I used to wake up ten times a night. Now I’ve got my life back

Verity Cheshire, 54, is a phlebotomist. she is divorced with three grown-up children and lives in Crewe. ONCE I started going through the menopause, my sleep became incredibly poor.

I had no problem falling asleep — indeed, sometimes I was so tired I went to bed straight after I’d eaten dinner at 6.30pm — but terrible hot flushes would wake me up to ten times a night.

I’d be covered in sweat and feeling terribly anxious. The nightmares that accompanied them were awful and I’d feel as if I was on fire.

After a couple of months I was exhausted and had chest pain. At one point I ended up in A&E after falling ill at work. I was told I was suffering from anxiety, but I knew it was the stress of being awake in the night.

It’s horrible to be awake when everyone else is asleep, knowing that you have to be up for work in a couple of hours.

Professor Ellis gave me several suggestions on how to beat my insomnia. I started with keeping a sleep diary.

I also tried ear plugs — the first night I wore them I slept for sixand-a-half hours straight through. I still woke at 4.30am, but it was a vast improvement.

Professor Ellis said that if I found myself lying there, worrying about not sleeping, I should get up and do something, such as watch television, for half an hour. It seemed counterintuitive to get up and stimulate my mind with TV — especially as he suggested turning off screens before going to bed.

But as I didn’t use television as part of my going-to-sleep routine (rather as a distraction to make myself more tired), it was allowed.

And it worked. After half-anhour of mindless TV, I began to feel tired again. I went back to bed and was asleep within 20 minutes.

Another tactic I use is to clear my mind of worries by playing word games.

In one, I think of places in the UK and the final letter of one name has to be the first letter of the next — so Newcastle, Epping, Gloucester, etc. I find that it works.

The distraction stops me worrying about how little sleep I’m going to have and I gradually drift off.

Professor Ellis also gave me a great tip for calming the hot flushes that are unbearable in the night. Instead of flapping the covers off my body to cool down, I stick my feet out of the bottom of the bed, which cools me down just as quickly, but is less disruptive.

Now I am getting at least three more hours of sleep every night. I can’t believe the vast improvement and I no longer dread going to sleep.

It’s such a relief to have finally found a solution.