Chloe's New Years Sleep Resultion

I have been waiting very patiently for a new Vocal Challenge.

In my experience, anxiety and depression can really wear a person out. I mean that full-heartedly. Some days just feel happen to feel endless, especially when you're not sleeping well. After trying out a new medication called Seroquel, I learned in a hard way that my rest is very well needed. The medication makes me very tired, I have noticed that. Along with my ADHD medication, and injection medication that I also take for depression, I just feel very tired, and worn down lately. It's been a weird year, and my rest has become very important to me this past little while.

So what do you do when the medication, that you happen to take for your very survival, happens to exhaust you to the point of almost no return? If you have read some of my previous work, you would know that I am trying very hard to stay away from panic attack juice, a.k.a. energy drinks. That is how I used to fuel my body, but I noticed while drinking them, I didn't sleep very well at night. I have always been a caffeine junkie, but I think my coffee does just the trick to perk me up during the day. So, to repeat my question, what do you do when everything in life has drained your energy from you? I decided that you just get up and you try. Every single damn day, you wake up and try, for every single person that surrounds you. But in order to try, you need to be able to sleep.

Things that I have noticed that help my sleep habits:

1. Clean sheets. When your bed is fresh, and clean, you have a more enjoyable rest. I learnt that trick from my mom. I tend to try and wash our sheets weekly in this house, because I know how important clean bedding is. A simple wash cycle can change your life.
2. Lavender scented anything. Lavender is useful when it comes to anxiety and depression. The scent is very calming for me. I have lavender-scented handsoap normally on hand, that's how useful I find the plant to be. I know that it helps my anxiety. Lavender essential oil is one of my favourite things to diffuse in my oil diffuser. Its wonderful scent fills the entire room and calms me down. I think it relaxes my kids before bedtime. Hey, I even tried throwing the essential oil into one batch of my kid's playdough. The scent is very calming. Adding a little more info in regards to having clean sheets for a more restful nights sleep- you can buy lavender scented scent boosts that make sleep utterly heavenly.
3. A shower. A shower can fix everything. Believe me, I have figured that out in my twenty-three years of existence. Whenever I wanted to feel like a human being again, I would take a shower. After two c-sections with my children, I grew used to the way the water would bead up and spread all over my skin in relaxing ways. I find showers to be healing.
4. Cannabis. I love smoking weed to wind down. It relaxes me, I am not ashamed to admit that. I know that weed is also a depressant. I learned that in a major way this past year. I am not ashamed to admit that I like the way that weed makes me feel. Hey, I am in Canada, it happens to be very legal to smoke weed here. In large doses, though the drug can be very intoxicating. That's why I reserve most of my weed use for nighttime usage. Some experts believe that cannabis use can lead to disordered sleep patterns. I don't completely disagree, but I am telling you, that just the smell relaxes me after my years of use. It's not a habit for everyone, but I enjoy my smoke breaks after my children are in bed.

This New Year, I want to work towards a healthier nighttime routine for myself where I'm not consistently drained. I want to be able to enjoy having dreams again. For people that know me well, I do not dream often. Hardly ever to be completely honest. With my new medication, I have begun to experience dreams in small ways again. I can remember them when I wake up. I want a more restful sleep where I am not flat-out drained when I get up. I've even debated cutting cannabis out of my life sort of like I did with energy drinks to see if that helps make a difference in my energy levels. (Let's be real though, I'll probably never be able to fully drop the habit.) I'm hoping that with a new handy nighttime routine for myself, I can achieve what I want to with my sleep schedule. Hey, bonus points for myself, maybe I'll achieve more with my writing with a better sleep routine. Here's to a New Year filled with more writing opportunities, a better night's sleep, and a new year filled with happier memories for me.

Chloe Rose Violet

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Check out my latest piece of work:The "True" Missing Item from Breath of The Wild