Let’s talk about Insomnia…..
Sleep disturbances are so common with Lyme.
In some cases its too much sleep (this was me – my record was 52 hours at a stretch) and in others its too little sleep and insomnia.
Insomnia is so debilitating. The tossing and turning all night, the exhaustion that completely takes over because sleep evades us and then when we do finally manage it we can’t stay asleep.
Dr Horowitz in his “Why can’t I get better?” book states that Lyme can cause severe resistant sleep disorder in between 80-90% of those with Lyme.
Not only is it unpleasant and deeply frustrating, sleep deprivation also increases cytokine activity and thus inflammation which has a knock-on effect on our symptoms.
Whilst there are other potential causes of insomnia, some of which are common with Lyme eg sleep apnea, hormonal imbalances, restless leg syndrome and bladder issues, these overlapping factors are not necessarily something that we need to seek out when using homeopathy for treatment.
Chronic sleep deprivation can also add to the existing brain fog, fatigue (obvs!), muscle aches and fibro type symptoms. It can also cause an increase in pain perception, irritability, memory and concentration – which can already be below par.
Poor sleep also means that our immune system function can significantly worsen and then there is the additional factor of the effect it has on our adrenals.
Whilst Lyme is a complex thing to treat and homeopathy would treat the whole person, we can address symptoms which come up and provide some relief whilst we address the underlying factors of susceptibility and what got us to this place.
In my repertory (Murphy’s 4th edition) there are literally hundreds of remedies indicated for insomnia, so to narrow it down let’s take a look at the following rubric:
Sleep-dreams, INSOMNIA, sleeplessness, chronic. (p.1877)
We have already narrowed it down to 14 possible remedies. The most highly indicated are:
Argentum nitricum; Carcinosin; Cocculus indicus, Lachesis muta.
Here is a brief glimpse of the insomnia picture for these remedies;
Arg-nit: restless sleep, awakes almost every hour, disturbed with many dreams. Horrible dreams of snakes, wakes in fright.
Carc: chronic or acute insomnia, causeless. Insomnia from grief, mental activity. Unrefreshing sleep.
Cocc: Slightest loss of sleep aggravates. Insomnia. Sleep deprivation. Sleep frequently interrupted by waking and starting. Sleep unrefreshing.
Lach: Sleepiness yet cannot sleep. Sudden starting when falling asleep. Restless sleep, with many dreams and frequent waking, in morning is heavy and out of sorts.
So here is a brief glimpse of some remedies to consider for insomnia.