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Let Me Sleep! 

3/19/2016

18 Comments

 
Picture
It’s a simple five-letter word that everyone does.   
 
As a matter of fact, everyone has to do it.   
 
Some, mostly the very young, are far better at it than others.  Those others, which are in the camp where I now
belong, have discovered that it becomes more elusive with each passing birthday. 
 
Yup, evening after maddening evening, getting a good night’s sleep continues to be a game of chance. 
 
I’m hardly alone.  
 
Indeed, a 2013 Gallup poll concluded that Americans typically get only about 6.8 hours of sleep every night, down more than an hour from 1942.  That’s an important number because scientists who study nocturnal patterns say we need seven to nine hours every night; growing teens need more.  (I’m actually my best self with a full 10 hours.) 
 
This is A Very Big Deal, since sleep deprivation can cause major cognitive impairment (just ask the parents of a newborn), and other significant health issues including diabetes, stroke and heart disease.  Perhaps closer to home for more of us, a CNN story earlier this month made a direct link between increased junk food cravings and the lack of sleep (check out the full report here, at www.cnn.com/2016/03/01/health/sleep-deprivation-linked-to-unhealthy-eating/). 
 
I really do try my best.
 
This means that while I won’t take sleeping pills, I do allow myself one Benadryl tablet, once per week, always on the nights that I know there’s no waiting alarm clock the next morning.  The advantage is that I sleep well; the not-so-good part is that I wake up groggy, and stay that way for several hours.   
 
So for every other evening, I’ve dipped my toes in just about every holistic sleep remedy that comes along.
 
First, that means warm baths most evenings, often boosted with organic Epsom salts, baking soda and lavender.  This routine, in fact, is no longer a luxury but a necessity.   
 
The same is true for drinking a cup of tea, either brewed from a grocery store bag, or chosen from loose teas that I make sure are always around.  Every single one is supposed to lead to the land of magical slumber, and, trust me, I’ve probably sipped nearly every variety.  We’re talking lemon balm, mint, chamomile, ginger, lemon ginger, lavender, poppy, herbal sugar cookie and too many more to remember. 
 
Or sometimes it’s warm milk; warm milk with sugar, or warm milk with crushed almonds.
 
There are the physical props, too.  
 
Granted, it probably sounds nuts to those who have no problem getting their ZZZs, but I’ve found that the right apparel—specifically, thick fluffy socks—helps me bed down.  Too, I do better with the correct blankets, which distribute the perfect amount of weight on top of me.  A down comforter, folded over double, seems to do the trick. A colder room helps as well.  And, a certain weight of flannel sheet in the wintertime also provides a great assist.   
 
Sometimes this all works, but sometimes it doesn’t.
 
Frankly, I also know that any added stress and anxiety to my already busy life—can you say stubborn, college, and a moody teenage daughter?—make mincemeat out of all of these good efforts. 
 
At the same time, I’m hyper aware that even without those extra worries keeping me awake, I can do better when it comes to my routine.  
 
After all, I’m a news junkie, and when I see something I want to share, I can’t help but post articles and photos and random musings on social media.  Also, given that I no longer have cable television, but do have access to programming on my laptop, sometimes I’ll just have to watch a show (or binge watch a series of shows) that has caught my fancy.
 
And, unless you’ve lived in a cave the last few years, most folks know that electronic devices in any form are not conductive to slumber.  
 
In fact, a recent study funded by the National Institute of Health has backed up this theory, which has been kicking around for about five years.  These latest findings had participants reading an iPad for four hours each night before hitting the hay, for five nights in the row.  Others read printed books in dim light.  After one week, the groups switched.
 
Here’s the conclusion.
 
Those who used iPads displayed reduced levels of melatonin, the hormone that, in its natural state, helps induce sleepiness in the evening.  Consequently, these participants not only took longer to fall asleep, they spent less time in rapid-eye movement (REM), the most restorative, and most necessary, element for a great night’s sleep. (More details are here, at www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/23/reading-before-bed_n_6372828.html.)  
 
This wasn’t surprising to me, because I know that my best horizontal times come when I switch off all  electronics—phone included—at least two hours before bedtime, and instead, cozy up on the couch with a book. 
 
Well, it’s that time, and I’ve promised myself that this is exactly what I’ll be doing tonight.   
 
I’m padding off to my kitchen now to make a cup of tea, which I will slowly drink with my lavender bath.  Then I’ll settle down with a book.
 
Let’s hope that tonight will be one that brings peaceful slumber—filled with sweet and blissful dreams.    
 
What about you? How do you get a good night's sleep? 

I’m open to every idea out there, so comments are most welcomed!  

18 Comments
leslie spoon
3/20/2016 08:39:45 am

Hilary When I turned 50 my sleeping patterns changed. I use to sleep in till 10am on the weekends. I really miss that. I have found in the last few months that if I have a cup of lemon and ginger tea with organic honey that I will sleep most of the night. It works like a sleeping pill for me.

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Hilary
3/20/2016 08:35:37 pm

I, too, remember the days when I could sleep late on weekends in a DEEP slumber. I do wake up late on weekends, but there is tossing and turning. Hormones--or lack of them--has a lot to do with it, I think!

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Larry Grant
3/20/2016 09:07:54 am

I've been a very light sleeper most of my adult life. According to the studies I should probably be dead by now. Maybe it's the way I deal with not sleeping that keeps me going. When I'm awake in the night I use it as prayer time for family, friends and situations that might otherwise be sources of worry. Afterwards I usually doze off.

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Hilary
3/20/2016 08:37:00 pm

This is a constructive way to "take care of business"--I tend to have too much of a worrier, "monkey brain" at night to do this. I'm so happy that you can! :)

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Cynthia mccabe link
3/20/2016 09:49:03 pm

I was a GREAT sleeper til I turned 50ish. Then I went thru a stage where I woke up 3 or 4 times per night. Luckily, I can almost always fall right back to sleep. After studying Ayurvedic therapies in India I learned a couple of things that seem to really have diminished my relatively minor, but annoying sleep disturbances. 1) eat an earlier dinner, like around six o'clock and then brush your teeth and tell yourself, "kitchen is closed". (Digestion interrupts sleep, so eat at least 3-4 hours before bedtime. After that, drink tea. If you am really desperate, warm milk with spices and honey is ok. 2). Make yourself a quart jar of water to have beside your bed. If you wake in the night, have a big sip. Sometimes it's dehydration and heart regulation that wakes you and water will help you to relax. 3). Do quieting routines one hour before bedtime and yes, avoid computer screens (though I am breaking that rule right now). 4). Limit carbs (energy producing foods) at your evening meal. That means small or no amounts of sugar in the form of bread, grains, pasta, cake. These are better saved for midday meal. 5). Drop one drop of pure, 100% therapeutic grade lavender essential oil or grapefruit oil on the bottoms of your feet, or diffuse lavender oil in a diffuser by your bedside.
When I follow these guidelines, I sleep like a baby with only one wake up call at 4:30 am only to fall asleep again until 5:30 am. That last hour is so lovely. When I don't, it's the same, old routine and I need to find a moment to nap the next day.
By the way, am always happy to direct you to good essential oils if you need! Thank Hilary! This is such an important topic for us as we age and good habits will really help! No one likes feeling sleep deprived.

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Hilary
3/21/2016 04:50:41 pm

These are some great ideas. I'm working hard about staying off the computer... really, getting off no later than 8:30 in the evening! I absolutely limit carbs at night anyway... but I love the idea of having water at my bedside. :)

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Jim Nolt
3/21/2016 06:59:19 pm

Hilary, it seems to me that restful sleep is becoming more elusive as I age. I toss and turn most of the night. And then, as dawn breaks, I finally find those ZZZZZs hiding under my pillow. Nevertheless, arise I must, and do.

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Hilary
3/21/2016 09:02:31 pm

Alack and alas, I must do the same. But spring break is starting end of this week, and I will be able to sleep in. Less stress, for me, tends to translate to more rest. :)

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George Marshall link
3/25/2016 07:23:12 pm

Lots of good advise here for sleeping Hilary.
I find that my best nights sleep are when I've gone to the ocean, walked a long ways barefoot in the water, done some sketching, exploring amongst the rocks and tide pools and get a really good dose of negative ions, which people who live near the ocean are lucky to be able to breathe.

I find that when my mind is very active and I have a lot of thoughts spinning around that these are often the times that sleep is elusive. I tell myself in those times, "ok, enough of that, let's sleep now, good time to sleep, night, after all once morning comes it's too late." None of this does any good if my mind is too active. Just forget about it.

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Hilary
3/25/2016 08:33:18 pm

Yup, in the yoga world, a brain that can never shut itself off is called "monkey brain"--and these days, I have it in spades. Life will be easier after Katie gets a job and into the community college mode. Right now, we're cranking toward end of her senior year. And by the way, yes, walking and stretching and exercising a few hours before bedtime does wonders. When Katie was very little, we'd spend hours at local parks so that she would sleep well that night. It worked! :)

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Tammy Dalcin
3/31/2016 09:13:52 am

When I read this blog I thought I could not respond to it because sleep is usually not a problem for me.
Well guess what? I forgot about the times a do have trouble like when something is hurting me when I'm trying to go in my deep slumber. Just yesterday I had to have an emergency root canal surgery. My tooth had been bothering me for weeks. I would wake up from a sound sleep to a sharp pain in my tooth. My Dentist took an X Ray a couple of weeks ago but said he didn't see anything wrong with the tooth. Another week went by with the constant popping of Advil every 4 hours and broken sleep. Needless to say I was feeling very cranky from lack of my usual 8 hours of sleep. I called my dentist again only to find out he was on vacation.... Figures! They referred me to another dentist. He took me right away and told me I needed a root canal. The same day I was able to get my tooth fixed. Now I am suffering from the pain from the swollen gums. I was hoping for a good nights rest last night, but to no avail. I took a pain pill at bedtime (8:30)I was exhausted, but still woke up a 11;00 pm with pain. I took Advil this time and slept till 3:00 am. I took half of a pain pill to try to get just a few more hours.... All I can say is I am humbled, I should never take it for granted when I get my good nights sleep. For all of those who have trouble falling a sleep and staying a sleep I don't have a magic remedy. I can say though, I feel your pain and I am deeply sorry for all of those who suffer from lack of sleep. Sometimes I wish we did have magic fairy dust that we could sprinkle on ourselves and sleep our pain/ worries away 💤

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Hilary
3/31/2016 01:33:58 pm

YIKES... poor Tammy! You're a quick healer, so, your gums will be better very soon. I, too, could once upon a time never understand people who had a hard time falling asleep. But after I hit my five-decade mark, my wonderful sleeps became no more. And more often than not, when I do fall asleep, I wake up about four hours later, toss and turn for an hour, and then get only another couple of hours in before it's time to get up. I *am* going to try the lavender essence oil on the bottom of my feet, though. I'm also getting off my computer earlier and coloring in a grown-up coloring book. Both of these nighttime tweaks are helping. :)

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Kari Schultz
4/1/2016 02:31:50 am

Insomnia sucks! I generally only get about 3 hours of sleep a night. How I function is beyond me but by the grace of God. I am on vacation and still sleep eludes me. I keep trying things and nothing works well. Pills are out since I am too sensitive to side effects. I
will just keep praying and hoping something will change eventually. This has been ongoing for several years now and peri menopause makes it worse I am sure. Thanks for the tips to not give up.

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Hilary
4/1/2016 02:19:45 pm

There are weeks when The Hubster only gets this much sleep, so he uses the time to pray. Sometimes sleep masks are helpful... and the right sheets, too! I *finally* got my treasured down comforter back from the dry cleaners (it first needed to have hole repaired) and I slept pretty good last night with it over me! I will let you know if the essential lavender oil works... if so, I'll let you know where to buy it (there's an herb shop in Osos, basically only open during the Monday farmers' market). It's about $15 but lasts a LONG TIME and is well worth the cost if it works! : )

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Susan Jordan
4/3/2016 12:03:41 am

I've been a walking, talking (literally) sleep disorder since I was an infant; according to my grandmother, I even talked in my sleep as a young toddler. Sleepwalking and talking from the get-go, active insomnia at nine, night terrors at 11, joined by bruxism along the way, have all made an interesting sleep life for me. I don't know why, but it just is this way. My brain won't shut down at night. So I take something if I want to fall asleep. Yes, I do have a few of those bad habits, but even without them, my mind is spinning at night. It's always been this way, and probably always will be. I feel sorrier for people who have occasional insomnia than I do for myself, the chronic insomniac, because I've been used to it since early childhood. If it were occasional, that would probably be maddening. As it is, it's just something I've always had, so I deal with it the best I can.

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Hilary
4/3/2016 09:50:27 am

Ha! I had to look up bruxism. :) Wonder if your insomnia is in the genes? My husband doesn't have the teeth thing, but man, he is THE lightest sleeper. That helped him when his now grown daughters were babies, but it doesn't help him now... he really does need more sleep. But like you, he has learned to live with it. Me, I'm still trying to win over this rather new obstacle! I'm victorious at least half of the time, so for me, it's worth the battle! :)

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Cindy
4/3/2016 10:49:54 am

It's interesting that being in or around your 50s makes such a difference with sleep. That does make it seem hormonal but I wonder what we can do to affect that - being out in the sunlight enough, staying away from sugar, exercising more...? I have trouble getting myself to turn off at night and then I also have trouble when I so often wake up around 4 or 5 am and can't get back to sleep - maddening! I've definitely heard that reading a book at bedtime is a key to getting to sleep more easily - but I love your additional suggestions of comforting teas, warm baths and "snuggling down" Hilary!

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Hilary
4/3/2016 11:08:45 am

Yup, it IS maddening! Because I had no problems before that decade, yeah, I'm pretty sure hormones are the culprit for a good part of my insomnia (having a teenager is another, of course!). Turning off electronics is helping a lot... but man, it's a tough habit to break. :)

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    Hilary Roberts Grant

    Journalist, editor, filmmaker, foodie--and a clown! 
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