At no other time in history has there been so much pressure to stay awake. Modern life, with its incessant connectivity and constant stimulation, puts many obstacles in front of a good night’s rest. Yet sleep is too often considered a luxury for time-strapped professionals, when it should be considered as essential as water.
Did you know...?
• Without enough sleep, the memory-processing portions of the brain become “water-logged”, making it difficult to absorb new memories.
• Men who routinely sleep just four-five hours a night will have a level of testosterone equal to someone 10 years their senior.
• Long-term lack of sleep can impede ovulation in women, which then negatively impacts fertility.
Insomnia Insights
Many factors can put a person at risk for insomnia and it is a lot more common than people think. Each year roughly 7% of adults will suffer from insomnia with a further 30% experiencing at least some symptoms of insomnia; meaning that one out of every three adults go about their day without proper sleep.
Women are more likely to suffer from insomnia than men, especially post-menopause, due to fluctuations of the body’s hormones which can interfere with the hormones that produce sleep. Another factor is age. The older a person is the more likely they are to suffer from insomnia.
What are the symptoms?
If one or more of these problems sound familiar you might be experiencing some form of insomnia, in which case we highly recommend that you consult a doctor:
• Difficulty falling asleep at night
• Waking easily during the night or in the early morning
• Inability to fall back asleep once awake
• Lack of concentration during the day
• Difficulty keeping focused
• Daytime sleepiness
• Mood disturbances and irritability
• Poor performance at work or daily tasks
What are the causes?
Genetics, environment, and lifestyle all play a role in aggravating insomnia. However, it may also surface due to an underlying condition such as anxiety and depression, or medications that affect sleep. Common triggers for insomnia include:
• Stress/ depression
• Illness
• Medications
• Jet lag
• Junk food/ caffeine before bed
• Taking long day-time naps
• Watching a screen at night (e.g. phone screen, tablet, TV)
What can I do about insomnia?
1. Stick to a sleep schedule: If there’s only one recommendation that you remember and take away it’s this one. Go to bed and wake up at the same time… every day! It’s a common mistake to think you can make up for lost sleep over the weekend, not only is this not how sleep works, it also makes it even harder to wake up early on Monday morning.
2. Prepare your bedroom: Your bedroom should be cool and comfortable. Avoid eating or working in your bed, and in time your body will associate being in bed with “it’s time to be sleepy”. If you have a clock in your room, turn it away from you before bed. Many people with insomnia watch the clock with anxiety, feeling that they might sleep too much, too little, or that they are “failing” at sleep.
3. Avoid screens before bed: Melatonin, the hormone responsible for sleep, is destroyed by the body when exposed to blue light. This is part of the body’s natural wake cycle; blue light means day, and therefore time to get up. Stay away from blue light produced from mobile phones and tablets at least an hour before going to sleep.
4. Avoid caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol: Caffeine and nicotine are both stimulants and can take up to eight hours to be processed by the body. In that time, your sleep will be less effective and lighter, exacerbating or sometimes even causing insomnia. Alcohol, a depressant, acts differently on the body yet can be as detrimental to sleep as a stimulant. By slowing the body down, the restorative sleep of the REM cycle is interrupted or skipped entirely, putting the body right into less restorative deep sleep. Additionally, alcohol causes muscles in the back of the throat to relax, leading to snoring or even obstructive sleep apnea.
5. Avoid exercise just before bedtime: Exercise is great, but not too late in the day. Exercising at least 30 minutes on most days can aid sleep, but it should be no later than 2-3 hours before you go to bed.
6. Unwind, relax, and try to avoid stress! Avoid overscheduling your day to the point where you have no time left to unwind. Make a relaxing activity, such as reading, listening to music, or taking a hot shower, part of your bedtime ritual. Showers cool the body and help signal that it’s time to sleep. Most importantly, don’t lie awake fretting that you’re not feeling sleepy! If you find yourself taking longer than 20 minutes to fall asleep, get up and do a relaxing activity until your anxiety gives way to sleepiness.
If all that doesn’t help: See a specialist: At Jiahui, our sleep medicine specialists can help diagnose sleep troubles based on an individual’s self-reported history, as well as clinical assessments. Sleep diaries and sleep histories, as well as evaluations by our clinical specialists, can help identify the root cause. We also offer therapy to help resolve chronic conditions and, if necessary, prescribe medication while diagnosing the underlying cause of your insomnia.
If you’re having diffiulty with insomnia or something is affecting your abillity to get consistent, quality sleep, Jiahui Health’s Sleep Medicine Clinic is here to help.
Sleep is too often considered a luxury for time-strapped professionals, when it should be considered as essential as water. Without enough sleep, the memory-processing portions of the brain become “water-logged”, making it difficult to absorb new memories.
Most importantly, don’t lie awake fretting that you’re not feeling sleepy! If you find yourself taking longer than 20 minutes to fall asleep, get up and do a relaxing activity until your anxiety gives way to sleepiness.
Phone: 400-868-3000
Website: www.jiahui.com/en
Address: 689 Guiping Lu, Xuhui District
沪ICP备15036271号-2
