Here's the sleep info we got from Nedley:

- Eat plenty of tryptophan. Your brain needs it to convert to melatonin. Top sources of bio-available tryptophan are tofu, flax seeds (ground), roasted pumpkin seeds, gluten flour, sesame seeds, almonds, black walnuts, and blackeyed cowpeas.
- Have your blood levels of vitamin D and calcium checked. These must be present in order for the brain to convert tryptophan into melatonin.
- Get sunlight through the skin (for vitamin D) and through the eyes (for melatonin).
- To help regulate circadian rhythm, get a light box. There are different times for different colors and lux capacities. We got the Philips GoLight Blu, which you can use for shorter amounts of time. With this light, use for 20-40 minutes between 5-7 AM if you have trouble falling asleep. If you have trouble with early waking, use again for 20-40 minutes between 2-4 PM.
- Get up between 5-7 AM. Go to bed between 8-10 PM. Sleep that occurs before midnight is more restful.
- Eliminate all caffeine.
- Avoid eating after 3 PM, or if you do eat make it a very light meal (soup, fruit, crackers or toast). This enhances melatonin production.
- Exercise a minmum of 60 minutes sometime during the day.
- Expose yourself to daylight in the daytime (open blinds, sit by windows, go outside). In the evening, close the blinds, turn off lights, make things dark. When you are sleeping, make it very dark. Use room-darkening shades or an eye mask if needed. Melatonin production in the brain is related to receptors in the eyes, so exposing yourself to the correct levels of light and dark at the correct times of day can affect your circadian rhythm.
- For really really optimal circadian rhythm regulation, avoid lighted screens in the evening (TV, computer, phone, etc.).
- If you wake up in the night, stay in bed, stay still, and keep your eyes closed as much as possible. Even if you do not subjectively feel that you are asleep, you may in fact be in stage one sleep and then be able to drift off to higher levels if you stay still. If you move around or get up, you definitely are not sleeping at all.
- Try to replace anxious or upsetting self-talk such as "I can't sleep AGAIN, I'm never going to get rested, I'm going to be a mess again tomorrow." with more calm or realistic self-talk. NOTE: If somebody figures out some good self-talk for this, please let me know, because I still get myself worked up when I wake up in the middle of the night.

ALL THAT SAID: I did sleep somewhat better while I was actually at the retreat but I never did actually get to sleeping all the way through the night. Since I have come home I have still really been struggling with it.

ALSO PLEASE NOTE: This info is primarily geared toward depression, not PCS. So, while it is brain-friendly, it may or may not specifically address all the needs of the brain-injured brain.