Are you one of the 50-70 million who have ongoing sleep issues? Did you know that insomnia is defined as a common sleep disorder that makes it hard to:
- Fall asleep
- Stay asleep
- Or you wake up too early and cannot return to sleep.
There are two main categories of insomnia – acute or chronic. Acute is short-term, lasting a few days, weeks, or months. Chronic, or long-term, lasts at least three days a week for three months or longer. But poor sleep is not something to dismiss or disregard as no big deal.
How do you feel after just one night’s poor sleep? Usually you’re not only groggy and fatigued, but you also don’t seem to think clearly, perform work or daily activities like normal, maybe lash out at loved ones, or make poor decisions, right?
So what happens long-term if you experience insomnia?
Chronic insomnia impairs cognitive and physical functioning and affects mental, emotional, and social health as well.
It can increase your risk of depression, weight gain, obesity, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and memory problems. It also makes you look older, which none of us want!
Why does poor sleep occur as we age?
Here are a few reasons.
According to Dr. Hector Perez, a general surgeon, sleep hormone production slows down after the age of 40. So your body may not be able to produce the same hormones that helped you sleep while younger, like melatonin.
Also, you’re more prone to have painful health conditions as you age such as arthritis so the pain wakes you up at night.
Other conditions like reflux, heart, or lung disease may interfere with a good night’s sleep.
Medication side effects
Stress
Caregiving of children, grandchildren, or older parents
Job and financial issues
Underlying emotional or mental issues
Not getting enough exercise and sunshine during the day
Poor diet
Spouse who doesn’t sleep well
The National Sleep Foundation also says a shorter sleep duration and poor sleep quality can be due not only to these issues, but may also contribute to your health conditions such as cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, diabetes type 2, mental health issues, and a lowered immune response.
So you see, there are many factors which affect your sleep. And poor sleep may cause chronic health issues as well.
If you’ve been having insomnia, you can try some natural strategies which I’ll mention below. But if your insomnia has been going on longer than a few months and seems to be affecting daily activities, relationships, job performance, thinking and concentration skills, please see your own medical practitioner to rule out more serious issues like sleep apnea, narcolepsy, or others.
Here are 3 simple strategies you can do right now.
*Eat a nutritious diet – Consistent low sugar, low processed foods provide more nutrients which will help you build a healthy immune system which helps reduce inflammation and also helps in neurotransmitter production and melatonin. A healthy gut reduces the inflammation, and we know inflammation can contribute to things like arthritis which causes pain which keeps you up at night. Some nutritional deficiencies like magnesium, vitamin D, and iron may be contributing to your insomnia so you may want to get labs done to rule out nutritional deficiencies.
*Establish a regular bedtime. Decide on a regular bedtime and count backward in your things to do before bed so you can consistently go to bed at an appropriate time. (Note: most adults need about 7 – 8 hours per night.)
*Sleep Hygiene – Don’t eat late at night (2-3 hours before bed), turn off electronics 30 min–1 hour before bed, sleep in a cool and darkened room. Soft music or white noise, ear plugs, a sleep mask, or blackened curtains might be helpful.
Pick one of those ideas to see if it helps improve your sleep over the next few weeks. Reach out to your own medical practitioner to rule out more serious issues. I also work with clients who may be having some sleep problems due to stress or even possible thyroid or digestive issues. If you’d like to schedule a free 20-minute discovery consult session with me to see how we can work together, you can schedule a time with me by clicking here. I’d love the opportunity to work with you. — Leah Cheshire, NBC-HWC
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