So how have I been doing? On the Lyme front, VERY well! My typical Lyme symptoms are still under control, and I've been able to wean completely off sleep medication. For that I am so, so grateful. I've been sleeping wonderfully (i.e., falling asleep easily and sleeping straight through with minimal wake-ups in the night) which is something I was deprived of when I was in the grip of the illness. That said, I'm not sleeping LONG ENOUGH - totally my own fault for going to bed too late.
For all of the Lymies out there, here is one of the most important pieces of advice......GET ADEQUATE SLEEP!!! It's important for your healing. It's also important to help keep the Lyme in remission because our body repairs itself at night and adequate rest improves the immune system among other things. Wow, I sure notice a difference in my life when I'm not sleeping enough. I drag myself around all day, feel so lethargic after work, have no motivation or energy for exercise, and crave sugar to give me a boost. Bad on all fronts.
If you have Lyme and are suffering from insomnia, I urge you to speak to your LLMD about temporary solutions. I absolutely hated the idea of being on sleep medication, but realized it was necessary. I was so afraid of becoming addicted to it. The sleep medication I used, zopiclone, is not "technically" addictive. However, your body can develop a tolerance to it and require more and more. When I decided to try getting off zopiclone, I weaned off very slowly over many months, cutting my pill in half, then in quarters. Then, I got a lower dosage pill and cut that one into quarters. By the time I stopped taking it, the tiny bit I had been taking really wasn't doing anything for me anyway, so it was pretty easy to just quit at that point.
On that note, let me wish you all the best in your quest for good sleep.
