that will help.
Any other suggestions are welcome,
Dan[/quote]
I find that eating something when I can’t sleep helps me to doze off.
Morning everyone,
Feel a lot better today. I didn’t get a full 8 hours of sleep but the 5.5 to 6 hours I did get feels like 20 after struggling to get 2-3 hours each of the past two days.
Ragoo, I did eat something small before I went to bed and I think that helped a bit (last two nights I hadn’t had anything to eat after 6:30 p.m.).
I definitely think it was the sinus drainage keeping me awake the other nights. I popped a couple of lasanges last night and that seemed to help a bit, although I probably should’ve taken a Tylenol PM (I’m going to do that tonight) in addition to help me doze off, as it did take about 2 hours for me to fall asleep.
I did some deep breathing and that helped but still couldn’t fully fall asleep so I got up, went out to the living room and watched a black-white movie for 30 minutes and that pretty much knocked me out.
I’m going to hit the gym later today so I’ll let you guys know how the workout went when I get back.
-Dan
Funny you mention the sinus thing, i have been round and round with acute sinusitus (sp?) this year. My sleep was poor at best and when i was waking up i felt like death which i attributed primarily to my depression.
I am sure that it was partly that, but my doctor finally gave me avelox (i always wonder why they save the stuff that actually works for last?)which finally has my sinus infection under control.
Now when i wake up i feel like i have some energy, don’t get me wrong i am not a morning person and never will be but getting a good nights sleep definetly helped me.
Here’s an interesting article on supplements for depression, insomnia and anxiety:
[quote]Jason32 wrote:
Here’s an interesting article on supplements for depression, insomnia and anxiety:
http://www.newstarget.com/019327.html[/quote]
Interesting read, Jason. Thanks for the link.
Well, just got back from the gym and had a good workout. The extra few hours of sleep definitely helped with my energy, as I was able to power through the workout with no problem.
Here’s the stats. I’m going to do my weekly weigh-in tomorrow
Sets: 2
Reps: 8
Rest: 60
Deadlifts: 225 (grip was solid, all that forearm/grip work is paying off!)
Standing Leg Curls: 87.5
BB Upright Rows: 70, 80
Incline BB Bench Press: 155
Crunches: BW + 25 lbs.
Skull Crushers: 70, 80
Also saw my therapist today and told her about my sleep problems. She, too, thinks it’s likely my body’s reaction to not having as much Xanax (and my sinus problems are also a small factor) in my system as it’s been used to the last 3-4 months. I filled my prescription for Ambien (5 mg) and she suggested taking it for a few days at a time to get back on track with my sleeping and then try to go a day or two without it and see what the difference is.
She said that for the next 1-2 weeks taking the Ambien is important as my body’s still adjusting to not having Xanax but once the body realizes that it’s not getting the Xanax, I should be able to resume normal sleeping patterns.
I can definitely say I’m feeling much better today than the past two days. Hopefully I can catch up on my rest this weekend as I don’t have any work to do so I can take it easy and relax.
Take care,
Dan
Ive had my own sleeping problems recently.
Mainly they are caused by absurd shift work, but I know my personality isnt helping. I tend to try and fix things and
work over them obsessively, which creates much more stress in the long term.
It doesnt seem to me that you have any real sleeping problems. Just a few rough nights. Here are some things to think about though.
Dont obsess about sleep. There is a growing mentality that we are all dangerously sleep deprived and so forth. This leads people to count every hour they sleep and then say things like “I only slept 5 or 6 hours last night. I cant function.” Thats ridiculous. Ask some of the hardcore military guys what they have done in training and in the field in terms of sleep.
Sometimes they’re up 3 or 4 days with little sleep. Dont develop a million rituals around trying to go to sleep or anything like that either. Dont think about sleep during the day(this is key and it is something that all people with insomnia start doing…stressing about sleep). Just let it happen. When you are tired enough, your body will take care of itself.
Also, dont skip workouts or alter your life too much if you dont sleep well. Just go about your business. If Im not mistaken, Professor X has said numerous times on here that he is a very poor sleeper and look at the physique he managed to build.
I dont know much about medications. Xanax be causing your problems. If that is the case, surely that will work out in time.
The sinus thing should be investigated by a doctor. Perhaps you have apnea, allergies or some type of upper respiratory obstruction that is hindering your sleep. I suspect the same thing in my case, as I have a deviated septum and bad sinuses. My doctor is looking into it.
Good luck.
[quote]JD430 wrote:
Ive had my own sleeping problems recently.
Mainly they are caused by absurd shift work, but I know my personality isnt helping. I tend to try and fix things and
work over them obsessively, which creates much more stress in the long term.
It doesnt seem to me that you have any real sleeping problems. Just a few rough nights. Here are some things to think about though.
Dont obsess about sleep. There is a growing mentality that we are all dangerously sleep deprived and so forth. This leads people to count every hour they sleep and then say things like “I only slept 5 or 6 hours last night. I cant function.” Thats ridiculous. Ask some of the hardcore military guys what they have done in training and in the field in terms of sleep.
Sometimes they’re up 3 or 4 days with little sleep. Dont develop a million rituals around trying to go to sleep or anything like that either. Dont think about sleep during the day(this is key and it is something that all people with insomnia start doing…stressing about sleep). Just let it happen. When you are tired enough, your body will take care of itself.
Also, dont skip workouts or alter your life too much if you dont sleep well. Just go about your business. If Im not mistaken, Professor X has said numerous times on here that he is a very poor sleeper and look at the physique he managed to build.
I dont know much about medications. Xanax be causing your problems. If that is the case, surely that will work out in time.
The sinus thing should be investigated by a doctor. Perhaps you have apnea, allergies or some type of upper respiratory obstruction that is hindering your sleep. I suspect the same thing in my case, as I have a deviated septum and bad sinuses. My doctor is looking into it.
Good luck.[/quote]
Thanks for this post. Starting tomorrow I’m going to try a “new” attitude based on your post. This 3, 4, 5 hours a night IS starting to get to me. I have a cycle - after a month or 2 of this then I’ll get 2 or 3 nights of 7 or 8 hours. I just wish I could break this cycle.
[quote]Flower217 wrote:
JD430 wrote:
Ive had my own sleeping problems recently.
Mainly they are caused by absurd shift work, but I know my personality isnt helping. I tend to try and fix things and
work over them obsessively, which creates much more stress in the long term.
It doesnt seem to me that you have any real sleeping problems. Just a few rough nights. Here are some things to think about though.
Dont obsess about sleep. There is a growing mentality that we are all dangerously sleep deprived and so forth. This leads people to count every hour they sleep and then say things like “I only slept 5 or 6 hours last night. I cant function.” Thats ridiculous. Ask some of the hardcore military guys what they have done in training and in the field in terms of sleep.
Sometimes they’re up 3 or 4 days with little sleep. Dont develop a million rituals around trying to go to sleep or anything like that either. Dont think about sleep during the day(this is key and it is something that all people with insomnia start doing…stressing about sleep). Just let it happen. When you are tired enough, your body will take care of itself.
Also, dont skip workouts or alter your life too much if you dont sleep well. Just go about your business. If Im not mistaken, Professor X has said numerous times on here that he is a very poor sleeper and look at the physique he managed to build.
I dont know much about medications. Xanax be causing your problems. If that is the case, surely that will work out in time.
The sinus thing should be investigated by a doctor. Perhaps you have apnea, allergies or some type of upper respiratory obstruction that is hindering your sleep. I suspect the same thing in my case, as I have a deviated septum and bad sinuses. My doctor is looking into it.
Good luck.
Thanks for this post. Starting tomorrow I’m going to try a “new” attitude based on your post. This 3, 4, 5 hours a night IS starting to get to me. I have a cycle - after a month or 2 of this then I’ll get 2 or 3 nights of 7 or 8 hours. I just wish I could break this cycle.
[/quote]
Definitely a good post. Thanks for the info and yes, you’re right about thinking about sleep too much. I need to just let it happen instead of worrying about if I’m going to fall asleep right away or not.
I wouldn’t compare civilians to the military and/or doctors, though, because the situations are different. Yes military/doctors can perform great tasks with little or no sleep for days at a time but it’s because they’ve been trained to do so. Can I function the next day when I haven’t slept well? Yes but I have more energy to do more activities when I’m fully rested.
The sinus issues aren’t anything severe…they just tend to flare up whenever there’s a drastic change in the weather (like we just had out here in CO).
Flower, hang in there girl. Hopefully this will turn around for you soon and you’ll enjoy many consecutive nights of peaceful sleep.