How do I deal with insomnia during cancer treatment?

Sleep challenges during cancer treatment are incredibly common and understandable - the stress, medications, and physical changes can all impact rest patterns. Many community members have found relief through sleep hygiene practices like keeping a consistent bedtime routine, limiting screen time before bed, gentle relaxation techniques, or discussing sleep aids with their healthcare team.

Hello, Gregory C — I’m Dave Stauffer of Denver, with lifelong insomnia that was made worse—NOT by prostate cancer but by prostate cancer treatment, of course. First, the Community AI Agent, as always, is full of crap. Any true insomniac knows that everything said about sleep “hygiene” does nothing for insomnia. What works? For me, pre-cancer, moderate alcoholic intake, “excessive” prescription drugs, and as much sex as I could manage in my 70s. Cancer treatment robbed me of 53 years of sex and 47 years of amitriptyline, cutting my average night’s sleep from 4-5 hrs to 2-3 hrs. That was my lot for two years post-treatment, which I was at last able to address four months ago with testosterone replacement therapy and either of two drugs: trazodone or Belsomra—both in quantities that require advance authorization. So today I’m back to sex (hit-and-miss basis) and newly on trazodone—thus restoring my 4-5 hours of sleep on most nights. But I can’t say the past three miserable years justify what I’m convinced is rampant overdiagnosis and overtreatment of PCa in the U.S.

I've found that reading a good book or magazine for half an hour helps me. After bathroom and brushing teeth, I read while in bed until I get drowsy, then just turn off the light and go to sleep. Keep your thoughts away from cancer. And yes, I have a few beers each evening. Hope your situation improves.

I agree with Richard on reading. Yes, stay far away from cancer. Stay away from current events and news, too. Read about any topic you love and makes you happy. For me, that’s baseball, really arcane topics, like the variance in spin rates of different pitches—eg, cutter vs four seamer. Can sometimes put me to sleep in less than a half hour. Find your equivalent arcane topic and sweet dreams.

Trazadone