SLEEP experts have shared their advice on what causes people to wake up frequently at night – along with advice on how to roll over and get back to deep sleep.
According to a global sleep survey, 67% of adults worldwide say they wake up at least once during the night.
Here, experts outline the factors that disrupt a good night’s sleep.
As we age, we become lighter sleepers.
Terry Cralle, a sleep expert with The Better Sleep Council, tells Huffington Post: “Adults tend to sleep less slowly [the deepest phase of non-REM sleep]and as a result wake up more in the middle of the night. “
In addition, your diet can also affect your sleep.
Mark Aloia, global head of behavior change at Philips Healthcare, said: “In particular, alcohol can help you sleep, but it always cuts your second half of the night.”
Pregnancy is also a time when sleep is disrupted due to “hormonal changes, frequent urination, anxiety and discomfort because of the growing belly”.
“As women reach perimenopause, hot flashes and night sweats also begin to disrupt sleep quality,” says sleep medicine expert Shelby Harris.
“People wake up at night for many potential reasons, but some are fairly common,” says Mark Aloia, global leader of behavior change at Philips Healthcare.
Among these reasons include insomnia and obstructive sleep apnea, which is characterized by repeated interruptions in breathing during sleep that can keep someone awake in the middle of the night. It’s important for your doctor to rule out these conditions if you find yourself waking up in the middle of the night.
“Sleep-related disorders like sleep apnea can lead to many health problems like high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke and diabetes,” says Aloia.
“It can increase the risk of irregular heart rhythms, worsen heart failure and even increase the likelihood of having a work- or driving-related accident.”
Waking up at night can be caused by stress or anxiety.
To combat this, Mr. Aloia recommends that people with anxiety keep a journal next to their bed to write down what’s stressing them out to help deal with mid-night anxiety sessions.
Your brain trains you to go back to sleep
Experts recommend NOT watching the clock to ease back to sleep.
Mr Cralle told the Huffington Post: “The watch face shouldn’t be in your view during the night, and you shouldn’t check your phone if you wake up.
“When you check the time of the night, you’ll definitely figure out how long you’ve been awake and how much longer until you need to wake up. This can easily lead to stress, anxiety, and make it difficult to fall back asleep. .”
He added that it is also important not to force sleep.
“If you haven’t slept in about 15 to 20 minutes, get out of bed and do something relaxing and distracting in as dim a light as possible,” he says.
This includes listening to audiobooks, knitting or solving puzzles.
https://www.the-sun.com/health/120625/why-you-wake-up-at-night/ | From stress to health problems, here are the reasons you wake up at the same time every night