Lifestyle – What is it?

Having trouble falling asleep lately? Or are you waking up again and again during the night unable to fall back asleep? There are many factors that can contribute to a sleepless night, but if it is occurring night after night it is time to look for the culprit. Many lifestyle factors can contribute to sleep loss. We have compiled a few of the more common factors that lead to sleepless nights and some possible solutions you can implement to get your restful nights of sleep back. Enjoy!

Work

Work can be demanding and most certainly can contribute or cause sleep issues. Two obviously grueling and sleep inhibiting work situations that are common are the shift worker and the traveling road warrior. Shift work is very demanding and depending on your schedule, and how much it may change, your sleep can be greatly affected. If you are working night shifts then you must learn to sleep during the day when your body thinks you should be awake and work at night when your body thinks you should be sleeping. This initial shock of this change is very hard to get used to and takes weeks, even months for your body to adjust. Some shift work alternates between days and nights every week or every few days which makes it even more difficult for your body to adjust.

Life constantly on the road can be just as difficult to deal with and cause many issues your sleep. Crossing multiple time zones in a day puts you at risk for jet lag. Your body needs at least a day per time zone change to fully adjust.  If you are busy enough and travel extensively for your work, you may cross time zones back and forth many times during the week and never give your body time to adjust. This leaves your body confused, drained, and in desperate need of quality sleep that most with this lifestyle do not have time for.

Other jobs may be demanding with their workload and you could be racking up the overtime in a hurry. Staying late night after night working puts a lot of stress on you and your body. Especially when the work at home is always waiting, no matter what time you get back from work. This can cause many late nights and leave you sleepy and fatigued during the day.

Great stress from constantly changing jobs without consistency or due to unemployment can cause many sleeping issues. Large amounts of stress can cause late nights spent worrying and even insomnia. Stress also can cause anxiety, which can cause insomnia and other sleeping disorders as well.

Social Life

Our social lives bear many factors that can contribute to sleepless nights and sleep deprivation. Not being able to say no to friends can keep you out late or keep you from getting your chores around the house done during the day so you end up finishing them late into the night instead of sleeping as you should.

Issues between spouses can affect sleeping habits in very negative ways. Couples tend to get less sleep and less quality sleep the night after there is conflict or a fight in the relationship. This can create a cycle of fighting during the day and losing sleep at night as people are more likely to be grouchy, irritable, and get in a fight after a sleepless night of sleep. This cycle can cause a lot of stress, which also makes it difficult to fall asleep. Less and less sleep only amplifies stress and may create another vicious cycle of sleep deprivation.

Separation or divorce can lead to many sleepless nights. Even just not having your sleeping partner in bed as you are accustomed to can make it difficult for you to fall asleep, let alone the emotions of a divorce or separation. These strains in a relationship can cause a lot of stress and anxiety, which may cause insomnia and most likely will cause sleepless nights.

The death of a loved one is another social factor that is a killer for sleep. Sadly, not only stress, but grief may also cause sleeping problems. Grief can take different forms and also affect your sleep differently. Grief can cause insomnia and make it impossible for you to sleep and it can also cause hypersomnia, making it extremely difficult for someone to get out of bed and get active.

Health

Health and sleep are closely related. Poor health and poor health habits lead to poor sleep, while good health and good health habits lead to good sleep. Also sleeping well leads to good health and sleeping poorly leads to impaired health.

Diet and exercise are very important factors in determining your quality of sleep. Daily exercise is great for your sleep hygiene; it helps you fall asleep faster and stay asleep throughout the night. Diet has a similar effect. What you feed your body during the day has either sleep-aiding or sleep-depriving consequences. Eating a balanced and healthy diet promotes good sleep. Consuming fatty and sugar-filled foods, especially close to bedtime make it difficult to fall asleep. Consuming nicotine, alcohol, and caffeine, especially close to bedtime impair your sleep. Being overweight puts you at greater risk for different sleep disorders, most commonly obstructive sleep apnea.

Family

Much like your social life, family life and different issues can contribute to poor nights of sleep. If your sleeping partner snores, moves around a lot, talks in their sleep, or has a sleeping disorder of their own this can disrupt your sleep from start to finish. If you have family members that you must care for such as newborns, younger children, or aging parents and grandparents, then your sleep schedule could become very abnormal. Sleep deprivation in situations like these can add up quickly and put you at risk to develop a sleep disorder like insomnia and most likely put you at risk for daytime fatigue, sleep attacks, difficulty concentrating, and lowered work performance.

Possible solutions

Get Help

Your life can get crazy and overwhelming. Don’t be afraid to look for help if you need it. It could be as simple as hiring a lawn service to take care of the lawn you simply do not have time for. An affordable housekeeper is another option that can greatly reduce stress and take a heap of responsibilities off of your plate giving you more time to sleep. If you have older loved ones living with you, but it is too much responsibility and burden for you to take care of them you could consider hiring a home healthcare aid service. There are always responsibilities that pile up and sometimes it is easier to find a local service that can bear some of the load for you. Don’t be shy or too proud to get help especially at the expense of your much-needed sleep!

Manipulate Light Exposure

If you are a shift worker and work nights or an inconsistent schedule that varies from days and nights, you could try strategic adjustments of light to help your body reset its circadian rhythms and help you to sleep when you need to and be awake when you need to be. Block of sunlight from your house and keep the lights off if you are on nights and need to sleep during the day. Then keep the lights on throughout your house when you are home and it is dark if it is a time you need to be awake just before or after work. There will still be an adjustment to this lifestyle, but manipulating your light exposure can help your body adjust, and your circadian rhythm adapts quicker.

Break Problems Down

Breaking problems down into manageable pieces is a terrific way to reduce the stress caused by problems that seem insurmountable on the surface.  Start by coming up with as many workable solutions as you can until one emerges as a manageable solution. Break it down into the sequence of steps that will need to be taken to put the solution into action. Note what, how, when, who, and where of each step.

Adjust your standards and Learn to forgive

Perfectionism is a major source of avoidable stress. When you learn to accept that you’re human and live in an imperfect world, you can stop setting yourself up for unnecessary stress by demanding perfection. People make mistakes, including you. It’s ok. Forgive and move on!

Relax before you go to bed

Create a relaxing bedtime ritual free from electronics. Bedtime rituals are something you consistently do prior to going to bed for the night. This can include taking a warm relaxing bath, reading a good book, or listening to soft, relaxing music.

Resolve issues Before They Become Crises

No one likes to deal with unpleasant topics and circumstances, but the sooner you do, the easier they are to handle. Whether it’s something at home or work, acting quickly will minimize its potential for turning into something more stressful.

Take a break from the stressor

It may seem impossible to get away from a big work project, maxed out credit cards, or screaming kids, but it’s not. It starts by permitting yourself to take a breather to do something else, even if it’s only for a few minutes. Giving yourself time to do something else can give you a much-needed new perspective on the situation. It also gives you time to practice techniques that can help you feel less overwhelmed. Avoiding your stressor altogether may not be feasible or even advisable; the project, bills, and kids do have to be dealt with, but even 5-20-minutes to reset can be helpful. Try listening to your favorite song, stretching or doing yoga, meditating, taking a quick walk, or relaxing in a bubble bath the next time you need a break.

Talk about your problems

Spending time with someone that makes you feel safe and understood triggers a cascade of hormones that counteract the body’s defensive “fight-or-flight” response providing a natural stress reliever.

The person you choose to talk to doesn’t have to be able to fix your stress; they simply need to be a good listener. Talking things through with someone else can help you find solutions to your stress and put your problems into perspective since stress can cloud your judgment and prevent you from seeing things clearly.

Avoid Caffeine, Alcohol, and Nicotine

The last thing you probably need when you’re facing stress is raised levels of stimulants or depressants.   Stimulants increase your levels of stress rather than reduce, so minimize or avoid consuming caffeine and nicotine. Alcohol is a depressant that acts as a stimulant in small quantities making its use in alleviating stress is not particularly helpful.

Hydration is more helpful in enabling your body to cope with stress, so opt for water, herbal teas, or diluted natural fruit juices instead of caffeinated and alcoholic drinks. Keep in mind that you should also minimize your consumption of refined sugars as well since they are known to cause energy crashes which may lead you to feel tired and irritable. A healthy, well-balanced, nutritious diet is your best ally when battling stress.

Exercise

Stressful situations increase the level of stress hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol in your body due to our instinctive “fight or flight” response.  Since most stressful situations we face today don’t require our body to use the hormones, physical exercise like taking a walk is a fantastic way to metabolize the excess. This puts you back in a calmer, more relaxed state.

As a bonus, regular exercise can also improve the quality of your sleep.

Get More Sleep

Stress and sleep have a complex relationship. A lack of sleep is a significant cause of stress, yet stress is also known to interrupt our sleep. By practicing good sleep hygiene, you can minimize the impacts of stress on your sleep.

Rest If You Are Ill

Give yourself a break when you are not feeling well. Chances are pretty good that whatever you need to do can wait or can be delegated. The sooner you take time to recover, the better.

Final Thoughts

If you are experiencing sleep troubles and believe it may be due to certain lifestyle behaviors we encourage you to try some of these solutions. If you find these still are not working and believe you may have a more serious sleeping disorder discuss your sleeping problems and treatment options with a Board-Certified Sleep Physician so you can get back to sleep and start enjoying life again!