Helping Insomnia

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Insomnia Sufferers Are Not Alone

If you have difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep, you are not alone. According to the National Sleep Foundation, about half of Americans have sleep difficulty (insomnia) at least occasionally.

Not getting enough good sleep affects everything in our lives, including concentration, mood and productivity. Fortunately insomnia sufferers, there are some things you can do to improve your sleep, including watching your diet, establishing exercise patterns and changing your sleeping environment. In the upcoming tips, we offer some tips for relieving insomnia as recommended by the National Sleep Foundation. For example:

During sleep, bright lights can disturb your sleep. Keep your bedroom dark (consider light-blocking shades, lined drapes, even an eye mask) so light doesn't interfere with your passage to slumber.

In general, most sleep scientists believe that a slightly cool room contributes to good sleep. That's because it matches what occurs deep inside the body, when the body's internal temperature drops during the night to its lowest level. (For good sleepers, this occurs about four hours after they begin sleeping.)

Just the opposite, a room that's too hot can also be disruptive. In fact, research suggests that a hot sleeping environment leads to more wake time and light sleep at night, while awakenings multiply. An air conditioner or fan can help.

If excess humidity is a problem, consider a dehumidifier. If too dry an environment is your problem, consider a humidifier. Clues like awakening with a sore throat, dryness in your nose, or even nosebleeds are signs of too little humidity. Note: Be sure to change the water daily.

Limit Alcohol

Avoid alcohol before bed. Alcohol is often thought of as a sedative, or calming drug. However, while alcohol may speed the beginning of sleep, it actually increases the number of times you awaken in the later half of the night. If your sleep isn't restful, alcohol (beer, wine, hard liquor) may be the cause. Skip the nightcap and see if your sleep improves.

Body Heating

Previously, we mentioned that not getting enough good sleep affects everything in our lives, including concentration, mood and productivity. Fortunately for insomnia sufferers, there are some things you can do to improve your sleep. According to the National Sleep Foundation:

Some studies suggest that soaking in hot water (such as a hot tub or bath) before retiring to bed can ease the transition into a deeper sleep. This may be due to a temperature shift (core body temperature drops after leaving the tub, which may signal the body it's time to sleep). Or the sleep improvement may be related to the water's relaxing properties, which may also have sleep-promoting effects.

A pre-bedtime bath may set the mood for children and adults alike. Why not try soaking in hot water to ease your journey to sleep?

- Valerie Ryan

Watch What You Drink

Drinking too much of any beverage can lead to more awakenings because of the need to urinate during the night. Also, the older we get, the more we experience these nighttime awakenings.

Try to restrict your fluids before bedtime to help promote an uninterrupted night's sleep. If the problem persists, talk to your doctor.

Watch What You Eat

sleep. According to the National Sleep Foundation:

Exercise at the Right Time

Exercise can help to facilitate good sleep, especially when done regularly in the afternoon and not too close to bedtime. Why not try an afternoon brisk walk, run or bicycle ride instead of a coffee break? (Be sure to check with your physician before beginning any exercise routine.) Research suggests that exercise at this time can help deepen your sleep, which means that you spend more time in deeper stages of sleep. During the lighter stages of sleep, awakenings are more common. Also, people who exercise may take less time to fall asleep than people who don't.

Some studies suggest that exercise 2-3 hours before bedtime can keep sleep at bay. Traditionally, sleep experts have cautioned people to avoid strenuous exercise right before sleep and even up to three hours before bedtime. That's because exercise has an alerting effect and raises your body temperature. This rise leads to a corresponding fall in temperature five to six hours later, which makes sleep easier then. That's why late afternoon may be the perfect time for your exercise. If you've been exercising close to bedtime and having trouble falling or staying asleep, try to arrange your workout earlier in the day.

- Valerie Ryan

Everything you eat can affect nighttime slumber. For example, tomato products and spicy foods give many people heartburn (as does eating too fast). What does heartburn have to do with sleep? Lying down makes heartburn worse, and heartburn itself makes falling asleep more difficult. Heartburn also awakens sleepers with middle-of-the-night discomfort.

Relieving Insomnia: Limit Caffeine

In our last tip, we mentioned that not getting enough good sleep affects everything in our lives, including concentration, mood and productivity. Fortunately for insomnia sufferers, there are some things you can do to improve your sleep. The National Sleep Foundation recommends:

Watch your caffeine intake, especially in the latter half of the day. Try eliminating caffeinated food and drink after lunch for a few weeks. Are you sleeping better? If so, you may have identified the culprit.

(Note: For some people, a small amount of caffeine early in the day can cause problems falling asleep ten to 12 hours later.)

How Much (or How Little) You Eat

Eating too much--of any food--can make sleep difficult. A heavy meal close to bedtime may make you less comfortable when you settle down for your night's rest.

At the same time, going to bed hungry can be just as disruptive to sleep as going to bed too full. Consider a small snack to ease bedtime hunger pains.

Smokers and nonsmokers alike may not be aware that nicotine, like caffeine, is a stimulant. And when smokers go to sleep, they experience nicotine withdrawal. Research suggests that nicotine is linked to difficulty falling asleep and problems waking up. Smokers may also experience more nightmares. Giving up smoking may cause more sleep problems at first, but the long-term effect on sleep and health is much better.

-- Anonymous, October 10, 2002

Answers

Sleep Schedules Insomnia is a major problem that affects your health and productivity. One way to reduce your chance of developing insomnia is to maintain a sleep schedule seven days a week, even during vacations. Go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day. Your body will eventually maintain this habit of healthy sleeping.

Some sleep specialists say that anxiously watching the clock while focusing on how much time you have yet to sleep may actually cause insomnia. Try setting your alarm, then hiding it and your watch before you go to bed.

Find a relaxing bedtime ritual that's right for you, such as music, a bath, meditation or prayer. If you find your thoughts turning to worries when bedtime approaches, keep a worry book by your bedside. Jot down a brief note about what's on your mind. Schedule time the next day to focus on the problem and a solution. Problems often seem smaller in the daylight.

Consistent bedtimes and wake times are advisable for those experiencing insomnia. Sleeping in may make for a more enjoyable weekend, but Monday morning - and Sunday bedtime - may suffer as a result. You choose: sleep late on the weekends...or feel refreshed and alert every morning?

If you use your bed for things like balancing your checkbook, working or watching TV, you are telling your body to be alert in bed, not to go to sleep. To help reclaim your bed for sleep, try the following:

- Use your bed only for sleep and sex.

- Only get into bed when you're tired.

- If you don't fall asleep within 15 minutes, get out of bed. When you're sleepy, go back to bed.

- While in bed, don't dwell on not sleeping or your anxiety will increase.

- Think relaxing thoughts: picture yourself soothed in a tub of hot water, or drifting to sleep, each muscle relaxed.

Do you find your sleep disrupted by noises such as the screech of sirens, the rumble of trains, the rise and fall of conversation, airplanes overhead, a dog's barking, or a partner's snoring? Older people may be particularly bothered by noise. Because their sleep may be frail, it is more likely to be disturbed by lower levels of noise.

If noise is disturbing your sleep, consider:

- ear plugs

- white noise, which comes from a noise-making machine such as a fan or generator

- rugs

- heavy curtains or drapes

- double-pane windows

- relaxing music or tapes

Invest in a Good Mattress Although there isn't much published research on mattresses, mattress quality may affect how sleep feels to the sleeper. Discomfort can make falling asleep more difficult and lead to restless slumber.

Does your mattress provide the support you like? Do you wake with your back aching? Is there enough room for you and your sleep partner? Do you sleep better, or worse, when you sleep away from home?

Mattresses may be made of inner springs, foam, fabric, water or air. They may be firmer or more responsive to your body. This, in turn, may affect body temperature and humidity, as well as comfort.

Light -- strong light, like sunlight -- is the most powerful regulator of our biological clock. The biological clock influences when we feel sleepy and when we are alert.

If you find yourself waking earlier than you'd like, why not try increasing your exposure to bright light in the evening? If sunlight isn't available, consider a light box (or light visor) available from a specialty store. Either way, as little as one to two hours of evening bright light exposure appears to help you to sleep longer in the morning. This may be especially helpful for the elderly.

If you suffer from insomnia, try not taking a nap. Napping may steal hours desired later on.

On a positive note, napping can help promote short-term alertness, for example, to prepare for driving or in the middle of a long car trip. If you do nap, plan to do so for only 20 to 30 minutes. Also, don't use a nap to try to substitute for a good night's sleep.

-- Anonymous, October 10, 2002


Winston Churchill regularly took a long nap after lunch and stayed up until the wee hours of the morning. Seemed to work for him.

-- Anonymous, October 10, 2002

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