Sleeping in a recliner

[Debby]

Hey y'all, my husband is not too happy with me as I've spent the last 5 nights in HIS recliner! It seems to relieve my pain, and sleeping is easier, although I do deal with a rotating menagerie of fur-faces who want to share the chair with me!

I have had major sleeping problems for so long, and often spends my nights up....days too....sometimes 3 or 4 days in a row, 5 days without sleep is my recent record! I suddenly realized I was able to sleep in this chair, and having found a winning routine, don't want to mess with it, but my husband misses me in bed! Am I alone in this?

[BigA]

If it works, then it's worthwhile. Is there a solution, like buying a second recliner? He may simply miss having you in the bed with him. Maybe if you guys got one of those adjustable beds you could be comfortable and not sleep in a recliner.

[Strhuntrss]

I Too Sleep in the Recliner

Hi Debby,

I too sleep in the recliner, except I have my own, lol. I am sorry to see that you can't sleep either. But aren't we lucky that we have a place to find relief.

For the past 3 months I have been regular with my chair. Hubby misses me too but he understands and is glad that I can find some kind of relief.

My legs are so restless and the meds take so long to work. Its the only way hubby can get any sleep. I can't seem to get to sleep any earlier than 3am and when I did get to bed, I would kick him while I was sleeping. But it might be that I worked nights and now that I am retired, I cant seem to break the habit .

Wish you all the best!

[Debby]

Glad I am not alone. I, too, have severe restless legs (when I have them) and if I'm in bed I toss and turn and get frustrated, and sometimes cry out of sheer exhaustion.

I forgot to mention that my hubby keeps our bedroom freezing, windows open and it's 20-30 degrees outside. It's okay if I fall asleep in bed with my electric blanket, but if I go to bed once I'm tired (middle of the night), I'm no longer tired once the blast of arctic air hits my face!

Sigh. There are no easy answers. I just want to sleep. The pain seems more intense when I am laying flat in bed.

Btw, those graveyard shifts are a hard habit to break....thanks everyone!

[rdmc]

I used to sleep in a recliner most nights. It helped my spasticity from flaring.

Once I got my pump, I was able to sleep in a bed again, with pillows strategically placed so my knees were bent and my head elevated a bit.

Now I use a wedge system and can sleep in the bed again, and also use it during the day as a seating alternative to the recliner or other chairs.

I'm sure they sell them at other places, but this is the one I use.

http://www.relaxtheback.com/best-sel...ge-system.html

[Debby]

Thank you for this idea! Are the wedges comfortable? They are expensive....are they worth it?

[Strhuntrss]

bedroom temp

Debby,

I am the opposite with my hubby. He likes his bed warm. So he bought a heating system for out mattress. It has dual temps. I can dial my number for heat and so can he.

Only I can't handle the heat. That is another reason I sleep on the recliner. I try and have the setting say on 4 and he has his on 17. He swears the mattress is softer when it is warmed.

Even with the #4 it is too warm for me and aggravates my legs even more. The nerves in my whole body go into overdrive. So when the legs are restless ... needless to say I cry and pace myself to sleep.

Hubby is concerned that I am not getting the rest I need for my .. as he calls it "condition". I hate that word!

I never thought in a million years that my body would be going through this. But thank God for people on this website. With out you all, I really don't know what I would do.

I'm sorry that you all have MS but I sure am glad you are my friends and you are here and you understand. And I hope I can do the same for you all.

I'm now seriously considering a DMD (Copaxone). I thought I could do without them, but my Neuro said I would know when it was time. He wanted me on it 5 months ago.

[hunterd]

I too sleep in a recliner simply because the bed is not comfortable. I have done this for years, and to be honest with you, it is the easiest solution. No struggling to get me into bed and no struggling to get me out of bed. I also find it easier to sleep all night. Without my recliner, I would be in a heap of trouble!

[naphappy]

Ha!

Debby-

You made my day. I love your comment about the rotating menagerie of fur-faces!

I am going to work that in to some conversation today- even if I have to force it.

I sleep on my side most of the time. That is how I am most comfortable and seem to be able to sleep longer bits of time. I get myself into all kinds of contortions with pillows and covers and beasts. But it seems to work out. Having the extra weight on my legs helps with the spasms as long I don't get too warm.

But when I do fall asleep in one of the recliners- or the adjustable beds like in the hospital- I can sleep on my back for a while.

My husband doesn't care where I am as long as he gets his sleep too. Alot of the time, I stay in bed for a while then leave.

When we are both rested, life is smoother.

Good Luck

[wendya432]

As long as you are getting some sleep, do whatever works! Sometimes I go and sleep on the couch with the pull out foot rest. Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't. In bed I have to have myself situated with my body pillow supporting my legs, etc. And hubby will get frustrated that I'm tossing and turning and legs are jerking, etc, etc. He has to wake up much earlier than I do, so I hate bothering him.

Usually hubby works out of town M-F and I get the bed all to myself which is heaven! But for the past few months he's been working nearby and gets to come home at night. I tell you, I just want my bed back to myself!! LOL!! Love him, but love my sleep, too!

Luckily he is understanding and knows I need my sleep. Although I've determined my afternoon nap is something I can't live without. Since I don't sleep at night much, that nap is the only deep sleep I get.

[JerryD]

I understand that you sleep in the recliner, and its great that you found some solace in that. I am currently investigating a form of magnesium citrate for sleep assistance and to help calm my spasticity. The product is from Whole Foods and it mixes with water or juice. The name is CALM. maybe it would be helpful to you. Just be judicious. It can act like Milk of Magnesia, if you know what I mean. Good luck

[rdmc]

Thank you for this idea! Are the wedges comfortable? They are expensive....are they worth it?

Well, they are comfortable for me. Nice thing is you can arrange them to meet whatever level of reclining you choose. I don't always use the back wedge at night...I do always use the knee rest, day time or night time.

I set the entire system up in my bed in the AM, and use it frequently during the day when I'm on my laptop working.

I imagine you could find a company who sells a similar system for less. We've always had good luck with other things we've bought from the relaxtheback store, so I was sure the qualify was going to be good.

[Jabrti]

I sorry for bump an old topic I just have a few interesting observations from personal experience, maybe someone will need this information in the future.I am new here but do have a sleeping problem, have not slept in a bed in about 6 months and have high blood pressure as well as diabetes, am overweight.

i have to sleep in a recliner to be able to get any sleep at all and have not had a sleep study done yet. talked to my doctor about giving me something to help me sleep but she refuses to do that. i have tried to sleep in my bed but am unable to sleep in it, lay there for hours without going to sleep, i do have arthiritis of the knee and when i lay down for a few minutes my knee gets stiff and starts to hurt so i have to get up after a short period of time.have thought about getting an adjustable bed but they are so expensive .

the recliner is in the living room and that makes it hard to get to sleep when my husband is not ready to go to bed and wants to watch the tv. or get up in the midde of the night wanting something to drink and i am in the recliner in the living room and the kitchen is just in the next room and it is a open floor plan so i am waking up when he comes in the kitchen to get something to drink.

i do not think i would be able to sleep in a sleep study because i cannot sleep in a place where i am not used to being unless they would have a recliner. would love to be able to get back in my bed and get a good nights sleep.I

[marti]

My MS doctor also has MS and I can remember her telling me about sleeping in a recliner years ago. I've had insomnia since just before I was diagnosed. I just quit sleeping one night. It's no better now, 17 years later, but i rely on meds like Clonazepam. I just gave in to the meds. I've tried almost everything out there on the market, script or OTC.

The sicker my husband became the more he slept in his recliner. Something comforting about those chairs. Do what you have to to get some sleep. I can tell you this, no matter how much sleep you get it will never feel like enough. Exhaustion is my number one symptom/result of MS.

Good luck with this. It's a tough one.

[Qukoy]

During my pursuit of good sleep hygiene I got the notion that getting rid of my recliner = no naps = better sleep at night. That was short lived and I was utterly miserable, and it garnered me steroid injections in my back.

A recliner takes the pressure off my bad lower back. And my PLMD usually does much better in the recliner than in bed. And when I couldn't stay in bed due to the limb movements, without the recliner I was just up and awake, often on just 2 or 3 hours sleep. I sleep better and longer in it than I do in bed, however, only sleeping in my bed fully relieves my legs of edema.

Recently I was disturbed that I was having apnea events even though nearly upright in the chair, as in the past I had no issues with my OSA. Then it dawned on me that I recently changed chairs and the alignment of my back and neck is different. If I again had a formal style recliner with a firm straight back, only recline it to the first position, and prop a pillow under my chin to keep it from falling forward, I won't have events. If my back sinks into the recliner which pushes my head forward, I will.

Having a recliner is so important to my well being, recently my daughter and son-in-law are trying to talk me into going to L.A. for a while. But where they are staying doesn't have a recliner. But my daughter had the solution - just spend the whole day on the recliners by the pool.