Female depression and insomnia

[hizuchan]

Hello. A very specific discussion topic, mainly directed at women/afabs, but anyone is welcome to contribute!

When I first started experiencing insomnia it must've been during middle school right when I hit puberty. That was also right about when I got diagnosed with MDD. Now I'm almost 24 and I'm experiencing a weird back-and-forth state jumping between not being able to sleep at all and sleeping all the time. I can never really find the middle ground and it seems highly dependant on my menstrual cycle.

How did your relationship with sleep look like before and after becoming depressed (if there even was a "before" point)? Do you also see a drastic change depending on your menstrual phase?

 

[Sakura.]

Hi! The author of this thread is a friend of mine, but as you can see, she hasn't received any replies yet. I'm not AFAB myself, so I can't really reply to her myself, but I thought I could at least bump this thread and get it back to the top of the forum to give it a second chance. I hope she and you don't mind.

Maybe someone would like to respond this time.

 

[hizuchan]

Hi! The author of this thread is a friend of mine, but as you can see, she hasn't received any replies yet. I'm not AFAB myself, so I can't really reply to her myself, but I thought I could at least bump this thread and get it back to the top of the forum to give it a second chance. I hope she and you don't mind.

Maybe someone would like to respond this time.

My brother from another mother

 

[idfwlnh]

I think to me, I slept more, as if just laying down is enough for me to sleep. Though sometimes, I can't sleep at all, staying awake until morning. But the thing is when I started to get these symptoms, I was in a very important exam phase, so no matter how I am tired or sleepy, I had to keep myself awake to study. Before that, I my sleep was alr, 7 hours per day.

 

[Forever Sleep]

Sometimes I think it plays a part. I believe our temperature rises before menstruation- which can make it more uncomfortable to sleep. I used to get quite severe pain on the first night. Bad enough for paracetamol to have no effect.

For me though- poor sleep tends to follow on from what my mind is doing. It's usually an over active or worried mind that keeps me awake.

Of course- now I'm mid forties and likely entering all the joys of the menopause. I'm on day 14 of my damn period. I seem to be getting headaches daily too. I have this hope I'm actually dying but, I doubt it. It weirdly hurts less than it used to though- in terms of cramps.

I tend to find it's more anxiety that disrupts my sleep though- rather than being unhappy. It's- thankfully- not so bad I would call it insomnia for me. More like- every so often, I'll struggle.

Have you talked to a doctor? I hate seeing medical professionals personally. I'm so hoping I can just die before things become bad again.

 

[hizuchan]

Sometimes I think it plays a part. I believe our temperature rises before menstruation- which can make it more uncomfortable to sleep. I used to get quite severe pain on the first night. Bad enough for paracetamol to have no effect.

For me though- poor sleep tends to follow on from what my mind is doing. It's usually an over active or worried mind that keeps me awake.

Of course- now I'm mid forties and likely entering all the joys of the menopause. I'm on day 14 of my damn period. I seem to be getting headaches daily too. I have this hope I'm actually dying but, I doubt it. It weirdly hurts less than it used to though- in terms of cramps.

I tend to find it's more anxiety that disrupts my sleep though- rather than being unhappy. It's- thankfully- not so bad I would call it insomnia for me. More like- every so often, I'll struggle.

Have you talked to a doctor? I hate seeing medical professionals personally. I'm so hoping I can just die before things become bad again.

I haven't talked to the doctor about it…honestly I just took it as it is and never really questioned it. I do take some melatonin from time to time, but when I use it for a prolonged time the effect tends to weaken… maybe I should ask for some stronger sleeping medication so I can sleep more consistently, it's honestly one of the biggest joys of life for me as long as I don't have nightmares about people lynching me to death lol.

 

[lilb0wpeep]

It's definitely worse for me when I'm on/around my period. I think it's a rude mix of all the symptoms making it worse, though I feel a part of that is because 'everything' is worse during that time. Things like pain, headaches, temp regulation, emotional regulation and suicidal thoughts worsening making it even more difficult to fall and stay asleep.
That said I genuinely feel like I have almost a reverse period(non bleeding symptoms only) at this point, because I get maybe 1 week after my period where things are just ok/ok enough. But every day aside from that I feel absolutely terrible in every way.

 

[PenPen<3]

Hello. A very specific discussion topic, mainly directed at women/afabs, but anyone is welcome to contribute!

When I first started experiencing insomnia it must've been during middle school right when I hit puberty. That was also right about when I got diagnosed with MDD. Now I'm almost 24 and I'm experiencing a weird back-and-forth state jumping between not being able to sleep at all and sleeping all the time. I can never really find the middle ground and it seems highly dependant on my menstrual cycle.

How did your relationship with sleep look like before and after becoming depressed (if there even was a "before" point)? Do you also see a drastic change depending on your menstrual phase?

My "before" state was when I was 10 and I was sleeping very normal like 11PM-7AM
But my sleep schedule just became me never wanting to go to sleep or getting really tired at noon and then staying up until 7AM. Either way now it's sort of back to normal bc I went to rehab and my family won't take their eyes off me so I have to perform.