Terrible insomnia

Hey everyone. So for the past week I have been having the worst insomnia. I would guess i'm pretty much getting 2-3 hours of sleep a night if i'm lucky. Every night my stomach pains have either kept me from falling asleep or woken me up at some point in the night. Last night I felt completely fine when I went to sleep but woke up feeling sick at around 4am and couldn't fall back asleep till around 7. I'm a college student so trying to stay awake and alert in class on such little sleep is pretty hard. Right now i'm on 9 pills of colazal a day. My doctor wanted to try me on this so i've been on it for the last two weeks. She said it was the last resort before going on steroids. Looks like I'm going to have to go on steroids for the first time, which i'm not happy about. Does this happen to anyone else and how bad are the side effects of steroids? I'm kinda new with this disease so any input would help, thanks!

I've been going through a similar thing as you, though I didn't want to go on Remicade, not steroids.

Fought it tooth and nail until I got so sick I was only sleeping a few hours a night and would wake my poor husband up every night because I'd be moaning in pain. I could barely stand, walk or eat. If I ate anything, I'd be sick for hours. I couldn't lay flat because it hurt too bad, but I can't sleep sitting up. Needless to say, I was pretty miserable.

You have to think about it in terms of quality of life. I'm not sure how the Remicade will treat me in the future, but I know that the damage and stress my body was taking before the Remicade could not be healthy. So I'll take my chances with what comes in time because I had no quality of life that month I was sick (steroids stopped responding for me).

I'd talk to your doctor about what's going on and I'd strongly consider asking her about steroids. It can get your disease under control and your life back to normal. Steroids can not be fun, but sometimes they are a necessary evil.

I agree with CH, Valerian root does help. It helps me to fall asleep, but not necessarily to stay asleep. Hugs!

Kell123 I am so sorry you're having such a rough time right now. The insomnia I deal with pretty consistently. As my pain and or stress increases so does the insomnia. Pain meds, I take hydrocodone, are not generally good for a healthy sleep pattern (I'm a sleep tech so this I know for sure) but when you're in as much pain as we are it's necessary for your body to relax. If you can get pain meds I suggest taking them a good hour or two before you attempt sleep. And the meditation cupcakespinkgal was talking about is a really good idea. I've watched many of my patients, some who are healthy and others pretty bad off complain of insomnia and by watching their sleep habits/ rituals I can see a lot of room for improvement. If I have a patient come in and insist on watching TV shows or bringing in a laptop and working while trying to convince me that its ok for them to drink caffeine filled drinks they tend to take a very long time to go to sleep. On their second visit I can usually convince them to stay off the computer and keep the TV off...you'd be surprised how much quicker they fall asleep. Most people forget how important sleep hygiene is...
Sorry for the long story but just trying to say I understand where you're coming from and keep in mind setting your bedroom up for sleep only, and trying to get some pain management, melatonin/ Valerian root, hot baths and meditation can go a long way.
As for the steroids my 9 month run on Pred. was awful and only increased my sleep problems. I gained a ton of weight and it took my GI a good while before he figured out my CD was steroid resistant. I hope your experience is that of a quick fix! Many people on here do well on steroids...just remember to stay away from salty foods the moon face is horrible!
Take care and I wish you many sweet dreams ;)

Kell
I've had problems with insomnia for years, and I understand how frustrating it can be. Your body needs the time to relax. Have you asked your doctor about pain control. I usually can deal with pain easier during the day, but if I have a bad night, I'll take something in order to sleep.

I've had insomnia for years, so now I take zopiclone. I'm pretty sure it is strictly a sleep aid, not an anti-depressant. I only need 1/3 of the pill and it works great! Just a little grogginess in the morns, but that can be normal with CD anyway. At least I'm finally getting some sleep before 4 a.m. ;-)