I asked our members here if they had any tips that may help me sleep, here are the the results -

Melatonin - You can buy it over the counter in the USA.
Magnesium - It loosens muscle tension.
Advil PM
Benadryl (diphenhydramine) OTC antihistamine
hops are effective and safe, they are related to the cannabis plant.
Restavit sleeping tablets - doctors script not needed.
Valerium - available at shops that sell suplements.
I found that the combination of Valerium and Magnesium really helped me get a good nights sleep.

*** Just to play on the safe side, i would ask my doc if any of the above is ok to take with any medications you are currently taken ***
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also from Rfinney

Recognize that the sleep system tends to right itself after a few nights of insomnia, if you do not adjust your schedule.Set a regular bedtime – and keep it. Your body needs reliability.
Less is more. Keeping your wake-up time constant but going to bed one hour later will help 25% of insomniacs within one to two weeks. Prepare to feel sleepy at times and avoid driving then. After two weeks, add back the time in half-hour increments.
Look on tow or three nights of insomnia as a gift – time to get done all you have to get done. Insomnia may be functional, a signal that you need to attend to whatever woke you up.
Put sleep in the background of your life. Don’t monitor it, don’t evaluate it. “Put it in an envelope and don’t open it for two weeks.”
If you’re an adolescent or student who has difficulty getting up and functioning in the morning, your insomnia may be a sleep-phase insomnia. Maintain your wake time and immediately apply bright light for at least 15 minutes to reset your clock. Progressively move your sleep time earlier and follow wake-up with a strong pulse of light.
Another way to deal with sleep-phase problems: reset your clock by taking melatonin four hours before bedtime. Again, move up your bedtime a little bit each day.
If you are an older adult troubled by early morning awakening, you may need to reset biological rhythms and phase-delay bedtime by going to sleep one hour later: Do nothing else to correct your sleep problem.
Get more exercise – physical and mental. It primes the sleep homeostat. Sex, among, other things, is a great exercise.
Jack up your body temperature with a warm bath before bed. Exaggerating the normal drop in body temperature that accompanies lying down helps sleep.
Learn simple meditation and practice it before bedtime; it cuts down nervous system arousal.
Keep your bedroom dark, especially as you get older. Even small amounts of light and noise can disturb sleep as you age.
If you awaken in the middle of the night, use the time for creative problem-solving. The “bleeding” of unconsciousness into wakefulness makes thought less rational and freer at this time.
You can take the sting out of a bad night with the judicious use modafinil (Provigil), a stimulant developed to help narcoleptics stay awake during the day. Taking it after a sleepless night helps ease anxiety about insomnia and primes the sleep homeostat.

DON’T’S
Don’t fight insomnia. The homeostat makes sleep a self-reparative system – if you stay out of its way.
Don’t worry about the consequences of not sleeping. Worrying about insomnia can create insomnia.
Don’t overheat your environment. Sleep loves cold. Keep your bedroom cold but load up on blankets.
Don’t sleep with your pets. Animal dander can create allergies that manifest only at night, and the movement of any pet on your bed can wake you up.
Do not sleep late or nap to make up for a bad night. It de-primes the sleep homeostat and reduces the need for sleep the next night, setting the stage for recurrent insomnia.
For the same reason, don’t make up for an acute bout of insomnia by going to bed early.
Do not try to sleep by drinking alcohol. Yes, it’s a great relaxant – but it is metabolized so quickly it creates rebound insomnia; it’s so fast acting you’ll be up in four short hours.
Don’t stay in bed waiting for sleep. It’s not true that the more time you spend in bed , the more sleep you’ll get.
Don’t catastrophize. While you are taking steps to repair your sleep system, abandon the notion that you can’t function on less sleep; sleeping less as therapy wont’ feel good but it will re-prime the sleep homeostat.
Be careful with caffeine: Limit yourself to one cup of coffee in the morning. At age 18, caffeine has a half-life of 4.5 hours, which increases with age. Gradually eliminate caffeine altogether if you have continued trouble sleeping.

If anyone has anything else that have shown good results are very welcome to add to this.

Finally! Work is being done to identify our pains.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com:80/m...d=65639nfid=nl

It's gonna take a while, but we are becoming a true medical 'condition'? YES!

the site is at:
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com:80/m...=65639&nfid=nl
Whew! let's see if this works? - j

YES it does! - j

http://www.medifocushealth.com/NR021/index.php

It's long-ish but easily asorbed. - j

From AARP magazine
http://www.aarpmagazine.org/health/prisoners_pain.html

Guess they have dilemmas as well. - j

A Letter to Normals From One in Chronic Pain:


Having chronic pain means many things change, and a lot of them are invisible.
Unlike having cancer or being hurt in an accident, most people do not understand even
a little about chronic pain and its effects, and of those that think they know, many are actually
misinformed.


In the spirit of informing those who wish to understand:

These are the things that I would like you to understand about me before you judge me.

Please understand that being sick doesn't mean I'm not still a human being. I have to spend
most of my day in considerable pain and exhaustion, and if you visit, sometimes I probably
don't seem like much fun to be with, but I'm still me, stuck inside this body.
I still worry about school, my family, my friends, and most of the time, I'd still like to hear you
talk about yours, too.

Please understand the difference between "happy" and "healthy".
When you've got the flu, you probably feel miserable with it, but I've been sick for years.
I can't be miserable all the time. In fact, I work hard at not being miserable.
So, if you're talking to me and I sound happy, it means I'm happy. that's all.
It doesn't mean that I'm not in a lot of pain, or extremely tired, or that I'm getting better,
or any of those things. Please don't say, "Oh, you're sounding better!" or "But you look so healthy!"
I am merely coping. I am sounding happy and trying to look normal. If you want to comment on that,
you're welcome.

Please understand that being able to stand up for ten minutes doesn't necessarily mean that
I can stand up for twenty minutes, or an hour. Just because I managed to stand up for thirty minutes
yesterday doesn't mean that I can do the same today. With a lot of diseases you're either paralyzed,
or you can move. With this one, it gets more confusing everyday. It can be like a yo-yo.
I never know from day to day, how I am going to feel when I wake up. In most cases,
I never know from minute to minute. That is one of the hardest and most frustrating components of
chronic pain.

Please repeat the above paragraph substituting, "sitting", "walking", "thinking", "concentrating",
"being sociable" and so on, it applies to everything. That's what chronic pain does to you.



Please understand that chronic pain is variable. It's quite possible (for many, it's common) that
one day I am able to walk to the park and back, while the next day I'll have trouble getting to the
next room. Please don't attack me when I'm ill by saying, "But you did it before!" or
"Oh, come on, I know you can do this!" If you want me to do something, then ask if I can.
In a similar vein, I may need to cancel a previous commitment at the last minute.
If this happens, please do not take it personally. If you are able, please try to always remember
how very lucky you are, to be physically able to do all of the things that you can do.

Please understand that "getting out and doing things" does not make me feel better,
and can often make me seriously worse. You don't know what I go through or how I suffer
in my own private time. Telling me that I need to exercise, or do some things to "get my mind off of it",
may frustrate me to tears, and is not correct.
If I was capable of doing some things any or all of the time, don't you know that I would?
I am working with my doctors and I am doing what I am supposed to do.
Another statement that hurts is, "You just need to push yourself more, try harder".
Obviously, chronic pain can deal with the whole body, or be localized to specific areas.
Sometimes participating in a single activity for a short or a long period of time can cause more damage
and physical pain than you could ever imagine. Not to mention the recovery time, which can be intense.
You can't always read it on my face or in my body language. Also, chronic pain may cause
secondary depression (wouldn't you get depressed and down if you were hurting constantly for
months or years?), but it is not created by depression.

Please understand that if I say I have to sit down, lie down, stay in bed, or take these pills now,
that probably means that I do have to do it right now, it can't be put off or forgotten just because
I'm somewhere, or I'm right in the middle of doing something. Chronic pain does not forgive,
nor does it wait for anyone.

If you want to suggest a cure to me, please don't. It's not because I don't appreciate the thought,
and it's not because I don't want to get well. Lord knows that isn't true. In all likelihood,
if you've heard of it or tried it, so have I. In some cases, I have been made sicker, not better.
This can involve side effects or allergic reactions, as is the case with herbal remedies.
It also includes failure, which in and of itself can make me feel even lower.
If there were something that cured, or even helped people with my form of chronic pain,
then we'd know about it.
There is worldwide networking (both on and off the Internet) between people with chronic pain.
If something worked, we would KNOW.
It's definitely not for lack of trying. If, after reading this, you still feel the need to suggest a cure,
then so be it. I may take what you said and discuss it with my doctor.



If I seem touchy, it's probably because I am. It's not how I try to be. As a matter of fact,
I try very hard to be normal. I hope you will try to understand. I have been, and am still,
going through a lot. Chronic pain is hard for you to understand unless you have had it.
It wreaks havoc on the body and the mind. It is exhausting and exasperating.
Almost all the time, I know that I am doing my best to cope with this, and live my life to
the best of my ability. I ask you to bear with me, and accept me as I am.
I know that you cannot literally understand my situation unless you have been in my shoes,
but as much as is possible, I am asking you to try to be understanding in general.

In many ways I depend on you, people who are not sick.
I need you to visit me when I am too sick to go out.
Sometimes I need you help me with the shopping, the cooking or the cleaning. I may
need you to take me to the doctor, or to the store. You are my link to the "normalcy" of life.
You can help me to keep in touch with the parts of life that I miss and fully intend to undertake again,
just as soon as I am able.

I know that I asked a lot from you, and I do thank you for listening.
It really does mean a lot.


>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Ran across this link to Janet Ruhl's website - has some really good info re: blood sugar levels and organ damage.

http://www.phlaunt.com/diabetes/14045678.php

Alkymst