Trouble sleeping?

I have been told by a certain someone that I have not blogged for a whole 3 days (*gasps*) and that they think I should blog about something. However, I informed them that I did not have anything that I did not feel like blogging about. But...I came up with something -- I will blog about something they have been having trouble with: difficulty sleeping.

So, let me ask the rest of you: do you have trouble sleeping? I'm going to assume you do, or have, at some point in your life. We all do. At some point, we go through periods of time when we cannot sleep well. Either we can't get to sleep or can't stay asleep once we get there. And it becomes very frustrating. Often times, we become grumpy, grouchy and people begin to avoid us during this time because they really don't have any desire to be around us. 

So, why is this that we have this trouble? Here are some common reasons:

- aging

- anxiety / stress

- bedroom that does not promote sleep

- medical conditions

- medications

- napping during the day

- psychological conditions

- shift work

- sleep habits

- stimulants (examples: nicotine, caffeine, food, drugs -- legal or otherwise)

Obviously, some of these cannot be fixed. You cannot stop the aging process (although many wish they could). Many medical conditions cannot be reversed but can be controlled by medications (which can sometimes produce side effects which will give you similar troubles with sleeping). Shift work is another beast all unto itself (believe me, I know) -- and it is difficult not to nap during the day and get your sleep habits all out of whack with that one. (After I worked my 48 hours in 60 hours over Labor Day weekend, I was messed up for the better part of the next week.)

However, let's look at some things that can be done to help you sleep better at night:

- establish a regular bedtime, but don't crawl in bed if you're wide awake.

- get up at the same time every morning and don't sleep in, despite the temptation.

- avoid stimulants for several hours before bedtime, particularly if you are sensitive to them. Also, if you drink alcohol, avoid that before bedtime.

- eat a light snack before bedtime.

- be smart about napping. If you need a nap, try to do it in the early afternoon and limit it to under an hour. If you have trouble sleeping that evening, try to shorten your nap the next day you need a nap. Eliminate it completely if you still have difficulty sleeping. Better to sleep at night and drag a little during the afternoon than be up half the night.

- make your bedroom dark and cool.

- reserve your bed for sleeping and not for work or other activities. It makes it harder to wind down and sleep if your body is cued for other activities aside from sleeping.

Give it a try and see how you do. This is not a "try it on the night I'm having trouble sleeping and see how it works" thing. If you put it into practice, this will hopefully keep those sleepless nights at bay, or prevent more of them from showing up at your bedside. 

Sweet dreams.