Getting Enough Sleep?

Having difficulty sleeping at night? Can’t fall asleep or can’t stay asleep? One of the core necessities for a healthy life is to get adequate amounts of sleep. Without proper sleep we often have difficulty getting through our day as it hinders our ability to focus, our ability to lose weight, and our ability to feel motivated, among many other things. We never truly appreciate how precious sleep is to our normal functioning until it is lost. Although the “standard” states that we all need 8 hours of sleep, this is just a guideline. We all need sleep, but how much of it we need is individual. One person may need 7 hours while another might need 9 hours to function properly. If you are having difficulties sleeping, there may be numerous causes, from psychophysiologic (worry and stress), psychiatric, drugs and alcohol (caffeine is included in this category), sleep related movement syndromes, sleep-induced respiratory problems, environmental, hormonal, other medical causes as well as poor sleep hygiene. In this article, we'll explore simple ways to help improve your sleep hygiene and thus help you get some well needed shut eye:

  • Schedule a regular bed-time and wake-time every day (including weekends!) - you will do yourself a disservice by sleeping in on weekends since your body actually needs routine to help set good sleeping habits
  • Set up a 30-60 min bedtime ritual that you repeat everyday (consider reading a book - nothing too engaging, journaling, warm bath, meditation, self-care routine) - this will again help your body establish a routine to help you sleep
  • Avoid electronics (TV, computer, tablet, phone, etc) at least 30-60 min (ideally longer) prior to bedtime - the brightness of the screens have been shown to affect melatonin production (an important molecule made by the body to help you sleep). Even avoid having electronics anywhere close to your body as you sleep (this includes your cellphone!)
  • Avoid drinking alcohol to induce sleep. Avoid all caffeinated products (including chocolate and some over the counter medications)
  • Ensure that your bed is comfortable (including your pillows if you use them)
  • Ensure that your bedroom is really dark during your sleeping hours (any light entering your room can disrupt melatonin production)
  • Ensure that there are no disruptive noises (having white noise or wearing ear plugs can be helpful to eliminate traffic noise, among others)
  • Ensure that you don't go to bed hungry - if you need to take a late snack pick one with no sugar/simple carbohydrates but rather something with protein and make it a small snack as eating too much will also disrupt sleep
  • Reserve your bedroom for sleep and lovemaking and nothing else - your mind should be only focused on those two things when you enter your bedroom
  • Exercise daily (but not within a few hours of bedtime)
  • When your alarm goes off in the morning, do not press snooze, do not linger in your bed - get up and go look at the morning sky (without windows, contacts, glasses) for a few minutes - this will actually turn off your melatonin production and help you start your day with vigor!

If after a month you still find that you're having difficulty sleeping it might be time to consider some of the other reasons briefly discussed as cause for your insomnia. Call for an appointment with Dr. V to help you determine what your cause for insomnia might be and how to overcome it.

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