Maybe you used to be an excellent sleeper; maybe you cannot remember a time when sleep came easily to you. Whichever the case, you are not sleeping well now, and you are dying to know why.
Fortunately, more and more research devoted to understanding sleep habits and conditions are revealing the mechanisms that drive a good night’s rest. If you are suffering from poor sleep, it might be worthwhile to consult with your doctor about your possibility of having any of the following conditions:
Age-related Sleep Problems
Research indicates that all adults benefit from roughly the same amount of sleep every night, around seven hours. However, as you get older, physical and mental conditions can make it more difficult to get a good night’s rest. Older adults tend to sleep lightly, require more time to fall asleep and wake up multiple times per night. Sometimes, sleep problems are the result of other, treatable health conditions that develop as you age, like an enlarged prostate that interferes with urination or gastric reflux that can cause apnea. If you have noticed your sleep getting worse over the years, you might talk to your doctor about what can be done — or you might develop a new sleep routine that takes into account your developing sleep habits.
Lifestyle-related Sleep Problems
The way you behave while you are awake can impact how your body and mind behave when you are trying to sleep. Certain lifestyles are not conducive to healthy sleep. For example, you will probably experience disrupted sleep if you:
Consume alcohol within four hours of bedtime. Though alcohol is a depressant, which can help you feel drowsy and fall asleep faster, the substance interferes with your natural sleep cycle, causing you to wake up more frequently and feel less rested in the morning.
Take long naps late in the day. Your body develops a sleep deficit as time has passed since it last experienced rest. Long naps close to bedtime depletes that deficit and allows your body to feel energized, which means it will be difficult to get to sleep.
Consuming too much caffeine throughout the day. Caffeine wakes you up by blocking a neurochemical called adenosine, which is critical for relaxing the body in preparation for sleep. If there is too much caffeine in your body throughout the day, your body does not have enough time to make adenosine to help you sleep.
Fortunately, most lifestyle-related sleep issues are easy to fix, and you might see better sleep within a few days of your new life habits.
Medication-related Sleep Problems
Unfortunately, some medications can disrupt your sleep cycle and prevent you from feeling rested. Some of the most common drugs that cause sleep problems include beta blockers, which treat high blood pressure, and corticosteroids to manage inflammation. If your sleep troubles began around the same time you started a new medication, you should talk to your doctor about changing your dose or else switching to alternative medicines that might provide the same health benefits without any sleep-related side effects.
Anxiety or Depression
Mental health and sleep health are closely related. If your mind is full of racing thoughts or negative feelings, you probably will not be able to relax and drift off into dreamland. If your symptoms of anxiety and depression are relatively mild, you might try a simple, natural over-the-counter treatment like CBD and melatonin to calm your mind before bed, but if your mental health is a major concern, you should seek professional help.
Chronic Pain
Pain causes stress, and stress thwarts sleep. Then, if you do not get enough rest, your pain is likely to be worse the following day, further worsening your sleep woes. You should talk to your doctor about safe solutions to your pain and sleep troubles, which might include natural painkillers like medical marijuana as well as lifestyle changes like gentle exercise and healthy foods.
Neuropathy
Neuropathy is dysfunction of the nerves which can result in numbness, tingling, weakness and pain. Over time, neuropathy can develop in the hands and feet, especially in individuals with poor circulation. At night, when circulation slows, the symptoms of neuropathy can become more intense, preventing you from finding comfort and achieving rest. Improving your circulation with aerobic exercise can reduce the symptoms of neuropathy, but you might talk to your doctor about the condition to find treatments suitable to your unique health conditions.
By no means are these the only reasons you might be experiencing troubled sleep, but they are among the most common. Fortunately, many of these issues are effectively managed through diet, exercise and other simple changes to your lifestyle as well as over-the-counter medications for relaxation and health. If your sleep problems do not resolve in a week or two, you should not hesitate to contact your doctor to find better solutions.
Treatment like CBD and melatonin: CBD Sleep Capsules – Uleva
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