Do you know that feeling you get when you’re up at 1 a.m? Wide awake.
You ask yourself, “Why am I not sleeping?”
“Why am I still awake?”
You wonder, “Why did I eat that handful of chocolate chips at 10 p.m.?”
Everyone else is asleep. Your husband is passed out. You need to get up in five hours. You toss and turn. You try reading. Your clock says: 1:17 a.m.
You go downstairs and make a cup of warm milk. And proceed to burn the roof of your mouth.
It’s 1:38 a.m.
You drink a few sips of water. (Which you can’t feel because of the hot milk.)
You try to lie still. And not think. About the trillion things you have to do tomorrow.
It’s 1:43 a.m.
You check your phone.
You read a little.
It’s 3:10 a.m. Your husband is snoring like a truck driver.
You want to take a Tylenol PM, but it’s too late. You rub some random lavender lotion from 2010 on your feet. You put a pillow over your head. You get up to go to the bathroom. Wash your face. Lie down again.
Then somehow, there is nothing. Am I asleep yet? Wait for it.
Nothing.
Glorious nothing.
BEEP –BEEP-BEEP. It’s 6:35 a.m. You hit snooze. Snooze again. And again. You glance at the clock. It’s 7:07 a.m.! “Son of a!” You peel yourself from under the covers. The sheets smell like lavender, which makes your head pound even more. Time to rush to get the kids ready for school.
If you haven’t guessed, I’ve been suffering from what I like to call Mommy Insomnia. But my kids aren’t babies any more.
Oh I remember “original” mommy insomnia. When you wake up to a crying baby at midnight, 2:30 a.m., 4:45 a.m. and finally drift off when the baby alarm clock screams again at 6:23 a.m.
Oh, girlfriend. You think sleep deprivation is over when your oldest hits junior high school? Oh, no, no, no. It’s not over. Not by a long shot. Pack your bags, because you’re in for a crazy hormonal ride, my friend.
Unless you are like my cousin who can honestly sleep through a hurricane and still get 8 hours of sleep. You have something even more random to look forward to: hormone-induced sleeplessness.
This nightmare happens to me every month.
By the time I roll out of bed, my hair looks like a bird flew into it. I feel like my forehead has been stung by a bee. My skin is chapped and dry. I look like the lead singer of a garage glam rock band from 1987.
Venting Sessions 
OMG…I had a bout of this a few weeks ago and it drove my CRAZY!! Everyone in my household would sleep through the night (including my 2 year old and 4 month old!!!) yet I was up every hour on the hour!!! I feel for you, I really do! I tried chamomile, wine, meditation, even sleeping pills (and still woke up twice that night!). Nothing worked! I hope it doesn’t last long..good luck 😉
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There is nothing worse than that panic moment when you look at the clock and calculate how many hours of sleep you can STILL get… and it’s not a lot. I used to suffer from insomnia in my early 20s (post-trauma related) and i remember how awful it was. Natural insomnia cures- eat a 1/2 cup of oatmeal 1/2 hour before bed, drink 2 oz. of dark cherry juice and snack on pumpkin seeds– all before you go to bed. They naturally help your body get to sleep. Hope it works for you!!!!
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Thank you, Jen! You rock! And thanks to all of you for your awesome comments.
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I have been living with this for years. Comes and goes in waves. Probably why I can’t seem to lose weight. I drag during the daylight hours. Get some sleep!
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Love this true look into life (it’s after midnight and I’m still awake, of course) .You’re the hottest glam-band rocker, ever. I also never sleep. I never have. I wake up with a headache 360 days a year and it sucks. BUT… waking up to a cute baby is OK. 🙂
I hope that you get sleep… although, pushing 30, I still call my mom at all hours for no apparent reason that couldn’t wait for a normal hour- so don’t bet on sleep anytime soon!
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I just laughed out loud as I’m laying here, at my aunt’s house and everyone including the dogs are snoring away… haha its all so true
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NOOOO! Say it ain’t so!!!
Geez!
They need to put Insomnia on the side of the ovulation kits as a side effect of ‘becoming a mother’
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Oh my goodness. I used to have the WORST insomnia! It was so bad but then I started taking melotonin. It kicks insomina in the a–!
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I so relate, but some how {Knock on wood} I have been sleeping pretty good lately… yes, I go to bed later than everyone else, but I’ll take midnight over being up ALL night! Funny post! 🙂
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the bird flying through your hair image is priceless! Those sleepless nights are torture. I have sat in bed many nights, especially when my husband travels, listening to both kids sleeping on the monitors while I stare at the ceiling wishing and begging for sleep. It’s definitely not fun. I hope you get some rest soon!!!!
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I hate when I fall asleep an hour before the alarm goes off and I’m dead and can’t get up. Where is the insomnia at 6am!?
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I’m laughing louder than my husband snores. That’s LOUDLY! Thank goodness insomnia doesn’t hit as ofter as it used to, but I had an episode just this past Saturday night. Two of my kids’ families (Audrey and Adam) had kids swimming in the early morning session of the YMCA New England Championships, so we all stayed in a hotel near the pool. Barry and I kept our grandsons Alex (7), Ben (5) and Henry (4) in our room for the night. I tossed and turned when the lights were finally out, wishing for sleep but also concentrating on the 3 boys. Tossed and turned some more. Finally, after an hour or so, Alex said, “Grandma, what is that noise?” It was Barry snoring! I finally figured out after all these decades that I never had insomnia at all. I had SNORING! Ha! Wonderful post!
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