Sleep
When I was a child and a young to middle-aged adult, I slept easily and deeply.
I remember going on a house-building mission trip to Kentucky with my church when I was about 50 years old. All twenty of us slept on the floor of a big room for several nights in a row. People were laughing and talking well into the first night, but not me. I conked out immediately. The next day they told me I slept soundly in spite of all the commotion around me.
Those were the days when sleep was an easy commodity, taken for granted, the natural nightly response to a day of activity. In my 60’s and now in my 70’s, sleep has become more precious and, at the same time, elusive. More than once, fellow Dissociative Writers have heard me say in a workshop that I might leave early because I didn’t sleep well the night before. There’s nothing like waking up from a good sound sleep, refreshed, renewed, and ready to face the day. There’s nothing worse than tossing and turning all night, then crawling out of bed in the morning, eyes heavy, brain foggy, and body still tired from lack of sleep.
About ten years ago when I lived in Connecticut, a stressful situation at my job began to seriously interfere with my sleep. My doctor prescribed lorazapam, an anti-anxiety medication that’s also used to help with sleep issues. Lorazepam is a benzodiazipine and only recommended for 30-day use. No one told me that, and the Connecticut doctor, and later the New York doctor, kept prescribing it month after month, year after year. Not until I moved to New Mexico did my new doctor insist that I consider tapering off the medication. I’m told this is not an addiction but a chemical dependency, though I’m not sure I understand the difference. So last November I began the taper, just a little bit at a time. Back then, I was taking seven pills a week (.5 mg each night or 3.5 a week). Today, I’m taking .75 a pill a week (four nights with nothing and three nights with 1/4 of a .5 mg pill).
On the one hand, I’m over-the-top proud of my progress! On the other hand, my body is still adjusting to the reduction of medication; hence, I have nights when my sleep is less than perfect. Sometimes, I sleep soundly all night, but sometimes, I can’t get to sleep, or I wake up after a few hours of sleep and can’t get back to sleep. Sometimes, if I intentionally relax each muscle group and breathe deeply, I can fall back to sleep. Sometimes, when nothing else works, I get up and read or do a little writing, then fall back to sleep when the dawn breaks. Occasionally, I’ll take a nap later in the day, but usually I get a second-wind and manage to make it to bedtime when I fall asleep like a baby.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned from this 7-month process, it’s that when I go slowly and listen to my body, I will eventually adjust to the new normal of little to no medication. I’ve even learned that sometimes I sleep better without the meds and research confirms that. So I’m looking forward to a med-free sound sleep by the end of the summer!
Cathy Collyer, one of our Dissociative Writers, shares sleep hygiene suggestions for better sleep in a blog post called 5 Sleep Strategies for Multiples so, if you’re having sleep issues, be sure to check that out. Good sleep is a requirement, not only for healthy functioning, but also for the healing of our brain.
Healing from chronic childhood trauma is hard and takes time. Sometimes developing good sleep habits is hard and takes time. Recovery from addiction and chemical dependency is hard and takes time. When we tackle things in small chunks, we make progress at our own pace. That’s not only good, that’s great! Celebrate every step of the way!
Our popular class meets for six-weeks in October and November for two hours each week. Participants have a chance to learn content through class lectures, discussions, and readings and to work interactively on structure and writing. We accept a minimum of four and a maximum of eight participants and cover topics including:
What is memoir?
How might dissociation affect our writing?
Structuring our memoirs and employing story arcs
Using sensory detail
Protecting from legal and emotional exposure
Sharing our Written Stories, Publication, and Promotion
One of the best parts of our class is that each person has two opportunities to share their writing and receive support and feedback from the rest of the class. The class is virtual, using Zoom. The 20% discounted rate for subscribers to Dissociative Writers is $164 (full price $205). For more information or to enroll, click here and scroll to the middle of the page.
Farewell & Welcome
Our admin provider, Stephanie, has embarked on a new career in the arts that keeps her busy and takes her away from her computer. To accommodate her new lifestyle, she has submitted her resignation as admin provider effective July 1 and as Board member effective immediately. We are sad to see her go, but wish her well in all her endeavors. Thankfully, Stephanie is remaining a member of Dissociative Writers and hopes to see you in workshops in the future. The Board has decided on an administrative transition where Lyn will receive all new subscriptions via Heartbeat and Debby will keep the master database and attendance spreadsheet until a new admin provider is found. We expect to announce the position on October 1 and fill it by October 31.
On the upside, we are excited to announce that JJ has accepted a Board position effective June 1. JJ has been a faithful Dissociative Writer for several years, has many creative ideas, and is committed to the growth and development of DW. We are thrilled to have them on our Board and look forward to working with them now and in the future. When you see JJ in workshops, be sure to thank them for their service!
From Groupeasy to Heartbeat
Our Groupeasy platform will be open until June 30th of this year, only two more weeks. After that, our community will be fully migrated to Heartbeat. If you are already a subscriber, be sure to accept your invitation to Heartbeat now. Let us know if you didn’t receive it or can’t find it by clicking here.
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Sleep is the best meditation.
~ Dalai Lama
Lyn