Really good article Patricia! Another thing I think about for people in their second half, particularly women, is that sleep disorders are more prevalent. Obstructive sleep apnea and limb movement disorder both increase after menopause. Just another thing to keep track of and rule out!
Thank you, Catherine. Yes, menopause seems to affect sleep while it's happening and then can set you up for problems thereafter. The two sleep disorders you mention become fairly common, in later life and should be mentioned in a further article on the topic. I appreciate your input.
I am a horrible sleeper. There is a wonderful podcast called Nothing Much Happens. It lulls you to sleep or at least gets your mind to stop racing and churning.
Good sleep is a precarious issue for many, and for some it never resolves.
I didn't sleep good for over 20 years. I tried everything including every single suggestion you posed.
I don't know what happened but for the last couple years I sleep pretty good, meaning I get six fairly solid, wake up for one or two and then back down for two more. What I try and do is "sleep" for one or two complete cycles which comes to 1.5 hours.
When I have sleep failure on random nights I compensate the next late morning/early afternoon with a guided meditation and "rest my eyes and mind" for 30 minutes. Works for me for now. I'm certain most of my issues are chemical or hormonal. Sleep expert Dr. Mathew Walker has several excellent books and makes guest appearances on a number of podcasts (Andrew Huberman and Peter Attia are two) and explains so much about sleep in detail. He's a great resource. Excellent article, thank you.
I know exactly how it must have been for you, lack of sleep drains you of energy. It's good that you get adequate sleep now. Something else I use that I forgot to mention is a white noise machine. As soon as I hear something that continue (like voices) and don't want to put the earplugs in I switch on my machine, which is really helpful. I like Andrew Huberman but hadn't heard of Mathew Walker. I'll look out for him on the Huberman podcasts. Thank you, Patti, for the suggestion. I'm pleased you enjoyed the article.
Hi Patricia. I didn’t sleep well for years, and it became an anxiety. No matter what I did, I just couldn’t sleep. Nothing helped. Now I take a light antidepressant at night and sleep really well. I know it’s not ideal, but sleep is so important, as you say, so better to sleep than not. I think sleep issues is a massive problem for women as of perimenopause. I hear it all the time. Interesting about the eyes! I have a detached aqueous …something of other in my right eye ( détachement du corps aqueux, in French) which bothered me for a while when it randomly happened, I suppose I got used to it. I’m feeling quite lazy today…. Not sure I’ll get all my steps in!we will see. Always feel better afterwards!
That makes sense, about women being more aware at night. I used to sleep through anything, whereas my husband has always woken up to the slightest peep. Must have been a caveman in a former life! Haha!
It's interesting what you say, Francesca, about women and sleep. I remember reading somewhere that women are more alert at night because of millennia of listening out for children, and our hormones negatively affecting our bodies don't help. I agree with you that you have to do what it takes to ensure you get a goodly amount of sleep. It's so important to how we function during the day. Do what you can with the step count, some days will probably be better than others.
I totally believe in power naps. I've always taken one after lunch when I can, not just as an older person but when I was young, too. It seems to revitalise you.
Really good article Patricia! Another thing I think about for people in their second half, particularly women, is that sleep disorders are more prevalent. Obstructive sleep apnea and limb movement disorder both increase after menopause. Just another thing to keep track of and rule out!
Thank you, Catherine. Yes, menopause seems to affect sleep while it's happening and then can set you up for problems thereafter. The two sleep disorders you mention become fairly common, in later life and should be mentioned in a further article on the topic. I appreciate your input.
I am a horrible sleeper. There is a wonderful podcast called Nothing Much Happens. It lulls you to sleep or at least gets your mind to stop racing and churning.
Thanks for that tip, Alice. That's useful to add to my list of things to try when I can't sleep or get back to sleep. I appreciate your input.
Good sleep is a precarious issue for many, and for some it never resolves.
I didn't sleep good for over 20 years. I tried everything including every single suggestion you posed.
I don't know what happened but for the last couple years I sleep pretty good, meaning I get six fairly solid, wake up for one or two and then back down for two more. What I try and do is "sleep" for one or two complete cycles which comes to 1.5 hours.
When I have sleep failure on random nights I compensate the next late morning/early afternoon with a guided meditation and "rest my eyes and mind" for 30 minutes. Works for me for now. I'm certain most of my issues are chemical or hormonal. Sleep expert Dr. Mathew Walker has several excellent books and makes guest appearances on a number of podcasts (Andrew Huberman and Peter Attia are two) and explains so much about sleep in detail. He's a great resource. Excellent article, thank you.
I know exactly how it must have been for you, lack of sleep drains you of energy. It's good that you get adequate sleep now. Something else I use that I forgot to mention is a white noise machine. As soon as I hear something that continue (like voices) and don't want to put the earplugs in I switch on my machine, which is really helpful. I like Andrew Huberman but hadn't heard of Mathew Walker. I'll look out for him on the Huberman podcasts. Thank you, Patti, for the suggestion. I'm pleased you enjoyed the article.
Hi Patricia. I didn’t sleep well for years, and it became an anxiety. No matter what I did, I just couldn’t sleep. Nothing helped. Now I take a light antidepressant at night and sleep really well. I know it’s not ideal, but sleep is so important, as you say, so better to sleep than not. I think sleep issues is a massive problem for women as of perimenopause. I hear it all the time. Interesting about the eyes! I have a detached aqueous …something of other in my right eye ( détachement du corps aqueux, in French) which bothered me for a while when it randomly happened, I suppose I got used to it. I’m feeling quite lazy today…. Not sure I’ll get all my steps in!we will see. Always feel better afterwards!
That makes sense, about women being more aware at night. I used to sleep through anything, whereas my husband has always woken up to the slightest peep. Must have been a caveman in a former life! Haha!
It's interesting what you say, Francesca, about women and sleep. I remember reading somewhere that women are more alert at night because of millennia of listening out for children, and our hormones negatively affecting our bodies don't help. I agree with you that you have to do what it takes to ensure you get a goodly amount of sleep. It's so important to how we function during the day. Do what you can with the step count, some days will probably be better than others.
I totally believe in power naps. I've always taken one after lunch when I can, not just as an older person but when I was young, too. It seems to revitalise you.