HOUSEHOLD TIPS NOT FOUND IN WOMAN'S WEEKLY

[Marilyn]

Unfortunately the birds wake me up by 5am. I would like more sleep, but the screeching of cockatoos and the twittering of smaller birds is enough to wake the dead.

[Wendyf]

It doesn't help us poor sleepers to know that it's bad for us.... one more thing to worry about! I fall asleep the moment my head hits the pillow but if I wake up in the night then that's me awake for the next 2 or 3 hours. I don't have caffeine after midday anyway but I am currently trying to reduce my morning intake and drink fruit teas instead but I haven't found one that I like yet!

[Marilyn]

I don’t drink Caffiene after 2 pm. ( I only drink Instant anyway...generally it goes cold in the mug because I get distracted...I tip it away and tend to drink tap water if I get thirsty...same pattern every day.). It is not as if I am mainlining Expresso !
But the birds screech here until 9 pm. They are up just prior to 5 am. That is our window of sleep. Nothing we can do about it, that is just NATURE.
I did lay awake last night listening to grumbling/rolling thunder from 2am to 4am...fell asleep for an hour or less and was woken by bird song.
One great thing is that I have no pain beyond a few cramps and morning stiffness at present. I can’t say pain is a bother. That is a wonderful thing. Life is good.

[Tizer]

Lack of sleep affects me so badly now that I have to report to sleeping tablets (amitriptyline). I take the lowest dose tablet and try to keep it to one every three nights rather than one every night. Taking one at night seems to have enough `carry over' effect to help me sleep for two more nights. If I miss out on sleep I'm now confused and weak the following day and not safe to drive or stand on a stepladder. Like Wendy, I fall asleep OK when I go to bed but then I wake during the night and can't get back to sleep again.

[Stanley]

I feel such sympathy for you all. I have always said I am lucky, I can sleep anywhere at any time but on my present schedule I am like clockwork, always asleep by 21:00 or even earlier and always awake just after 02:00. If I wake up I just roll over and go to sleep again.
I wish there was a trick to it and I could pass it on.....

[Marilyn]

People who have trouble falling asleep hav some form of anxiety. People who fall asleep easily, wake early and cannot fall asleep again, have some form of depression. ( all this falls out the window of course, if you have pain that wakes you up when it will).
( yet...they treat you the same as far as any medication relief goes). It is rather frustrating...

[Wendyf]

I feel such sympathy for you all. I have always said I am lucky, I can sleep anywhere at any time but on my present schedule I am like clockwork, always asleep by 21:00 or even earlier and always awake just after 02:00. If I wake up I just roll over and go to sleep again.
I wish there was a trick to it and I could pass it on.....

I could do that no problem but I couldn't start my day at 2am and have a sleep during the day like you do!

[Marilyn]

Me neither. Hubby hates to see me having a rest...he gets on my case straight away. It is not worth the aggro to try to put my feet up. Best to just power through and keep going.

[Marilyn]

Tizer, I was offered low dose Amitryptiline as as sleep aid/pain relief with my Sciatica. ( when you are desperate though will try anything). I cut the low dose in half ( tiny tablets, so I was reduced to crumbs)
I can’t say I was taking a dose that may have helped most people, though they certainly knocked me out.
But they put my blood sugar up, and I was happy to abandon them within a few weeks.
( I didn’t like the way I fell asleep without that normal feeling of drifting off...felt like one second I was here, then I was gone)
I would not swallow those pills again. I don’t like them, but I especially don’t need my blood sugar up.

[PanBiker]

One of the features of the Fitbit watch I inherited from our Jack is that it monitors sleep if you wear it as you should and keep it on overnight. It records Light, REM and Deep Sleep periods as well as indicates the periods that you are awake or stir. Here is my record for Friday night 8 hours 5 minutes broken down into it's component parts.

[Tizer]

Maz, it sounds like you had a higher dose Amitryptiline. Mine is the low dose and it wouldn't send me to sleep unless I was trying to sleep. I've had a higher dose once and it knocked me out quickly!

[Marilyn]

10mg, which I cut in half ( so 5mg).
I was on low dose Pregabalin prior to that 75mg...which I couldn’t cut in half because they were capsules). They gave me dreadful nightmares. I had Black Bears jumping on the bed trying to eat me! So they were quickly discarded. Doctor worked hard to convince me to try the Amitriptyline ( he can have those back as well).
I haven’t been back to see him since...( he probably thinks he has cured me )

[Stanley]

I'm glad I am a singleton and can please myself what I do! Even more so since Jack died, I have complete freedom now and must admit I rather like it.
I'm sorry to hear of others troubles and glad I have been lucky and escaped.

[Marilyn]

I was glad I wasn’t a singleton when the Black Bears wanted to eat me, Stanley. That was after I had fallen off a few tall buildings in my nightmares. All disappeared instantly when I was nudged awake of course. I mean, this stuff isn’t real, just stuff of nightmares. Scarey enough that I put the pills at the back of the drawer and wouldn’t swallow another one. I was DONE trying that rubbish.
( god...who would take drugs for fun eh?)

[Stanley]

"If thine eye offends thee, pluck it out" (Matthew 5:29-30. KJV) is one of the Bible quotations that used to puzzle me as a young lad attending Wycliffe Sunday School in Stockport. However I soon realised that the sky didn't fall if you stopped worrying about these things.
But it has left a trace in my head because I have my own version which, when it occurs to me always reminds me of Matthew. It's "If your hair offends you, cut it off." I don't know why but I hate my hair being 'long' (and my version of long isn't long at all). So yesterday it came off. This cures the itching and overheating in bed and is today's tip!
I thought I'd let you know as it often acts like a rain dance and in this case could trigger off some cold weather!

[Tizer]

10mg, which I cut in half ( so 5mg).

Mine are 10 mg too, Maz. It just shows how different people's metabolism can be!

[Marilyn]

[quote=
Mine are 10 mg too, Maz. It just shows how different people's metabolism can be!
[/quote]

Yes, I admit I am a lightweight when it comes to medication. I always insist on the lowest dose. I took an antihistamine once and slept for 16 hours. I can only use nasal sprays and eye drops for Hayfever.

[Stanley]

I opened a box of disposable gloves that I have had for a while. I bought them in the days before I knew about different sorts. They are very good quality, generous sized and easy to put on giving a good fit. The only problem is they are latex and useless in the shed! (Too grippy and not resistant to oil and other solvents) I didn't realise that then so I now have a box of 100 disposable gloves ideal for household work and shopping but nothing else!
The Vinyl gloves I ordered earlier this week have arrived so no problem about the shed.....

[Stanley]

If you're dealing with a will it's a good idea to re-read it every now and then. It's amazing how details can become unclear or even distorted as time passes. This has arisen because I made a mistake this morning purely because I didn't refresh my memory. Luckily, no damage done and we have put my mistake right.

[Marilyn]

Oh...how close to the bone you get sometimes Stanley...I can’t talk about it..but the Vultures are circling...

[Stanley]

They always are Maz it's just that usually we manage to avoid exciting their interest. Janet's will was complicated and long drawn out, it looks as though my Brother Leslie's is going to rival it for longevity and profitability for the legal profession!

[Marilyn]

...but we are not even dead yet!

[Stanley]

The point is that they are and we have to watch while their affairs are sorted.

[plaques]

Where's there's a will there's a relative. In the UK the rules have changed where any family member can now contest the will. This becomes complicated where the family comprises of 'thine, mine and ours'. Review the will every few years and try to consider everybody. Remember a cash gift comes out of the estate before the residue is gifted over. With big families the residue may be far less than a number of very modest cash gifts. Glad I'm not going yet.

[Marilyn]

Well WE are not going yet. All have been considered, but some think they can claim “pre payment”.... gosh...what happened to be waiting to be gifted!
You never know a family until you pledge to share an inheritance with them!
It ain’t gonna happen!
In the first instance we take care of each other ( of course...no-one else will). That is our main task. It is our money and we must take care of our own needs. They won’t...they can have what Is left!
We have tried to protect the needs of our old age before anyone gets anything.
( I am hoping the will is rock solid, reviewed only 2 years ago)
It totally revolts me, that anyone can tally up the wealth of others...(but do not think we are rich. My husband is 71, works seven days a week, for two days a week pay...plus a small part pension). We do the hard yards with Covid.