Hi Wildflower,

No need to feel ashamed here. We all have our problems with sleep, and come here for ideas and positive support.

Couple of thoughts for you.

One is about the anxiety thing, which most definitely can perpetuate insomnia. Sounds like that may be overlapping now with the guilt you may feel about using food for emotional comfort.

Guilt is one of those intensely negative feelings, like shame, that can underlie and cause anxiety. Then the increased anxiety tends to fuel insomnia, so it's a vicious cycle.

To make this better, you might try using a relaxing pre-bed routine that helps transition you to a rested state conducive to sleep. Part of that might be a pre-bad snack, something nutritionally dense that might help support you getting through the night without feeling the need to eat. Peanut butter on a cracker might be a good choice. The cracker has carbs that can help promote a serotonin release, which is supportive of good sleep.

You might also work on the standard sleep hygiene ideas, if you are not already doing so now, such as keeping a consistent sleep schedule, daily exercise, limiting daytime naps, minimizing caffeine later in the day, and so forth.

Anything you can do during daytime hours to help in effect stack the deck for good night's sleep will help, as will taking measures to manage anxiety.

Good luck.

I comfort eat, including in the middle of the night. I've always had a tendency to comfort eat.

I have been waking up starving at strange hours as well! I Think that mine is physical, caused by not eating enough during the daytime, and not eating dinner. Maybe yours has something to do with this as well, especially since you mentioned the restrictive diet.

I agree with Onyx.

Thank you so much, everyone, for all of your support. It means so much to me.

Hypnos07 - I definitely do think the guilt and shame I feel is only making my anxiety worse. I will try to create a better bedtime routine, as I have been doing poorly on that. Most often, I just take a Xanax so that I will go to sleep.

Buradi and OnyxDeath - I am sorry you are both dealing with similar things, but thank you for sharing your stories with me so I don't feel alone. I do probably need to eat more during the day. I am just having a really hard time with depression, so mostly, I lay in bed all day and feel guilty for eating. And when I do eat at night, I feel guilty for that, so I make my meals during the day smaller. I know I shouldn't do this, though.

The first step to getting better is admitting that you have a problem.

Thank you. I did it again last night. Up at 1AM, and I ate peanut butter and jelly. I hate myself so much. Now I feel the need to restrict my intake during the day to compensate. This is so embarrassing for me, as I am used to having a restrictive eating disorder and having so much control around food. I mentioned this problem to my mom and dietitian, but nobody seems to think it is a big deal since I still need to gain weight. But this is making me more depressed than I already am and feel just horrible about myself. Thanks for letting me rant.

Long time ago, I figured out that if I ate pancakes with syrup for breakfast, I'd fall asleep given the chance, even if I slept a whole night.

Digesting food kicks off the parasympathetic nervous system, helps you sleep. To this day, it's my first "go-to" thing, if I wake up and need to fall back to sleep. It doesn't always work though.

I'm not a kid anymore, and I don't need to be eating 2000 cal at night...so I too tend to do the peanut butter and jelly thing rather than pancakes.

I've never eaten breakfast, so it balances out.

patti22 - Thank you for your reply. That is interesting you mentioned that digestion kicks the parasympathetic nervous system into action. That makes a lot of sense, as I tend to feel sleepier and more relaxed after eating. The problem is that I do not want to use food to do that. I need to work on ways of getting that relaxed feeling without turning to food.

Thank you again for your advice.

I do the same thing but its because , I'll.only eat at 12 noon, then eat about 4:30pm, thats all, but then I wake up about 2 and have some oj an a nutra grain bar. I dont eat 3 balanced meals, then I have to watchcertain foodsI eat. Maybe you have the same pproblem of not eating three balanced meals. You could be lacking a vitamin, do you crave certain foods? Let me know if you figure it out.

Hi,

I have had severe GAD and insomnia since 2004. Eating at night during my wake ups has always been at the same time stomach-upsetting and emotionally relaxing. I know its not the best nutritionally, but if it helps with anxiety I would prioritize the latter. Once you figured out the source of the anxiety (I reccoment psychotherapy) then you can deal with the food. At least, that has worked for me (you break the vicious cycle). Hope that helps! :)

Angie - Thank you for your reply. I am sorry you deal with the same thing. It could definitely have to do with not eating enough during the day, and it doesn't sound like you eat much at all during the daytime. Maybe it would help if you tried eating balanced meals? I know this is not the issue for me, as I do eat throughout the day. I will definitely let you know if I find anything that helps. Hugs.

e2004 - Thank you so much for your input, but I am sorry you also deal with anxiety and insomnia. There definitely seems to be a strong connection between the two. It is comforting to hear from someone that it is okay (at least in the meantime) to eat at night, as I feel so incredibly guilty for it with my history of eating disorders. I include my nighttime meals/snacks in my daily intake, so I don't go overboard, but still, I feel the guilt. You hit the nail on the head when you say it is simultaneously stomach-upsetting and emotionally relaxing, as I feel exactly the same way. I am in therapy now and working to find a medication that can help with the anxiety (and hopefully the insomnia too), so I do hope things get better.

Thank you again so much for your input. It means a lot to me.