Sleep, interrupted
Your eyes pop open at 2 or 3 AM, and try as you might, you just can't fall back asleep. Sound familiar? "Everyone has an occasional restless night," says Timothy Morgenthaler, MD, president-elect of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. "But if you regularly find it hard to get back to sleep within 15 or 20 minutes, or if you wake up more than two or three times per night, that can cause disruption in your daily life and is worth addressing."
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| I need to get some sleep! |
Why it happens
A normal night's sleep includes many seconds-long mini-arousals—from 3 to 15 per hour—as a result of changes in brain wave activity. Most of the time we aren't even aware of them, and they don't affect sleep quality. But as we age, these mini-arousals happen more frequently and can become full-fledged awakenings for all sorts of reasons: stress, alcohol, noise, light—you name it. Try these tips to get you clear through the night.
Hypnotize yourself
Deep breathing and mental imagery techniques can help you sleep through the night or return to sleep after you wake up. "Focusing on a positive experience—like imagining a beautiful beach—allows stress to fade into the background," says Gary Elkins, PhD, director of the Mind-Body Research Program at Baylor University and the author of the new book Hypnotic Relaxation Therapy. Patients with insomnia meet with him weekly for five to eight hourly sessions to learn self-hypnosis. They get an audio recording of sessions and practice self-hypnosis daily at home. People tend to see results within 2 to 4 weeks, Dr. Elkins says.
Try Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
CBT-I has been found to be as effective as medication is for inducing sleep. "In people with sleep problems, confidence in the ability to sleep erodes," says Ryan Wetzler, PsyD, of Sleep Medicine Specialists in Louisville. "We teach people what they might be doing wrong and how to reset the biological systems that regulate their sleep."
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| You can read some books |
Meditate
Eliminating anxiety about getting back to sleep can go a long way. "People who meditate are more relaxed, so when they wake up during the night, they may not get as upset," says Ramadevi Gourineni, MD, associate professor in neurology at Northwestern University. As a result, they soon drift off again. Dr. Gourineni found that when insomniacs practiced Kriya yoga meditation for 15 to 20 minutes twice a day for 2 months, the time they spent awake in the middle of the night dropped from 75 minutes to 25. Other types of meditation and yoga might help as well—and even if you don't have 30 minutes a day, a consistent practice of any length is likely to help.
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| Meditate |
Heartburn
More than a third of Americans have acid reflux, and a majority are awakened by it. Your first lines of defense: Don't eat within 3 hours of bedtime; try lifting your head 45 degrees to keep acid down; and avoid citrus, onion, carbonated drinks, mint, alcohol, and smoking. If these strategies don't help, prescription proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) may.
Minimize bathroom breaks
"Patients often tell me, 'When I was a college student, I could drink fluids up until I went to sleep, and now all of a sudden it's a problem,' " says Ariana Smith, MD, assistant professor of urology at the University of Pennsylvania. That's likely because vasopressin, a hormone that suppresses urine production, declines as we age. If your sleep is being sabotaged by trips to the loo, try some simple lifestyle changes. Use the toilet before you go to bed, don't drink within 2 to 3 hours of bedtime, and steer clear of alcohol and caffeine, which are diuretics. If these don't help and you're using the bathroom more than once a night, see a doctor, because this could signal a medical condition.
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| Bathroom break interrupts your sleep |
Exercise
Insomniacs who did 16 weeks of aerobic exercise—walking outside or using a treadmill or stationary bike—for 30 to 40 minutes four times a week slept an extra 75 minutes per night, finds a recent study published inSleep Medicine. That's more than other nondrug therapies have achieved, likely because exercise improves metabolism and decreases inflammation—both of which can enhance sleep quality and reduce daytime fatigue.
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| Stay away from "Sound Pollution" |
Be smart about booze
A nightcap can certainly make drifting off to sleep easy, but as soon as that alcohol gets metabolized, you may wake up. Drink before sleep and you'll get less REM sleep, the deep dream state that we need for good rest. Another thing to know: Levels of alcohol high enough to impair sleep differ among individuals—so your mate may sleep like a log after hoisting a drink or two, while you may toss and turn. Your best bet is to schedule last call 2 or 3 hours before heading to bed.
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| Do not have a heavy meal before sleep |
Lights out
People exposed to light at night had shallower sleep and were more likely to experience mini-arousals during the night in a 2013 study in the journalSleep Medicine. "Melatonin levels are suppressed by even low levels of light, and that in turn is associated with disturbed sleep," says Phyllis Zee, MD, director of the Sleep Disorders Center at Northwestern University. If you read on a tablet, switch from a white background with black font to a black background with white font, which emits less light. Also, dim your device to half brightness or less, and hold it 14 inches away from your eyes.
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| Do not take long nap |
Soak up the sun
Exposure to natural light during the day can improve your sleep. Researchers at Northwestern recently found that people whose workplaces had windows got 173% more light exposure during the day and slept an average of 47 more minutes per night than their windowless coworkers. Natural daylight may enhance melatonin production come nightfall—one key to a solid night's slumber.
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Posted by Wellness Lab 健康验血中心 on Thursday, May 14, 2015
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