Does your arm get better sleep than you do? Find out what causes those tingling sensations

Did you ever wake up with a tingly sensation in your arm or leg? Can’t feel a limb on your body? Your first reaction may be to panic, especially you we become aware of numbness in the middle of the night after being awakened from a deep sleep. So what causes these strange sensations in our body when we are sleeping? And how can keep them from happening and disrupting sleep?

Discovery Health explains: Usually, you feel this familiar sensation after you’ve been putting pressure on part of your body - sitting on a foot, sleeping on an arm, etc. When you apply this pressure for a prolonged period of time, you actually cut off communication from your brain to these parts of your body. The pressure squeezes nerve pathways so that the nerves can’t transmit electro-chemical impulses properly. In laymen’s terms, we say our foot fell asleep! In order to help the mind and body rest peacefully, sleep positions come into play along with some plain old patience.

If you tend to sleep with one arm above the head, feet up, on your side, or on your belly with an arm underneath, you may experience reoccurring numbness and tingling sensations. Try consciously making an effort to fall asleep in a position where limbs and body parts are spread out evenly on the bed before you slip into REM mode. If you do wake up in the middle of the night, disoriented because you can’t feel your arm, readjust your position or sit up slowly so that you can regain blood flow and nerve feelings in your limb.

So what’s the key to overcoming the pins and needles feeling? Be patient! In an article on ‘What Causes Hands or Arms to Fall Asleep During the Night?’, LiveStrong.com states that is can take several minutes to regain feeling back in the arm, foot, or hand. It is suggested that you move your arm or hand, make a fist and uncurl your fingers to help restore a normal sensation in the limb. Then, keep your hand and arm relaxed as you fall back asleep.” MSNBC reports in an article on ‘What Makes Our Feet Fall Asleep’ that the pins and needles feeling, although uncomfortable and sometimes painful, can actually be beneficial. The discomfort you feel serves as a warning, forcing you to change your position; otherwise, harm could result.

Although these sensations of our limbs falling asleep can be uncomfortable and a disruptor of sleep, it is good to become aware of your body when this takes place and take precautions in adjusting your position. Take a slow approach and remember to relax. Let your brain send the signal to the rest of your body to go back to a peaceful sleep!

How hormones interact with sleep

Part 2 - Pregnancy

Pregnancy is a beautiful but challenging experience. Many women experience different states of discomfort for nine months as they face the challenges and rewards of being pregnant. One thing that many women suffer throughout the stages of pregnancy is lack of sleep. As women progress through each trimester, sleep becomes almost a distant memory. Between waking up from a kicking baby, to not being able to get comfortable, to the constant need to use the restroom, there are many factors that may keep a pregnant woman awake at night.

                According to the National Sleep Foundation’s 1998 Women and Sleep poll, 78% of women reported more disturbed sleep during pregnancy than at other times. Depending on the trimester, feelings of fatigue, restlessness, and other hormonal imbalances can become more pronounced. BabyCenter.com breaks down what you may be feeling in each trimester and how this affects your sleep.

                In the first trimester, the need to nap may be overwhelming. This is due to high levels of progesterone being pumped throughout the body which causes drowsiness and ultimately affects sleep at night, making you more tired during the day. BabyCenter also cites the need to urinate as a big disturbance of sleep. Because of the constant pressure of a growing uterus, a full night’s sleep is not always possible. It is best to not drink too many fluids too close to bed time.

                In the second trimester, pregnant women should be aware of common sleep problems that aren’t necessarily tied to pregnancy, but may become heightened during this time. The National Sleep Foundation lists insomnia, restless leg syndrome (RLS), sleep apnea, and nocturnal gastroesophageal reflux (GERD) to name a few. Also during the second trimester, snoring and congestion, leg cramps and tossing and turning to find comfortable positions may be what’s keeping you (and your partner) from a peaceful night’s sleep.

                The third trimester probably takes the most sleep away from any woman than other stages of pregnancy. With the belly getting bigger, and the excitement and anxiety over the birth and the baby’s activeness inside of you, falling asleep and staying asleep is made even more difficult. Similar sleep symptoms can be expected along with more pronounced feelings of discomfort on the bladder, in finding a comfortable position, and other sleep stealers.

                The best way to work on getting a good night’s sleep is to set a sleeping schedule and let sleep be a priority. Here are some other things that you can do as a mommie-to-be to help get a better night’s sleep:

·         The National Sleep Foundation suggests sleeping on the left side during pregnancy as a beneficial position to improve blood flow and nutrients to the uterus.

·         Drink fluids throughout the day but not as much at night.

·         Eat small, healthy meals throughout the day to avoid heartburn later on.

·         Exercise!

·         Take naps but don’t take advantage of them. Sleeping too much during the day can keep you up at night.

 

Pregnancy is an exciting time in a woman’s life, but can lead to many restless nights. Follow these tips and work on getting a good night’s sleep for you and your baby.

How hormones interact with sleep

Part 1- Menopause

From the average menopausal age of 50 and up, women experience an array of hormonal, physical, and emotional symptoms that affect their daily lives. As menopause progresses, many women tend to experience sleeplessness. Things like hot flashes, mood disorders and other hormonal changes, these symptoms could may be what’s keeping you from getting a good night’s sleep. Lack of sleep may lead to stress, anxiety and other problems that can further hinder your sleeping habits.

                Here are some facts and solutions that may help women going through menopause to cope with sleeping issues.

                According to The National Sleep Foundation in an article on Menopause and Sleep, women report the most sleeping problems from peri-menopause (the stage leading up to menopause) to post-menopause. The article states that post-menopausal women are less satisfied with their sleep and as many as 61% report insomnia symptoms.

                So what specifically about menopause is causing disrupted sleep?

                Hot flashes. Unexpected flashes of heat in the body usually start at the face and spread to the chest and other areas of the body causing body temperature to rise and wake you up out of sleep. They normally last around three minutes, notes The National Sleep Foundation. While total sleep time may not suffer, sleep quality does.

                Stress, anxiety, and mood changes related to menopause may also keep women awake at night. If you go to bed unhappy or stressed about the day, your job, a relationship, or anything else you can’t get off your mind, it may have a major impact on your sleep.

                WebMD and The National Sleep Foundation provide some simple ways to help with these problems and get you back into your normal sleeping habits.

·         Wear loose, light clothing to bed

·         Keep your bedroom cool and well-ventilated

·         Reduce stress and worry; try relaxation techniques, exercise, and massages

·         Avoid certain foods (like spicy foods), too much caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol

·         Maintain a regular bedtime schedule and avoid naps throughout the day

·         Talk to your doctor about treatments like Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT)

When is the best time to exercise? We tell you when to work out so you won’t be up all night

Exercise is undoubtedly an important part of a healthy lifestyle. And, like sleep, it is something that many people struggle to find adequate time for. Incorporating a workout routine in your schedule may be a challenge, as getting enough sleep may be too. But both are important to your health and happiness.

                Exercise and sleep tend to go hand in hand. The more frequently you work out, and when you choose to work out, may impact how well you sleep. If you work out at the wrong time, it could interfere with your sleep schedule, keeping you up at night.

                So when is the best time to exercise? Morning? Midday? Nighttime?  According to a National Sleep Foundation article on diet, exercise and sleep, experts suggest that late afternoon, or at least five to six hours before bed, is the best time for a workout.

                According to the article, exercising at this time is beneficial because body temperature is related to sleep. Body temperatures rise during exercise and take as long as six hours to begin to drop. Because cooler body temperatures are associated with sleep onset, it’s important to allow the body time to cool off before sleep.

                Exercise too close to bedtime can make it harder to fall asleep. A vigorous workout causes endorphins and metabolism to rise in the body, making you feel good and energized. Although it may seem convenient to get your workout in at the end of the day, you should be aware that exercising at night can lead to a poor night’s sleep.

                If you’re an early bird, morning workouts shouldn’t keep you up at night. But make sure you exercise after getting a full night’s rest. It can be an energizing way to start your day and leave you with plenty of time to wind down in the evening.  But if you skimp on sleep to get in your morning workout, it can leave you feeling tired and groggy later on in the day. Plan to go to bed early enough to allow for eight hours of sleep before your alarm rings for your morning exercise.

                Exercise is good for your body and lifestyle. So enjoy your workout and your good night’s sleep!

Surprising Things That Could Be Keeping You Up at Night

There are many things that could be keeping you up at night, such as stress, a noisy neighbor or a snoring partner. But there are some things that you could be ingesting during your waking day that are unknowingly keeping you up at night.

Vitamins and Minerals

Countless Americans take multivitamins in an effort to improve their health, but what few people know is that it could actually be hurting one area extremely important to health – their sleep.

According to the New York Times, a 2007 study in which participants kept sleep diaries for two weeks showed that those who took multivitamins had a higher rate of poor or interrupted sleep. Another study, published in the journal Sleep Medicine in 2009 backed this up by reporting that vitamin takers are more likely to have disturbed sleep, insomnia or persistent problems sleeping.

            While the reasoning behind this is not entirely clear, there are several things that have proven to be true and that could be leading to this lack of sleep. First, these vitamins could be throwing off your body’s sleep cycle. The wake/sleep cycle is controlled by a specific balance of neurotransmitters and when vitamins and minerals are added, it can slightly throw off that balance. B vitamins have also been proven to increase the vividness of dreams which can cause an individual to awake, startled or can produce very clear and often frightening nightmares.

            When taken for a specific medical need or deficit, vitamins can also be extremely helpful; however, the overuse of numerous multivitamins may unknowingly lead to sleep problems.

Medications

Vitamins are not the only pills that may interrupt your sleep patterns. Other seemingly normal medications can be causes of insomnia, restlessness, or trouble falling asleep. According to the Mayo Clinic Foundation, some prescription medications can be a common cause of insomnia. This includes some anti-depressants, heart and blood pressure medications, allergy medications and stimulants.

Certain over-the-counter drugs like pain medicines, decongestants and weight loss pills may contain stimulants including caffeine. Others, such as antihistamines (including Benedryl or Tylenol PM), may cause urinary retention which prevents complete bladder emptying, causing you to wake up to use the restroom throughout the night.

Caffeine, Nicotine, Alcohol

We’ve said it before, but we’ll say it again: caffeine, nicotine and alcohol can lead to a restless night’s sleep. Having a glass of wine or a “night cap” is a common practice for some, as is drinking multiple cups of coffee throughout the day. As the Mayo Clinic finds in research on causes of insomnia, these practices prevent deeper stages of sleep and often cause you to awaken in the middle of the night. To avoid these problems, enjoy a glass of wine/beer or a cup of coffee with dinner at least two to three hours before sleep rather than just before bedtime.

Smokers should be aware that nicotine is a also stimulant and may cause insomnia too. If you smoke, make your last cigarette within the same span of time (two to three hours) before you go to bed.

Can’t sleep? Check your (blue) light

There are many factors that keep people up at night, including stress, poor eating habits and environment.  But many people don’t realize that their exposure to light may be what is keeping them up at night.

The presence of light not only makes it more difficult to fall asleep, but it also influences the timing of our biological clocks.  Exposure to light symbolizes to the body that it is the morning and time to be awake, so getting too much light before trying to go to bed makes it more difficult to fall asleep.

According to an article in the San Francisco Chronicle, a new study done by the Surrey Sleep Research Centre in the UK found that the effect nighttime light exposure has on our circadian rhythm disrupts sleep quality and suppresses the body’s production of the hormone melatonin.  Natural melatonin production not only improves the quality of sleep, but it also has many health benefits and can help prevent certain kinds of cancer and Type 2 Diabetes.

Not all light exposure causes problems; it’s the blue light ray keeps us up the most.  Blue light comes naturally from the sun, which for centuries has conditioned humans to wake up when exposed to it. Today, blue light comes from other manmade sources too, including light bulbs and computer screens. Needless to say, avoiding nighttime exposure to blue light is crucial to getting a good night’s sleep.

To lessen your exposure to blue light before bed time:

·         Use an incandescent bulb instead of a compact fluorescent of LED bulb in your bedside lamp to help lower the levels of blue light in your room. 

·         Wear glasses that eliminate blue light. LowBlueLights.com makes special glasses that eliminate the blue component of light, helping to naturally produce melatonin while still allowing you to read, watch TV, and use your computer right before bedtime. 

·         Remove blue light from your laptop. If you use your computer late into the night, try downloading the free software F.lux for your laptop.  This software automatically dims the screen light in the evening, eliminating blue light exposure at night.  You can find out more about this free software at http://stereropsis.com/flux/.

Longing for a cat nap? You may not be getting a full night’s sleep, thanks to your pet

Whether you’re a cat person or a dog person (or both!), you know that pets are fun, loving creatures that become part of the family. As such, pet owners incorporate their pets into their daily routines, including nighttime habits. Pets joining their owners in bed are a common trend. According to a recent survey of pet owners by the American Pet Products Association, nearly half of dogs sleep in their owners’ beds. As comfortable and cute as it can be, your furry friends may be the reason you are losing sleep at night.

Here are some reasons why you should shut your door and keep your pets out of the bedroom to get a better night’s sleep.

You may be allergic…and you might not know it! Pet allergies can develop at any time throughout your life. You may outgrow them, build up a tolerance or develop an allergy to your pet over time. Congestion, itchy eyes, and other allergy symptoms certainly don’t make for a peaceful night’s sleep.

Pets may be on different sleeping patterns. Animals naturally have different sleeping patterns than humans and can easily disrupt your nighttime routine. If your pet is a light sleeper and barks or gets up at any strange sound, this could hinder your quest for a full, deep sleep.

You need peace and quiet. Noise is an obvious detriment to anyone trying to sleep well. Purring, barking, snoring, chirping, and other animal sounds can wake you up throughout the night or keep you from falling asleep faster.

You value cleanliness and hygiene. Animals are not always the cleanest creatures, no matter how often you may wash or groom them. They can bring fleas, dander, dirt, and anything else they may pick up throughout the day directly into your bed. A clean bed and bedroom is an important factor in getting a good night’s sleep.

You need your comfort. You may be in a comfortable routine sleeping with your pet but sharing a bed is not always ideal. Have you ever woken up groggy, yawning as you stumble through your morning routine, only to see Fluffy or Fido napping? Your pets have all day to catch up on sleep long after you’ve left for work. An article from Mayo Clinic suggests that “if you have children or pets, set limits on how often they sleep with you, or insist on separate sleeping quarters.” Your comfort comes first when your goal is to get a good night’s sleep.

Your pet can still be a part of your daily routine and a big part of your life without disrupting your sleep. If you have had the same pet in your bed for a long time, try slowly transitioning it to a different location other than your bedroom before you go to sleep. Or if you are getting a new pet, put it in the habit of sleeping in its own bed. By parting ways at night, you’ll likely wake up fresh and energized to interact with your pet during the day.

How much sleep does your teenager need? Tips to help him or her get a good night’s sleep

According to the National Sleep Foundation, the average teenager needs between 8 ½ and 9 ¼ hours of sleep each night to function at their best.  However, studies have shown that only 15 percent of teenagers are getting the recommended amount of sleep. 

Not getting the proper amount of sleep can cause dire consequences for teenagers.  If students are too tired, they have a harder time learning, listening, concentrating and remembering important information at school.  Sleep trouble can also have long-term effects. Abigail Baird, an associate professor of psychology at Vassar College, writes that sleep deprivation in teens can lead to lower levels of Human Growth Hormone, which can harm brain development, physical growth and maturation of the immune system in this Washington Post article.

One of the reasons teenagers have trouble sleeping is due to their biological sleep patterns shifting towards later sleep times during adolescence, making it natural for them to fall asleep after 11 p.m. Between early school start times and extracurricular activities like sports and jobs, teens are losing valuable hours of sleep every week.

Here are steps your teenager can take to get more sleep:

• Turn off the cell phone. Not only can the bright light throw off circadian rhythm, texting during the night makes it harder to fall and stay asleep. 
• Turn down the lights and laptop too. The bright white or blue light exposure in these is associated with daylight by our brains. So use an incandescent, not a compact fluorescent or LED, bulb in your teen’s reading lamp, and download software that can automatically remove the blue spectrum light from your laptop screen when the sun sets if there are late homework assignments to be completed (go to http://stereopsis.com/flux/ for a free download).
• Stick to a schedule. If your teen goes to bed late on the weekends and then sleeps all day, encourage him or her to go to bed and get up at the same time every day. This will help to adjust their circadian rhythms to earlier sleep times throughout the school week.
• Avoid long naps during the day. Many students tend to take naps after school to make up for lost sleep, but this might make the problem worse than it already is.  A short 15 to 40 minute nap is usually beneficial, but sleeping for too long during the day, or napping too close to bed time, can throw off the circadian rhythm, making it more difficult to fall asleep at night.
• Get up after failing to fall asleep for 20 minutes. Often times, teenagers toss and turn while trying to fall asleep and become frustrated.  This is natural, but doesn’t make it any easier to get that much needed shuteye.  If they use that time to instead get up and read or do something else that distracts them for a short amount of time, it will become easier for them to finally fall asleep when they go back to bed.
• Avoid stress before going to bed. Teenagers who are busy with school work, jobs and extracurricular activities may spend time stressing over them while trying to fall asleep.  A good way to avoid this is to write down everything they need to do the next day so they don’t need to worry about it anymore and can fall asleep.