Sleep is something you used to do – before kids, long to-do lists and a snoring hubby. But it doesn’t have to be that way, nor should it, since you’re risking serious health consequences. Find out what’s robbing you of shut-eye and how to get it back. (Hint: Some sleep stealers may surprise you.)
Is the occasional sleepless night turning into a regular rut of tossing and turning? If so, you need to put restful slumber at the top of your to-do list.
After all, chronic sleep deprivation is a serious health risk.
“Disturbed sleep doesn’t just affect your quality of life; it also can have serious, long-term health consequences,” says Lisa Shives, M.D., medical director of Northshore Sleep Medicine in Evanston, Ill., and a spokeswoman for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.
A string of sleepless nights can put you at risk for car accidents, as well as chronic diseases such as obesity and diabetes.
But rest easy – we have remedies. Here are 10 common sleep stealers – and how to keep them from robbing your rest:
1. You don’t shut down.
The dishes are finally done and the kids are in bed.
Now’s your chance to surf the Internet before lights-out, right?
Hands off the keyboard! Laptops are one of the biggest sleep saboteurs.
The computer’s light triggers the suprachiasmatic nucleus, a tiny receptor in the brain that regulates circadian, or body, rhythms, including the sleep-wake cycle.
Exposing eyes to the light can make the receptor think it’s time to get up, Shives says.
Rest easy: Shut down the laptop 1-2 hours before bedtime. Same goes for texting, which means getting sleep-deprived teens to turn off phones long before bedtime.
2. Your bedroom is your office.
Consider this: Sleep studies show that people slumber better in test rooms than at home. That’s because most people do more than snooze in bed. They’re also busy working, snacking and watching TV. Such activities can add to disturbed sleep.
Rest easy: Reserve the bedroom for two things only: sleep and sex, says David Schulman, M.D., director of the Emory Sleep Disorders Laboratory in Atlanta.
A sleep-inducing bedroom is quiet, dark, cool and free of stimulating distractions.
3. Your mind is churning with worries.
Your husband was laid off and you’re fretting over whether you’ll be able make the mortgage this month. You’re not alone.
More than 30% of 1,000 Americans polled in a 2009 National Sleep Foundation study reported that worry about the economy had disturbed their sleep at least a few nights a week. And 12% said they stressed about money almost every night.
It’s important not to stress over not sleeping too.
“The more you think and worry about sleep, the less likely you are to have a good night,” Shives says.
Rest easy: To decrease stress, avoid watching news and violent TV shows before bed.
Besides, TV isn’t really relaxing, says Sandra Horowitz, M.D., the regional medical director of Boston's Sleep Health Center and a clinical instructor at Harvard University's Division of Sleep Medicine.
“It’s geared to keep you [watching] it.”
If you can’t stop thinking about work, a relationship gone sour or tomorrow’s tasks, distract yourself with music, an audio book or soothing sounds from a white-noise machine.
“If you have noise in the room, it leads to relaxation, because part of your brain pays attention to the [sound] in a good way,” Shives says.
Meditation and mind/body relaxation techniques can also combat stress. Before you fall sleep, focus on your breathing or picture yourself in a beautiful spot – a favorite beach or spot in the woods.
Then, mentally working your way from head to toe, relax your body one part at a time.
4. You end the evening with a nightcap.
True, a scotch just before you head to bed is relaxing and will help you fall asleep. But in the long run, it adds to your sleep issues. That initial drowsiness doesn’t last.
“You metabolize the alcohol and that sedating effect wears off, generally in four hours,” Shives says. “You then wake up – more awake than ever.”
Why? Alcohol disrupts production of serotonin and norepinephrine, two neurotransmitters that regulate sleep stages, especially later in the night.
Alcohol also can make snoring louder and exacerbate obstructive sleep apnea, a disorder that disrupts breathing, says Gregg D. Jacobs, M.D., an insomnia specialist at the University of Massachusetts' Sleep Disorders Center and author of Say Goodnight to Insomnia (Holt Paperbacks).
And never drink if you’re taking a sleeping pill.
Popping one after a few glasses of wine, for example, can lead to blackouts, memory loss and erratic behavior.
Rest easy: A healthier option: a cup of milk, chamomile tea or another warm, non-caffeinated liquid.
Why do hot liquids make you drowsy?
It first raises the body’s core temperature, which then drops rapidly, Shives says.
A cool body helps you sleep better.
Plus, the ritual of heating a drink and pouring it into a favorite cup makes your eyelids feel heavy, says Donnica Moore, M.D., president of the Sapphire Women's Health Group and a consultant for the National Sleep Foundation.
5. You like a toasty room.
The weather outside is frightful, but your bedroom is delightful and warm.
Watch out – you may be in for a long night of disturbed sleep.
Insomnia is associated with higher core-body temperatures, according to a 2008 Australian study.
A lower room temperature helps your brain cool the body while you’re asleep, in a sense shutting down your engines, Schulman says.
Rest easy: Lower the thermostat to 60˚-65˚before you sleep.
Taking a hot bath or shower 2-4 hours before bed can help too, because it raises, then cools, body temperature – just like a hot non-caffeinated beverage will, Shives says.
6. You’re eating late, heavy meals.
A hearty steak dinner, complete with a thick piece of chocolate cake is a great way to end a day.
But hold off on the foodfest.
Digesting a heavy meal stimulates your gastric system when the body should be relaxing, disrupting your night’s sleep, Shives says.
Plus, eating too close to bedtime can cause heartburn, or acid reflux, a condition in which the stomach's digestive acids flow back into the esophagus.
But don’t go to bed on an empty stomach. Hunger trumps sleep when it comes to your body’s basic drives.
Rest easy: Eat dinner at least 2-3 hours before bedtime, so your body is done with most of its digesting.
If you’re hungry, eat a light snack at least an hour before you go to sleep.
Stick to cheese and other proteins, like a small piece of turkey, because they contain a naturally occurring amino acid called tryptophan, which is just the ticket for slumber.
And avoid that slice of cake.
“Chocolate has caffeine,” Horowitz explains.
7. You love that late-afternoon latte.
Coffee, your morning wake-up buddy, can turn you on at night – especially if you love the bottomless cup.
Beware of the afternoon pick-me-up too: Energy drinks like Red Bull or Jolt sometimes contain twice the amount of caffeine in a cup of java, Horowitz says.
Too much adds to the effects of sleep deprivation and keeps us revved when our bodies crave rest.
Rest easy: Limit your coffee to 1-2 cups before noon and avoid caffeinated energy drinks.
8. Your bedtime varies each night.
One night you’re out past midnight, the next tucked in by 9. You may be catching up on lost sleep, but it’s a surefire recipe for insomnia. Varying sleep and waking times throws off your internal clock, making it harder to doze off.
Plus, you can’t count on sleeping in on the weekends to catch up.
“People who sleep in disrupt their biological clock,” Horowitz says. “It’s as if you’re traveling several time zones.”
Rest easy: Set regular sleep and wakeup times.
But if you can’t stick to a habitual bedtime, at least wake up at the same time every day.
A consistent wakeup schedule is more important, because it plays a greater role in setting your internal clock, Horowitz says.
9. You’re counting too many sheep.
If you can’t sleep, don’t fight it lying down, Jacobs says. Watching the minutes tick by and worrying about sleep will only make it harder to nod off.
Rest easy: Jacobs’ rule: Don’t stay in bed tossing and turning for more than 30 minutes. Get up, leave the bedroom and do something else in another part of the house.
Why? Getting out of bed for a while “allows the brain to relax [so] you then fall to sleep more quickly,” he says.
When you return to bed, turn the face of your alarm clock away so you won’t be tempted to check it and start stressing again about your sleep deprivation, Horowitz suggests.
10. Your nose is stuffy.
Can’t smell the spring flowers because you’re stuffed up from allergies? They’re probably keeping you from sleeping, too, because you can’t breathe.
Rest easy: In many cases, at-home remedies can help you sleep through the night.
A non-medicated saline nasal spray or a hot shower before bedtime can open nasal passages, Horowitz says. And if you suffer from sinus problems, invest in a humidifier to keep the air in your bedroom moist, she advises.
For more expert information, visit our Sleep Health Center.
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