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Can't sleep with my mental health
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Posts: 476 Scope community team
This discussion was created from comments split from: EHCP Tribunal appeal.
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Mind says on their website about the link between sleep and mental health:
There's a close relationship between sleep and mental health. Living with a mental health problem can affect how well you sleep, and poor sleep can have a negative impact on your mental health.
This page also has a range of tips to try and help improve your sleep which you may find helpful.
I've always had difficulty sleeping and have recently tried meditation and mindfulness which has helped somewhat. There are lots of free resources for these available online.
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There are videos on YouTube which can help with sleep and also calming music such as rainfall, forest sounds, bird sounds etc on YouTube which might help.
Adrian_Scope thank you
RAwarrior I will look at that
a tip I got from @leeCal was that if you want to let the person know you have replied to them you need to put an @ before their username. I am new to this only community and I didn’t know about this. I hope the sleep videos help and there are lots of them to chose from.
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I sometimes have trouble sleeping but find rather than lying there trying to force myself to sleep I get up have a cup of tea and watch bit of TV then go back to bed when I am starting to drift off
Hope your doing ok
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I also have PTSD after suffering from workplace bullying and I also get very bad nightmares. As well as videos on YouTube which I have already mentioned there are nots of apps with calming sounds from nature like forest sounds, birds singing etc which I find really help me.
I saw this advice the other day too which had some tips! https://sleepcouncil.org.uk/advice-support/sleep-advice/sleep-hygiene/
Keep me updated with how you get on and we can swap advice. Wishing you all lots of Zzzzzz's.
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Thank you very much for the information, it’s very useful. I have trouble in getting to sleep and the apps I have mentioned help me to relax. (I meant lots of apps not not as there was a typo in my previous post). I find it so difficult to switch off and it’s really annoying that I think about the very things that cause me anxiety when I need to sleep. Has anyone else experienced this?
Yet another bad sleeper here (it's a hiring requirement at Scope apparently...). I second all of the information about sleep hygiene and mindfulness, they're really important!
Brains are annoying like that!
If you still find that your thoughts are racing, or you feel anxious in your body, using a distraction technique can help. It feels counter-intuitive to get up and do an activity to help you get to sleep, but I find it really helpful. You can also pair this with better sleep hygiene, by training your body and mind to know that being in bed = time to sleep. I'm not a professional, but I've written a little step-by-step guide below:
1. Allow yourself an amount of time, such as 20 minutes, to try and get to sleep. Set a bed time, and go to bed at that time, regardless of whether or not you feel ready for bed
2. If you don't fall asleep within this time, get up and do an activity outside of the room in which you sleep. Make sure that the activity doesn't involve looking at a screen, and that it's something you find relaxing. For example, I like to do Sudoku or read a good book. Do this for 30 minutes (or less time if you start feeling sleepy)
3. Get back into bed, and try to fall asleep. Give yourself 20 minutes, and keep repeating steps 1 and 2 until you fall asleep
4. Set a waking-up time, and try your best to get up at that time every day, regardless of how much sleep you got
It might not work for you, and I was certainly very tired when I first tried it due to always having to wake up at the same time, but it did help me to get into a better sleep routine in the end.
There are some useful resources on the Psychology Tools website that you could take a look at.
I hope this might be helpful to you! You're definitely not alone.
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Thank you very much your suggestions and the link to the website. I will try the things you have suggested. I had Cognitive Behaviour Therapy because I suffer from PTSD as a result of being bullied at work for many years by one person who is still employed and part of the therapy involved getting the brain to distract itself by focusing on other things. Many thanks😁
I'm sorry to hear that. Yes, it's good to focus on the positives and try to intercept and question your negative thoughts and behaviours as they come in. Much easier said than done of course! But by reaching out and getting help it seems as though you're on the right track to feeling better.
Please let me know if there's anything else we can help you with. I'm sure I'll continue to see you around.
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Thank you very much. Unfortunately PTSD was not something I had before as my main disability is Rheumatoid Arthritis. I have explained the situation in great detail under the thread I started about workplace bullying. Although I had CBT it was interrupted by Covid19. I have tried to highlight the devastating impact workplace bullying can have on someone who is disabled and already has more than enough to deal with without being targeted by a bully. In my case I was bullied for years by someone who became “teflon coated” because a series of managers stood by and let the bully continue because they would accuse anyone who attempted to challenge their behaviour of racism when it wasn’t true. As I have mentioned in my other posts the bully has been doing this for about 20 years and is still employed. In addition my colleagues stood by whilst I was bullied because some didn’t want to get involved and they were scared of being accused of racism. A senior manager told me that they couldn’t do anything about the bully. I raised a formal grievance with lots of evidence and witnesses ; none of which were interviewed). My employer would rather protect the bully instead of me and unfortunately what many people don’t realise that there are long term effects of being bullied and harassed which include PTSD. Instead of helping me I have been told by numerous staff and managers “to move on”. I am by no means an expert on mental health issues ( I have extensive knowledge about Rheumatoid Arthritis) however, one of the worst things people can say is to move on. If some of the same people had actually tried to stop the daily bullying then I might not be in this situation. I know this thread is about sleep however, my problem directly relates to being bullied. I live in fear of seeing the bully again although they are at another location. I just wish people would think before they choose to target a disabled person because many disabled people struggle to cope with their original disability and having unwelcome additional
disabilities added are not helpful.
I hope @Tori_Scope's advice has been helpful and please let us know how you get on.
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Many thanks for your kind words. I will try Tori’s suggestions.
Unfortunately there are always victims of workplace bullying and as I have said before any time bullying awareness is mentioned at work I switch off.
On another note I tagged you by mistake when I replied to a thread about Rheumatoid Arthritis so please accept my apologies as I was supposed to tag Cher and not you😁
If ever you need support us at Scope are here
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Thank you very much for your kind words and support.
I think it’s important to highlight workplace bullying because as someone who is disabled I already have enough to deal with without the constant fear of dread I used to have when going to work because I knew what I would face. Bullying and harassment can be extremely difficult to prove. In my case I had the evidence but the main problem is the bully had been getting away with their appalling behaviour for about 20 years and because nobody had addressed it, they were able to carry on. Bullying and harassment has to be addressed at an early stage because in my case the bully was allowed to continue because they had done it at previous locations without being challenged. It wasn’t only comments directed at me as it was also about other disabled people. As a disabled person I want to be part of society and not to be labelled as “a sickie” which was one of the bully’s terms for disabled people.
That is dreadful. You are a valuable member of society, and we're all thankful that you're here! I'm so glad you're out of that situation now, and we all look forward to seeing you around as you continue to share your story.
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Thank you again for your kind words and support😁
Unfortunately I am still in the situation because not only as a result of being subjected to bullying and harassment for so many years due to the actions of one of the managers who covered up the bullying I have PTSD. I have flashbacks and I see people when I am out who look like the bully and I start to panic. The bully is based at another location with the same employer so I live in dread that I will see them again.
Many thanks again 😁
I can see that the workplace bullying is something that is still affecting you to this day. Being apart from the bully certainly doesn't solve all of the problems by any means, but it does hopefully give you the space to start to recover. It's unfortunate that your CBT has been interrupted by COVID19, but I hope that there are plans in place for you to resume therapy as soon as it's possible? Is this something you could inquire about? Or, alternatively, could telephone or video therapy be an option for you? I know it's not available, accessible, or appropriate for everyone for a number of reasons.
I'm also sorry that your work has been affected. It doesn't sound like your employer dealt with the situation very well, either.
I'd like to point you towards Mind's page on workplace relations if that's okay. I think there's some useful information on there.
I'm not a mental health professional but, for what it's worth, I do think that you should stick with the CBT when you're able to resume. I believe that you can make more progress
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Thank you very much for your comments😁
The irony is that the bully accused me of being a sociopath.
I didn’t want to bring this up because I am very wary of upsetting other people who have mental health conditions, however, unfortunately one of the ways in which the bully became untouchable was by saying that they had mental health issues, however, they also admitted to me that they “used their mental health issues by pretending that they had issues so that no manager could ever touch them.” This type of behaviour does a terrible disservice to people who actually do have mental health conditions and suffer because others don’t believe them. However, my mental health didn’t matter to my employer because they stood by and did nothing and as a result I have mental health issues which I previously didn’t have.
Thanks again for your kind words and support😁
I will look into restarting the CBT and someone mentioned EMDR therapy which may be able to help with PTSD.
Thank you for sending me the link to Mind’s website and I will have a look at this.
My employer didn’t deal with the bullying at all. The bully used to make regular derogatory comments about disabled people, racist comments and mock certain religions, all of which are illegal. Many of the comments were made openly with lots of witnesses. The bully had previously physically attacked two members of staff before moving to my workplace. However, when I had no choice but to raise a formal grievance it was covered up. The bully would accuse anyone who tried to tell them their behaviour was unacceptable of racism. As I said before that workplace bullying has to be tackled at an early stage. The bully has been destroying people’s lives for at least 20 years and will continue unless a manager actually addresses what is a very serious issue. I tried to complain to a senior manager who said “you do know we can’t touch him?”
It might seem so far fetched but all of this actually happened and I unfortunately have to live with the consequences whilst that particular manager has since moved on. The bully really enjoyed harming people and insulting them when all I wanted to do was go to work.
Of course, it's no problem. We're all here to try and support you in any way we can.
Great! Yeah, I've heard a little bit about EMDR, but can't say I know much about it. It's worth investigating!
That sounds really terrible. I wouldn't want to give legal advice, but it might be worth having a look at what possible paths there are for escalating your complaints further, if you haven't already.
I believe you, and I think your feelings about it are totally valid. I hope you can find some solace in engaging with the Scope community
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Many thanks😁
I read a very good book about PTSD which was written by a psychiatrist and EMDR was one of the treatments he mentioned. In addition there are lots of videos on YouTube and on Ted Talks about PTSD and how the brain deals with trauma. I am not a medical expert but the two main features which I have come across in the book and by watching the videos is that there are two main ways in which the brain reacts to trauma, one is to constantly be on alert preparing for something bad to happen and the other is for the brain to desensitise itself so the person feels nothing so doesn’t actually enjoy anything. By reading the book it helped me to understand more about PTSD, the treatments and exactly what it means which actually helped me.
Unfortunately it’s too late to seek legal advice as I would have had to appeal against my grievance not being upheld but because of the poor state of my health at the time I had to choose between pursuing it and the real possibility of my health deteriorating further or for the sake of my health not to appeal. In the end because of the complete lack of support from my employer I knew that I would have to go to an Employment Tribunal which would impact my health. What many people don’t understand that it can be extremely difficult for a disabled person to go to an employment tribunal because they don’t have the energy, stamina and the strength that is needed because it’s not a short process. The managers colluded with each other to ensure that no action was taken in relation to the bully so they didn’t protect my health.
Thank you for saying you believe me because that makes a huge difference to me because one of the issues was not being believed when I tried to stop the bullying and harassment.
Many thanks to you and the rest of the Scope online community😁
By the way, I totally understand you finding your colleagues words unhelpful. Although they may come from a good place, sometimes people inadvertently put their foot in it or don't help matters. Try to go to the people who you know 'get it' so you don't end up feeling worse
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Thank you for your kind comments and support.
Unfortunately there are the people at work who simply don’t care because it didn’t happen to them, some that see disabilities especially mental health as a weakness, the ones that get involved in equality or mental health issues as a tick box exercise or to get promotion and the ones that say they have “psychology qualifications” and that I need to move on.
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Thank you very much😁
I appreciate the fact that I can share what happened without being judged and without fear of reprisals.
Many thanks to you and the Scope online community 👍
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