PCS insomnia and healing
 

Hi all

A loved one has been experiencing insomnia after a concussion. It started off with him getting 6 hours of sleep per night (he usually gets 7-8), then it became every other day he wouldn't be able to sleep at all, and now he is averaging aboug 3 hours sleep per night. He has tried 5mg of Stilnox (zolpidem), which gave him 4.5 hours of sleep.

He's said his insomnia feels like his brain has forgotten how to sleep - he rarely feels sleepy or drowsy.

Has anyone experienced something similar? If so, what medications worked for you and how long did your symptoms last?

Any help would be really appreciated.

re: PCS insomnia and healing
 

hello,

i can understand exactly what they are going thru. and i'm sorry i don't have much help to offer.

my sleeping issues started almost right away. i was only getting 3-4 hours of sleep a day! (and i could sleep 10+ hours before this) and yes, for me it was like my brain couldn't even handle sleeping anymore! it slowly went up to 5-6 hours of sleep each day. and mine last about 9 weeks!!! i always said that 'my brain was so injured that it couldn't handle the simple task of sleeping for 9 straight weeks'!

make sure they let the doctors know about the insomnia, especially if the medicine isn't helping. there are usually plenty of options. also think about trying a strong pain killer, as there might be just enough pain in the head to interfere with the sleeping. (i had that later on)

even if they can't sleep, the best thing to do is to rest. the brain has to work its way thru the injury, which can take time and energy. i know it sounds silly but just like any other injury, the brain just needs time - which is something that changes for each person.

feel free to message anytime and best wishes

A common treatment for concussion related insomnia is a small dose of Amitryptiline before bed. Shutting down stimulation a few hours before bedtime is important. No caffeine at all except a single serving first thing in the morning.

For many of us, we are overly sensitive to visual, auditory, and tactile stimuli when we are needing to fall alseep. Occupying those sensory systems with non-stimulating sensations can help.

I used to watch videos. The same one every night as I let my body settle down. I know a TBI survivor who has needed this for 20 years. He has a video screen in his bedroom. The movie he watches occupies his visual and auditory processing. His pajamas and sheets are comfortable so they provide a neutral tactile stimulus.

I have also done this with just music. I have a few CDs I've loaded as my Go to sleep playlist. I play them in the same order so my brain knows what to expect next. No random playing of music that leaves the brain waiting to see what is next.

There is more to this defeating PCS/TBI insomnia. I've posted it many time but am willing to post it again if you are interested.