I want to offer additional advice on getting a good night’s sleep. This is critical for good health, but a problem for many people. Please refer to PART ONE of my series on sleep for an introduction and initial comments.
Limit food and drink for 3-4 hours before going to bed. Getting up to urinate interrupts sleep. Limiting fluids before bedtime is often successful to avoid interrupting sleep. Silent (asymptomatic) acid reflux disturbs the depth of sleep. It can take a few hours for the stomach to empty after eating. Food in the stomach promotes acid reflux in a prone individual.
No VIDEO screens should be watched for at least 1 hour and preferably 2 hours before going to bed. There are several possible explanations as to why this is a problem.
Video screens are basically flashing lights. This is true of all screens. These flashing lights stimulate the brain.
Furthermore, modern digital screens emit a short wavelength blue light. Many studies of sleep disorders agree that this type of light stimulates an area of the brain that adversely affects sleep. It can make getting to sleep difficult, cause early wakening, and inhibit the ability to get to the needed deeper levels of sleep. This means that you can sleep for 10 hours, but still not feel rested because you are not getting good quality, restorative sleep. Many people should not look at any video screens – modern TV’s, computers, smart phones, video games – for two (2) hours before going to bed.
The video content itself may also be stimulating.
Read something funny before going to bed. Having a hearty laugh reduces stress hormone levels anytime. Although laughter may seem stimulating, it is actually relaxing. It helps to remove the fears and angers and cares from the day.
On the other hand, reading something exciting or stress-inducing is counterproductive for getting a good sleep. A good murder mystery leaves you tense.
Reading should be of an actual book. Reading from a computer or similar screen may hinder sleep.
A reading device that does not have that blue-light screen is better. But there may be other factors that make any reading device problematic.
Reading things like the dictionary is sleep-promoting for most people. (unless you find this material to be overly stimulating). I always found that reading a neuroanatomy textbook did the trick. Of course, I am not a neurosurgeon.
Many people wake at night and are unable to get back to sleep. There are often obvious reasons for this problem. A common observation that people express is, “I am thinking too much and can’t shut it off.” Others take their problems to bed and then worry about them if they wake up during the night. Any of life’s problems can become active and amplified in the middle of the night. A puzzle may become closer to being solved at 2 A.M. All of the “I should have said …” solutions keep people awake at night. And many more.
It is important to recognize that what’s on your mind is not going away. Then you can take action.
When you realize that you have lost control, you can then work to regain control.
The first thing to do is get out of bed and out of the bedroom. Go to a place where you can sit with low lighting and no other stimuli. The next step is to relax your mind.
Meditation is all about clearing the mind. To be effective at 3 A.M., you should have experience with it. Previously practicing meditating allows you to easily introduce this exercise when you are distracted. People who meditate most days sleep better and wake at night less often. It is then a readily available technique that can be called upon to solve the problem of nighttime sleep inhibition.
The basic task of meditation is to focus the mind on one thought. This can be a sound, an image, a candle, a word, or anything. The problem is that our active brains keep introducing new thoughts while we are trying to focus and concentrate. That is just what the brain does. It wants to be actively thinking. You want it to stop thinking. Meditation involves constantly pushing these random thoughts out and refocusing the mind. There are books, tapes, DVD’s, and classes to help learn and practice meditation. Ideally it should be done 30 minutes daily.
If you wake at night and are unable to get back to sleep, do not stay in bed. It is wise to get up and move to a different room. There you can spend some time pursuing another activity that is distracting to your mind. This could be anything that is not too stimulating. Reading, writing, working at a hobby, and other quiet activities will focus your thoughts. After about 10-15 minutes, you may be ready to return to bed.
Prevention of sleep inhibition is first. Alcohol and other sedative drugs create rebound stimulation when cleared from the system. Nocturnal urination is an obvious cause for waking at night. Leg or other muscle cramps and other sudden pains open the eyes. Allergic symptoms, like coughing or sneezing, awaken. The Restless Legs Syndrome reduces the depth of sleep, even to the point of fully waking.
For all of these, some intervention is recommended.
Avoid alcohol for up to 8 hours before going to bed. It is hard to know when the withdrawal occurs. It is different for different people. One person can have varying experiences with this nocturnal stimulation. It depends on what type and how much alcohol is imbibed, general tolerance, hydration, whether food has been eaten, and other factors. Other sedative drugs must be evaluated for each individual.
Treat acid reflux: No food for 3-4 hours before bed. Caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine increase the severity of acid reflux. These drugs weaken the muscle between the esophagus and the stomach.
There are many strategies to prevent or lessen nighttime urination. One is to avoid fluids for 3-4 hours before going to bed. Natural diuretics, like caffeine, alcohol, and vitamin B-6 should not be taken within 4-6 hours of going to bed.
Stretch before sleep. This will help to reduce muscle cramping. An oral magnesium supplement at bedtime helps. Magnesium is an intracellular mineral. It often becomes deficient in the cells while the blood level remains normal. Some salts of magnesium are better absorbed than others. Magnesium glycinate and oxide are assimilated more effectively than the carbonate form. Potassium supplements taken during the day help some people. Levels of minerals in the cells are not easily measured. But if you take these types of supplements daily in high doses, you should monitor the blood level.
Stretching before going to bed works best if it is done regularly over time. It is a lifestyle improvement that the body adjusts to when done every night consistently. It may help somewhat if done only periodically.
An Epsom salt bath before bed helps this and other sleep problems for many people. It reduces muscle cramps, joint pains, stiffness of tendons and ligaments, and is overall relaxing. The usual recommendation is 2 cups of Magnesium Sulfate (Epsom salts) in enough bath water to immerse yourself up to the neck. You will surely need to buy in bulk. But there is nothing wrong with experimenting and finding out if a lower amount works just as well. You should feel the relief from Epsom salt baths within a few days of using them nightly.
I will finish my thoughts on sleep and health soon in a future blog. I hope this helps people to recognize that we have great control over our health. We can do much to increase our resistance to illnesses. We can strengthen ourselves against COVID-19.
Health and Spirit by Dr. Jack Zoldan 