Thanks for that Anne-Marie. I was thinking about my "bedtime routine". My afternoons/evenings usually go something like this:_ 4.30pm, Finish work, then visit my parents and brother for a chat. 5.30pm, Go home, walk the dog. 6.30pm, Supper. 7.00pm, Perhaps watch TV or read for an hour. Nothing stressful or exciting. 8.00pm, Spend two hours chatting on the internet, checking emails, etc. 10.00, Water my garden. 10.15, "Quiet time" with the dog. Generally give her some attention, brushing, stroking, etc. 10.45, Go to bed. I know a bath can be very relaxing, but I'm not a fan of them at all. I'd much rather have a shower, but I tend to shower in the morning as it makes me feel more awake. I've tried listening to relaxing music, but it doesn't seem to make any difference. I don't feel stressed or worried or anything, I just don't feel sleepy so I can't get to sleep. At the moment instead of lying awake, I tend to get up and do something else (as I'm doing now), until I start to feel sleepy, which can take hours. And when I do get to sleep I'm always waking up. I would almost feel better if there was a reason for my insomnia, like being worried, or having bad experiences, or the wrong foods or too much caffeine. I've always had problems getting to sleep, ever since I can remember, in fact my mother tells me that I slept badly even as a baby. As far as I can tell I'm doing everything right. But it isn't working. I'm not getting enough sleep, I feel like a zombie, can't concentrate, can't do anything. I don't know what to do.

Hi, Annie. Perhaps if you look through another thread on this subject you may get some ideas for further discussion. http://www.depressioncenter.net/support/viewmessages.cfm?Forum=1&Topic=73 Let us know if this helps.

I thought I'd introduce myself to everyone. I'm 23 and I believe I have been suffering from depression since I was 16, but I was only diagnosed six months ago. I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia five years ago but I believe all of my symptoms are caused by depression. I work as a laboratory technician in a school, and although so far the depression has not affected my work too much I live in fear that I will reach the stage where I cannot cope and lose my job. There have been occasions where I feel too bad to go to work, and I find I cannot tell the truth when I call in sick because it sounds like an excuse for being lazy, so I tell them I have a cold or an upset stomach or something. I am ashamed to tell people that I am depressed, it makes me sound weak and lazy. The main problem I have is tiredness. I never seem to get enough sleep, I am constantly waking up and having disturbing bad dreams, and most nights I lie awake for hours before I get to sleep. Even if I have slept for 10 hours I wake up feeling worse than when I went to bed. I end up so emotionally, physically and mentally drained that even the simplest of tasks seems impossible, and I can't feel anything but despair. I make lists of reasons why I should be happy but they don't seem to matter and I still feel just as bad. Positive thinking doesn't help me, I am depressed [i]despite[/i] all the good things in my life. The only way I get through it is by telling myself that I will feel better in a few days. It goes in cycles. I'm depressed, then normal, then happy, then normal then back to depressed. My boyfriend is very supportive, he is trying hard to help me but neither of us know what he can do. When I'm crying to him for no reason he says he doesn't know what to say because nothing will make me feel any better, but often I feel a little better just knowing he's there. But I miss him. When he's not there it's like someone has taken an important part of me away. I'm taking lofepramine, but I've been trying to find out what other things I can do to make myself feel better. I exercise, I eat sensibly, I make effort to socialise even though a lot of the time I don't want to see anyone. I set myself realistic targets, and reward myself when I complete tasks. I've tried so many things to