I'm so glad it worked for you! I've put mine back on the bed now that nights have gotten colder and it really has made a difference. It did point out how much things have changed (and not really for the better) since last winter, but at least I'm toasty and not quite so stiff in the mornings now!
Andrea
Lainee B. said:
FYI - Just a follow up, I did get the heated mattress pad and would HIGHLY recommend it for anyone who gets stiff back/hips/knees while sleeping like I do! It was wonderful to sleep on, like a full body heating pad.
I'm sorry your having such problems sleeping. I think there's no way around it when your body is a minefield of pain. A while back I got severely depressed due to chronic pain, lack of diagnosis, and sleep deprivation. Not a good combination. Despite my misgivings, I agreed to start taking sleeping pills to right my sleep. I take Doxepin which is a sleep aid/anti-depressant. It does not give me much of a hangover in the morning. I take it early, at around 8 or 9. My problem is not falling asleep (I take muscle relaxers at bedtime) but staying asleep. The Doxepin makes it so that when I wake up in pain I am able to fall back asleep instead of being up all night. Worst case scenario I get up and try to get comfortable on the couch and read. Nothing is more depressing than watching tv in the wee hours of the morning or trying for endless hours to fall back asleep.
Thanks Carly, this is my problem too! I can fall asleep once I get comfortable, but STAYING asleep after waking with awful pain is the problem. I did find a heated mattress pad helps relax my body a bit, but still having pain issues all night long. I love this forum to help us put our heads together and share our experiences!
Yes, I am already reaping the benefits of all of your wisdom and experience. I think I might look into a heated mattress pad too, as the winter is always the hardest time. Let us know if you discover any other tricks for sleeping through the night!
Falling asleep is no problem for me but at 3 am or so I will wake up with throbbing pain in my left pinky tow. I have tried taping it and that helps occasionally but doesn't always. I am trying not to take any more pain meds or sleep aids since I am still working full time and really need to be awake when working with the kids. My rhu is still working with my meds to see what will work best. Reading these posts are giving me a lot of ideas and are making me realize I may have to try things that I am leary of to get relief from the pain. Lainee, I graduated from C-ville quite a few years back - Go Broncos! I am looking forward to learning about this disease and talking with people who know what I am talking about. I still think some people don't believe me and think I am making things up. Thank God, my rhu believes me and has the blood tests to prove the inflammation in my system so I know I am not losing my mind.
So the heated matress pad sounds wonderful, but it's not really in the budget right now. Plus, even with the dual controls, my husband will probably overheat and demand that it be removed. He is always so hot all the time, especially when he sleeps, and he's usually partially on my side of the bed too.
So I was wondering if anyone has ever tried one of those curved pregnancy body pillows. Maybe it would help take some of the strain off my shoulders and hips while better aligning my back. I'm a side-sleeper, which really stinks right now.
I thought my hubby would hate it too, but he is actually LOVING getting into a warmed up bed. He keeps his on heat setting 3 while mine is on heat setting 7 (of 10). It does help the aches and pains at night. Watch the white sales coming up in the next couple of weeks for a better deal!
MMG said:
So the heated matress pad sounds wonderful, but it's not really in the budget right now. Plus, even with the dual controls, my husband will probably overheat and demand that it be removed. He is always so hot all the time, especially when he sleeps, and he's usually partially on my side of the bed too.
So I was wondering if anyone has ever tried one of those curved pregnancy body pillows. Maybe it would help take some of the strain off my shoulders and hips while better aligning my back. I'm a side-sleeper, which really stinks right now.
I sympathize with your not having it in the budget to get the mattress pad. I can't really afford one either. I did find a heated throw that I put on my side of the bed. I keep it on a very low temp and get the same benefit as the heated mattress pad. I got mine at Big Lots for like $25. Maybe that can be an option for you and more in your price range. I too suffer with the joint pain aspect and totally understand where you are coming from. I truly hope you can find some sweet deep dreams soon!
OMG! What a wonderful idea! I hadn't even thought about that. I already have a heated throw, so I can try it tonight! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS IDEA! I'll let you know how it turns out!
mltoups said:
Hi Lainee,
I sympathize with your not having it in the budget to get the mattress pad. I can't really afford one either. I did find a heated throw that I put on my side of the bed. I keep it on a very low temp and get the same benefit as the heated mattress pad. I got mine at Big Lots for like $25. Maybe that can be an option for you and more in your price range. I too suffer with the joint pain aspect and totally understand where you are coming from. I truly hope you can find some sweet deep dreams soon!
Hi MMG, Thanks for your advice, but I was so lucky that my dear sister in law bought me one for my Christmas gift! It is AWESOME!!!! I am so blessed. It does really help up here in cold Michigan winters!
mltoups said:
Hi Lainee,
I sympathize with your not having it in the budget to get the mattress pad. I can't really afford one either. I did find a heated throw that I put on my side of the bed. I keep it on a very low temp and get the same benefit as the heated mattress pad. I got mine at Big Lots for like $25. Maybe that can be an option for you and more in your price range. I too suffer with the joint pain aspect and totally understand where you are coming from. I truly hope you can find some sweet deep dreams soon!
I love my heated throw! I have one at home to sleep with (it turns off automatically after 2 hours) and I have one at work for when days are really bad.
I have been in pain for years and am just finding out this is what I might have as I have not gotten to see my rheum doc, these ideas are great as I can barely move in the mornings and ache all night! I am a nurse and still work full time and can barely move after I get home from work, I have been to so many physicians and no one has helped me besides making me think I'm crazy!
My rheumatologist and my regular doctor agree that my pain is severe enough to warrant a prescription for Ambien (zolpidem tartarate), which makes me fall asleep pretty quickly.
When my pain got so severe that it was waking me after three to five hours after I went to sleep and I then did not go back to sleep and got very sleep deprived, my regular doctor suggested taking 1000 mg. of Tylenol (acetaminophen) at bedtime with Ambien, just as I take the Ambien - at the moment I go to bed. This worked very well for me helping me sleep through the night.
Check with your doctor on the max daily amount of Tylenol (acetaminophen) it's okay for you to take, since it's hard on your liver, as are a lot of other drugs a lot of us here take. My doctor says no more than 3000 mg. a day, and shoot for less than that, since I am a small person. So I limit myself to 1500 mg. Some recent studies have indicated that the recommended dosages for all infants and children should be revised down, but my rabid hamster brain can't remember where I read that recently.
Andrea, I agree with you about checking very carefully with your doctor about taking Benadryl with a prescription sleep med or pain med, for exactly the reason you name: the possibility of oversedation.
It is really annoying, my kettle and TV have become my best friends. I've been on Anti Depressants, taken at bed time but they don't work any more. Between the pain, lack of sleep and crying, I thought I was going mad. Then yesterday I found this page and I don't feel isolated or alone any more.
I use Ambien, too, Gardner. I was leery of sleepers, but now that I am using one, I wish I had done it years ago. How much sleep I lost to this disease!! Have you tried the extended release Ambien? If you're waking in the middle of the night, the extended release is supposed to kick in and get you through the rest of the night. It does work, but I find I need that wake-up to remind me to move or I wake up with lots of stiffness. But, we all react differently and that Ambien C (I think that's what it's called) might do the trick for you. Maybe, if YOU think it sounds like it would help, it would be good to ask about it.
My hips are what keep me from sleeping. The Ambien will put me to sleep, but I wake about four hours after in horrible pain. I've been sleeping in a recliner. :-( It takes the pressure off my hips.
Glad the ambien and tylenol are working well for you!
Hey, Catherine, are you new to the discussion board? Welcome! You will find lots of good folks on here who are very knowledgeable and quite helpful. Please post your questions, and concerns. You most certainly are NOT alone!!
I found that sleeping on a pillow wedge has helped me but not a too high a one I've learned to sleep on my back that way so it doesn't affect each hip. My hips would hurt so badly just by laying on the seam of my nightgown. I bought a pillow wedge at the advice of someone with the same problem and it really helped me. Sometimes my hands just throb at night but if I put a pillow under them to support them along with the pillow wedge, I'm sleeping so much better. I hope it works for you if you feel you'd like to try it.