If that means occasionally banishing Tom from the bedroom, so be it.
It messes with memory, mood and metabolism.
My habit of doomscrolling on my phone right before I turned out the light had to go.
My cat, who liked to sleep on my chest, was banished from my bedroom, too.
I got blackout curtains, a white noise machine and a sleep mask.
That was a game-changer for me.
Is it rock n roll?
But this new habit has done more to regulate my sleep than anything else.
During the menopause transition, your bodys production of melatonin, like estrogen, drops.
Many people down 5 milligrams or even 10, but experts caution to start low, at .5 milligrams.
An even better combination is melatonin with a consistent bedtime, according to a2018 Australian study.
Many people swear by magnesiums soporific effects, although a recent meta-analysis found there isnt solid research behind it.
Scientists arent sure why it might work; one theory is that magnesium deficiencies disrupt levels of sleep-inducing hormones.
If hot flashes and night sweats are your primary sleep stealer, consider hormone therapy.
The Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania has a searchable database of practitioners that offer CBT-I.
You dont have to go forever just until you learn the techniques.
Joffe says that science-backed sleep-enhancing apps can also be effective.
I can tolerate this.
I will survive even if I dont sleep at all tonight.
These can replace my typical ruminative thoughts such asIs Sarah out to get me?
Should I have included an emoji on that text to the boss?
What if I didnt lock up downstairs, left the door open and the cat gets out?
What if the cat gets out and runs in front of a car?
What if I am actually driving that car?
Mindful deep breathing has also been shown to set off a cascade of physiological responses that hasten sleep.
Inhale through your nose for four counts.
Hold for seven counts and exhale through your mouth for eight counts.
Stressful thoughts spike ourheart rateand cortisol levels, a fight-or-flight response deeply rooted in primordial human responses to danger.
may also be a sleep stealer.
Incomplete tasks cause a high level of cognitive activation, according to one sleep paper.
When you wake up in the middle of the night, write it down, and its done.
Its there, and I will get to it.
I started doing that as well.
Its freeing to capture the thought on paper and tell myself its handled.
Last night, I thought about cloth napkins.
Surely Im at the age where I should have cloth napkins.
Why dont I have any?
Do people still use cloth napkins?
Then I thought about some of my weird childhood snacks from the 80s: Marathon bars, Tab cola.
Copyright 2023 by Jancee Dunn.
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