Tips for Better Sleep

Getting sleep is difficult for those living with fibromyalgia and other chronic illnesses. The little sleep we get is often not quality sleep, and our bodies need sleep to heal. When pain levels are high, it’s hard to sleep; however, when we don’t get restful sleep, our pain levels become higher. This is known as the pain-sleep cycle, and it’s a common occurrence with fibromyalgia. After some research, I compiled a list of tips for better sleep so you can break the sleep-pain cycle.

Effects of Poor Sleep

It’s common for individuals living with fibromyalgia not to get the restorative sleep needed each day to help with symptoms such as tight muscles or chronic pain. Sleep is usually in the light stages of sleep and not the REM stage, also known as the restorative stage. This is poor sleep. Poor sleep causes an increase in body pains and symptoms. The increase in pain and symptoms results in poor sleep, known as the sleep-pain cycle, which leads to the sleep-wake cycle, too.

Some common symptoms of a lack of sleep include:

• irritability
• increased pains
• fatigue
• depression
• weight gain
• lowered immune system

Quality vs Quantity

As many of us may or may not know, it’s not about how much sleep we get each night but rather the type of sleep we get. This is when quality trumps quantity. Quality of sleep is a type of sleep, such as restful or restless. Quantity of sleep is the number of hours of sleep you get each night. They are drastically different, but both work together for restorative sleep, leaving you feeling well-rested the next day.

The effects of poor-quality sleep are described in this image:

Tips for Better Sleep

Here are some tips for quality sleep and the quantity of sleep.

Set the Environment: Reserve your bedroom for sleep and intimacy. Removing your television, computer, and other stimulants out of the bedroom will help you get your body undisturbed sleep. If these items are in your room, your brain is aware they are in the room and it will disrupt your sleep.

Turn Off the Screens: Avoid screen time two hours prior to bedtime. The lights from screens will signal to your brain that it’s awake time which stimulates your brain preventing sleep.

Oil It Up: Essential oils have a myriad of uses, including improving sleep. You can diffuse them or use them topically. Check out this complete guide to using essential oils before going to sleep.

Get Out of Bed: Yep, you read that right. If you lie awake for more than fifteen minutes, leave the bedroom and find a quiet, non-stimulating activity. This could be reading under a soft light in the living room or flipping through a magazine. Avoid screen time because it will stimulate your brain, keeping you awake.

Check Your Mattress: Having the right mattress for your body’s needs will not only improve your sleep but also lower your body pain.

Turn the Clock: If you have a clock with LED lights, turn the clock away from the bed. This prevents the LED light from shining through your closed eyelids stimulating the part of the brain that allows you to sleep.

Up the Serotonin: When exercising, use caution, but increase your heart rate. This will increase your serotonin, which will aid in sleeping.

Watch Your Head: The right pillow also ensures a night of good sleep and eases back pain. If you are a hot sleeper, try a cooling pillow.

Face Mask: A sleep mask will keep out any residual lights, such as those from a night light, smart devices, or the bedside clock. There are cooling masks, ones with headphones, and simple masks.

Cool It Down: Many individuals with fibromyalgia experience a common symptom of excessive sweating. This occurs more often at night making it uncomfortable to sleep no matter how cold the air conditioning may be. Try cooling it down with cooling pillows, blankets, sheets, or even a mattress topper.

For more tips, visit Healthy Sleep Tips from the National Sleep Foundation.