Sleep Q&A with Lisa Artis of the The Sleep Charity

foxie48

Hi Lisa, my question is "how do I get back to sleep quickly if I wake in the early hours of the morning?"

Hi foxie48, emziemay and Happyhound, there’s nothing more infuriating than when you can’t back to sleep in the early hours – and you’re not alone. A lot of us tend to wake around 3/4am. Firstly, it’s worth looking at what is waking you up at this time – is it because you need the loo, is it pain, is there an external factor?

Some relaxation or breathing techniques can be helpful in ‘switching off’. Also avoid looking at the clock if you do wake at this time. As soon as you start to clock the time, and start worrying about having to get up in another three hours, that’s when the anxiety sets in and prevents us from being able to fall asleep.

If you can’t get back to sleep within 20-30 mins, get up and go do something relaxing – relaxation techniques, reading, making a milky drink in low lighting. Staying in bed awake decreases our sleep efficiency meaning we associate the bed with activities such as being awake, planning, worrying etc and not for sleeping.

vampirequeen

I know most people can't sleep but I have the opposite problem. I can sleep the clock around if left to my own devices. I've set myself a sleep routine and go to bed/get up at the same times every day. I aim for 10 hours but I'm still tired. There is no medical reason as my GP has checked me over. Why do some of us need far more sleep than others?

Hi vampirequeen, I am glad you have seen your GP as I would have recommended that in the first instance. Sleep is individual and one size doesn’t fit all – some people function well on 6 hours per night and some like myself, need nearer to 9. It’s great that you have set yourself a routine to strengthen your body clock.

Mollygo

Why can my DH snooze in the morning, the afternoon and the evening-in fact whenever he sits down, yet still fall asleep quickly when he goes to bed and stay asleep for at least 8 hours?
I never sleep during the day but still have trouble dropping off and tend to only sleep 6-7 hours.

Unfortunately Mollygo, our sleep needs are all different and it sounds like your DH doesn’t overthink sleep and can nod off whenever he likes which can be disheartening if you struggle. I can see you are getting around 6-7 hours of sleep per night, does that not feel enough for you? An average adult needs anywhere between 6-9 hours a night. Don’t fixate on how many hours sleep but on how you feel the next day. To help with dropping off to sleep, try to implement a wind down routine an hour before bed – do things that you find relaxing, whether that’s reading, having a bath or meditation. If you have lots of worries or niggling thoughts, people often writing it down before bed can help to ‘offload’ before going to sleep.

Lorelei

Over the years I've tried things like drinking hot chocolate (dairy/lactose-free) or herbal teas (like Chamomile) before bed. I've had essential oils for massage, in a warm evening bath, in oil burners, on tissues or dry flannel/cloth under the pillow or a few drops on nightwear, on 'sleep stones'. I've tried relaxing in a bubble bath with essential oils, clean freshly-laundered nightwear and bed linen. Reading in bed and even (admittedly many years ago) natural sleep remedies. But would like to know if there is anything else that might help get a decent night's sleep? A long time ago I was prescribed sleeping pills but I take medication for other health problems so am reluctant to resort to this method again (I don't take anywhere near the amount of medication I've been on previously, as decided about 15 years ago only to take what I absolutely felt I needed and no more, so cut a lot of it out, with support from my GP). I find it difficult to concentrate or remember things so meditation or visualisation-type techniques do not work for me. Would combinations of any of the aforementioned more natural techniques help?

Hi Lorelei, ask any good sleeper what they do to get to sleep and you’ll often find they say they do nothing. And the reason they sleep well, they don’t overthink it. From what you’ve said above I feel like you could be trying to do too much and you’re overthinking, this in turn is probably causing a cycle of anxiety. I am presuming you don’t sleep well but not sure how long you’ve suffered. All of the above are good sleep hygiene principles that are always worth adopting as they get you into ‘good sleep behaviour’ but don’t think of them as things that will make you sleep better, just build them into your wind down routine. Start your routine an hour before bed, have the chamomile tea and maybe listen to some music in a dimly lit room. Have a bath about 30-40 minutes before bed using scents you like, then put on your nightwear, brush teeth and read in bed. As you start to feel sleepy, put the book down and turn off the bedside light.

JessK

I've have often read that you should sleep in a darkened room with the curtains closed. I do however like to sleep with the curtains open so I wake up naturally when it gets light. Am I wrong to do this?

Hi Jess, ideally most people find a dark environment the best for sleep. But it’s not for everyone. We recommend a dark environment as it helps to increase melatonin production (the hormone we need to feel sleepy). However if this suits you, you sleep well and you feel refreshed, carry on!

Grannyjacq1

I have never been a 'good' sleeper and after waking in the night - if it's after about 4.30 am - struggle to get back to sleep as my mind is racing. I go to bed at about 11 pm and always get up at about 7.30, so keep regular times, and observe all the no computer rules, avoid alcohol etc. My fitbit tells me that I get about 6 hours of sleep on average every night - though it often thinks I'm asleep when I'm just lying still. Having said that, I don't often feel really tired during the day, so maybe I just don't need a lot of sleep?

Another great question. Firstly fitbits or any other sleep tracker/apps are not accurate so please just take the readings/data with a pinch of salt – you’ve already seen that with yours! Don’t get hung up on the number of hours you sleep. We are all different and one size doesn’t fit all. I always say to people you should judge how well you are sleeping by how you feel the next day. We all can feel a little tired and groggy when we first wake but this generally passes once we’ve washed, opened curtains and had our first morning cup of tea or coffee. If you don’t feel tired and you feel like your energy and mood levels are great, then I wouldn’t worry about it too much. One thing you could do is avoid looking at the clock at 4.30am. When we clock the time, we often start a cycle of anxiety without knowing about it especially if you are ‘used’ to waking at this time.

gran1

I seemed to have got into a routine of disturbed, patchy sleep since caring for my husband, who had severe dementia.
He died about a year ago, do you have any suggestions about re establishing a better sleep pattern?

Hi gran1, thanks for your question and great to see that you’re looking at re-establishing your sleep pattern. Make small changes to begin with – firstly, I’d be suggesting keeping regular hours so going to bed and getting up at the same time all the time, no matter what day of the week it is. This helps to strengthen your internal body clock. In a morning, if you can, try to get outside for a walk – 10 minutes is enough to help reset the body clock for the day. Light/dark play important factors in our sleep. Look at your bedroom environment and make sure it’s right for sleep – ideally it should be cool, quiet and dark and you should be sleeping on a comfortable bed. Lastly, start factoring in wind down time before bed. Around an hour before bedtime, turn off TV or any other screens, and do something relaxing – it could be a foot soak, a bath, reading, listening to music – whatever you enjoy. Try to do this in a dimly lit environment so that melatonin levels (our sleep hormone) start to increase. This sends signals to our brain and bodies that it’s wind down time for bed. Keep doing this consistently for two to three weeks and you should be able to see a difference, you can then start to look at other sleep hygiene advice around food and drink, exercise etc.

Purplecatlover1

What’s the best way to overcome daytime tiredness without taking a nap which prevents sleep at night starting a viscous cycle?

Napping can have an impact on nighttime sleep, so it is best to avoid it if it affects your sleep. To help with daytime tiredness, short term solutions are going out for a walk as the natural light will help boost mood and energy levels, stay hydrated, splash face with water etc. Ideally for the longer term, you need to be looking at why you’re tired during the day. You don’t say what issue you might have with your sleep so it’s worth exploring if you’re having trouble falling asleep, staying asleep or waking too early. Try to strengthen your internal body clock by getting up at the same time every day (even weekends!) and going to bed at the same time. When you wake up in the morning, open the curtains to let in natural light and if you can try to get outside for 10 minutes or longer, this helps to pin your body clock. Some people find using a light box can really help them in the morning too.

JS06

Hi Lisa I'd love to hear about how important the right temperature is in the room you're sleeping in. I do find that whatever time of year I prefer to have the window open to get some fresh air. It would be good to know what's advisable for the optimum temperature though.

Thanks for your question JS06, we recommend the ideal room temperature to sit somewhere between 16 and 18 degrees. We do sleep better in slightly cooler environments. Too cold though and we use too much energy trying to warm which stops us falling asleep and when it’s too warm we are too restless. It’s not uncommon to want to have a window open so as long as outside noise doesn’t disturb you, go for it!

Candelle

So many questions for you, Lisa...! These are but a few.

1. We are told that poor sleep is very detrimental to our overall health. If we can't sleep, what are we supposed to do?! Is it really so dreadful for us?

2. I lay in bed and my brain has a scattergun of ideas, each flashing one after the other. It won't turn off.

3. Is reading prior to bed a good or bad thing to do?

4. Is melatonin worth sourcing? It is not recommended here but I have heard good reports of using it.

5. I tried the 'Sleepio' programme but struggled at having to rise from my warm bed and go elsewhere until I felt tired again. I would have been up all night!

6. I would not like to resort to sleeping tablets but are they really the devil's work?

7. I try to go to bed at the same time, following sleep hygiene protocols but to no avail.

These are the first few points that came to mind. Apologies for length of questions.

Reading is a great way to switch off before bed – but only if it’s something you enjoy doing! We always recommend finding a relaxing activity that you like – whether that’s reading, meditation, having a warm bath etc.

The reason you’re advised to leave your bed when you are struggling to sleep is because you start to make a strong association with your bed being a place where you DON’T sleep rather than where you do sleep. It is part of a Cognitive Behavioural Therapy programme and it can be tough to begin with but it does reap benefits.

elizab

I wake up several times feeling hot and then struggle to get back to sleep i dont have the heating on too hot and my pjs and quilts rather thin so not sure what else i could do to help me go back to sleep!

Hi elizab and Angelwings,
Being too hot or cold in bed is something we see a lot of!

Elizab, first thing to consider would be to look at what temperature your bedroom is at bedtime. Ideally it should be between 16-18 degrees.

Angelwings – you might want to consider if your mattress is making you hot, some mattress fillings can make you warmer than others.

For both of you it may be worth speaking to your GP in case there’s any underlying reasons or if any medication you are on is having an impact. Hope that helps.

Any suggestions for aching hips on waking up? Sometimes its difficult to physically get out of bed. I'm fine after an hour or so, but on first waking its often excruciating!

Can lack of sleep (or sleep quality) cause daytime headaches?

I have noticed the older I get the more sleep I need but unfortunately the less I get! Once I am awake that’s it, whatever the time.

I am in the middle of organising my move from my 3 bed semi that I have lived in for 20 years and going to a ground floor flat. So practially it is the right thing to do but leaving my garden on three levels which I have loved and done so much planting a katsura tree and having more than 50 different types of snowdrops (I am a galanthophle) but sadly there is no proper garden for me to do anything in at my new flat. There is all the usual hassles and I have a very bad back so am waking at about 4 am most days, I try to go back to sleep but rarely do, have been isolated for all these past months and am trying to do it all on my own. Not being able to meet friends I respect and be able to talk things over with them makes it worse. I havent lived in a flat for 50 years and have always had a freehold and now a leasehold, and have only electric not gas and electric as I have now. It all makes for major worries and being on my own makes it worse. So I can totally understand that I am going to be stressed , and have moved more than 19 times including living in syria and portugal I am aware of the pitfalls but covid means I havent been able to get help sorting things out and in any case furniture is not important it is things like my books , pictures , art work and collection of cloud glass , that concerns me. due to the present situation I have only been inside the flat twice and again this makes it all difficult to envisage where and how furniture will look in the new flat and having to leave my beloved piano makes it worse. I do have a notebuook by my bed and write down things so that I can leave them and try and go back to sleep but very tired and edgy . Cant even treat myself to a massage somewhere because not open! Things feel quite tough and I am not able to use any of my ideas that have worked before . any suggestions gratefully received!

Couldn't answer my question then Lisa?

Yes, I was living in Brighton when the Grand Hotel was bombed; Everyone was flaberghasted when the woman calmly stepped out of the wreckage with her hair perfectly coiffed and laquered and her hand- bag intact. We suspected
magic was involved ??

I worry that my neighbours are waking me up three times a night with their talking. This usually precipitates a journey to the loo and then back into bed to get back to sleep again. As it's all very sudden this waking up in the night I DO worry about the impact on my heart. Part of the reason of wanting the loo after they've woken me is because I drink a large glass of water before I go to bed each night as I read this can stop a possible stroke or heart attack.

I had 1 hour 20 minutes sleep last night according to my sleep gadget.
Don’t know how I keep going. Hope I do better tonight.
Night zzzzzz