yeah, my ataxia causes insomnia. i do my best to stay awake all day, so I can gt 8 straight. U might want to check out valerian root in addition to melonin.
I have sleep problems, I sleep sometimes for 2 hours and then I awake, I also have night sweats and soak the bed and pillow a bit so then I sleep on top of the blanket and use another dry blanket. I sometimes sleep some more and sometimes I am awake all night. Once in a while I sleep on the couch on the blanket the dog uses to make a change. I have temperature problems and freeze or sweat and cannot find the reason. Jerry
This is why I also think that my Ataxia has caused sleep problems.
When I first developed early Ataxia it was a problem but it wasn’t really stopping me from doing things. At that time, I was able to sleep with no problems - entirely through the night. Now that it has exacerbated the opposite has become the thing. I can only stay asleep for 1 - 2 hours at a time and then I get up. Sometimes it’s because of a bathroom thing and sometimes because I must get out of bed to move around because I keep tossing and turning [and that gets really old fast]. Sometimes I go into the living room in the middle of the night, turn on the TV at a very low sound level and try to fall back asleep in the reclining chair.
The worst thing is trying to get to sleep again. Difficult at best.
EDIT: Almost forgot. When the temperature drops below 50F my feet are really cold when trying to sleep and I must wear socks when I get into bed.
Socks in bed 
Not alluring but a recipe for dozing off 
xB
Just had to add this post. I find that my Ataxia keeps waking me up during the night. Not pain, but just waking me up after a couple of hours. I usually get up and take a trip to the bathroom [sometimes it IS that] just to do something different rather than just lying in bed trying to fall back asleep. Even with that, trying to get back to sleep is a challenge!
The reason that I bring that up again is that I’m not really getting a good night’s sleep and the next day my Ataxia is a little worse. When I am lucky enough to sleep through the night [very rare], I usually have a good day.
I know this is a sin according to modern day research. But I use a T.V.to help me sleep. I put on a boring program so that I don’t become too interested and usually fall back to sleep within a half an hour. The T.V. coupled together with some Melatonin seems to do the trick.
I become over stimulated (awakened) after any one of my many washroom breaks in the night. Maybe a fan might work too. Anything that makes a soft soothing background noise.
Some recommend soft music. But I just end up singing the darn tune in my head! and I can’t get to sleep anyway.
There are relaxing devices such as an iPod or similar that you can play soothing sleepy-time sounds such as water (stream), rain, wind, waves, etc.
Netflix carries a wide range of shows, one is called Nature Vision that depicts calming imagery and soothing music. Or Ocean Wonders. For those cold winter nights there is a fireplace channel. This may help.
My step-daughter plays the sound of a gentle thunderstorm with rain on her laptop every night to help her fall asleep! She is 13, so sleep deprivation it isn’t just an ataxia or age related problem.
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