Although my mom didn’t suffer a lot of signs of menopause, the main one she did suffer from was a big one – disrupted sleep. My sisters and I call it ‘mom’s disease’ – the inability to get a good night’s sleep. Not surprisingly, my sisters got it when they entered menopause and so did I! (My brother has it too interestingly. Men do go through a version of menopause – called andropause – but it is different, and I won’t cover the topic here.)
I’d been a pretty good sleeper my whole life but when menopause hit, I couldn’t sleep. I struggled to fall asleep and, frustratingly, when I woke up in the middle of the night, I couldn’t get back to sleep.
Admittedly, I didn’t have a good evening routine before bed – which is really important if you struggle with sleep. A good routine will signal your body it’s time for rest and sleep, and it should be one that relaxes you and naturally prepares you for sleep.
For me, I had way too much screen time late into the evening every night, and sometimes too much caffeine in the afternoon. However, what I think was most disruptive was that when I started to fall asleep, I would get what I call a ‘small heat wave’ – like a mini hot flash – that was enough to wake me up. Or I would get palpitations – heartbeats that suddenly become more noticeable. And yes, this is also a sign of menopause.
However, as I got my evening routine under better control I slept better. If I’m honest though, I don’t know if that phenomena simply went away, which can happen, or if it was due to my better routine.
But we cannot just hope that our sleep disruption will magically resolve itself. We need to address it because of the critical importance for sleep in our lives. We all need between 7-9 hours of quality sleep per night as an adult.
I am not going to cover supplements like melatonin and magnesium. I do hear from many people that these help them. Nevertheless, supplements for sleep or sleeping pills should be used only occasionally, and for a short period of time. In this article we are going to cover a range of strategies that can help improve our sleep naturally and for the long term.
So, what are the recommendations to help improve your chances of getting a good night’s sleep?
- Try to go to bed and get up at the same time each day.
- Establish a calming evening routine before bed. It could be as simple as a cup of chamomile tea and a good book, some gentle relaxing yoga exercises, or a warm bath.
- A diet high in whole plant foods can lower sleep disturbances and help improve sleep efficiency (e.g. flaxseeds, soy products, fruits and vegetables, legumes). These same foods can help with hot flashes too.
- Avoid large meals and too much liquid at night.
- Stop screen time at least an hour before bed.
- Be careful about caffeine. Some people are more sensitive to caffeine than others. I recommend eliminating caffeine – at least temporarily – to see if it helps improve your sleep.
- Be careful about alcohol. It seems like alcohol would help with sleep, but it really doesn’t. Your body converts alcohol into chemicals that are stimulating, thus you have less restful sleep even after one drink.
- Exercise. It does help to be physically tired. I don’t mean that you should exercise to exhaustion, but moderate exercise and moving naturally through the day will help with sleep. Though I suggest avoiding anything too vigorous late in the evening as it can be too stimulating.
- Get outside during the day for some sun – even if you are just getting it through the clouds.
- Stretch and yawn. It primes the brain for sleep and is an easy addition to an evening routine.
- If you do wake up, try some breathing exercises, gentle movement or a cup of chamomile tea.
Finally, if one of the main issues around sleep has to do with hot flashes and night sweats, below are lessons learned from me and my sisters.
- Increase whole-plant foods in your diet, and reduce alcohol and processed food. (See above and my previous blog on diet and menopause.)
- Develop a meditation or mindfulness practice to help reduce stress and anxiety. (See my next blog on moving mindfully through menopause.)
- Light and loose clothing for bed – or nothing at all. Have additional bed clothing nearby if you have particularly intense night sweats
- Cover with a light and breathable sheet/blanket
- A comfortable bed and pillow
- Keep the windows open, fan on, air conditioner on – whatever is needed to keep the room cool. If your partner is cold, give them an extra blanket
- Keep the room dark. Try black out curtains or sleeping mask
- Get as big a bed as possible for your room so you can have plenty of distance from the heat generator that is your partner. (No offense to the partner – but nobody needs to sleep with a heater during menopause!)
Sleep impacts all of our hormones and neurochemistry, including those that affect our mood, appetite, cognition, and ability to make decisions, among many other things. It is fundamental to our health.
I wish you all a good night’s sleep.
Next up – movement and stress management
