SEVEN FOR YOU â—½ TIPS
That Elusive Thing Called Sleep
Our Panel of Women
Is good sleep a hard thing to accomplish? It is for so many! There are all sorts of remedies and things to try, but it seems each individual has to work out their own issues because we are all so different! We asked our panel of women to discuss sleep, what helps them, what hinders them, and then share all the things…
Sleep! I have been using the Calm app for several years and it definitely helps me go to sleep. The app has “sleep stories“ for adults and for children. They also have music or, my favorite, “brown noise.” They also have meditations if you happen to wake up in the middle of the night and want to go back to sleep. Someone, and I prefer men’s voices, will talk you gently back to sleep.
It is a subscription service, about $70 a month, but I cannot live without it! - Anita
My husband and I are creatures of habit. Each night we eat supper between 6:00-6:30. Then we watch television until the news at 10:00. After that, we watch House Hunters. Then it’s bedtime at 11:00, right on the dot. Some nights I almost can’t wait for the people to decide on their house so I can go to bed, but I do wait and watch. Then when I get in bed I turn on Chopped or Project Runway with the volume really low. I have tinnitus and this helps to muffle it, so I can fall fast asleep.
​
We both get up at least once a night for something but usually we go right back to bed. On the occasion when my mind is thinking about a hundred different things, and I can’t go back to sleep right away, I turn the television back on.
And I have one other solution to sleepless nights when I don’t want to be up or I’ve tried everything else. I turn the television and lights off, roll into my favorite position and sing softly in my mind. I have one song that always works quickly.
​
”Jesus, Jesus, Jesus. There’s just something about that name…” Works every time. - Carole
Sleep has become a problem for me. I am scheduled to see a sleep doctor in April, and I've been waiting on that appointment for a few months now. I wear a mouth guard, but that doesn't keep me from trying to grind my teeth and exhausting myself while I should be resting. Then I've added snoring to the mix in the last couple of years. I have no idea why because I can breathe just fine when I'm awake. I take plenty of vitamins, including magnesium, go to bed at relatively the same time every night (usually 10 pm), limit my caffeine to one cup of coffee in the morning. I so want to rest well, and I'm looking forward to getting some help. – Laura
I’m at that stage in life where sleeping from bedtime all the way through till morning (and by morning, I’m talking about sunshine peaking above the horizon, not the wee dark hours of morning) has become an accomplishment worth celebrating! Unfortunately, we don’t get too many opportunities to celebrate this feat. Because more often than not, I awake from sound slumber to find the red light on the clock mocking my tired eyes while silently shouting “3:00!” Ugh. Not again. At first, I’d attempt to roll over and force REM. I’d mentally bargain with myself that if I didn’t fall asleep, I had to get up and clean the house (Didn’t work – I didn’t fall back asleep, nor did I clean anything.) I’ve tried fighting it. Even considered seeking medical assistance. But for now, I accept sleeplessness as my current reality (Thanks a lot, hormones.).
Awake at three a.m.? Okay, let’s use that time to catch up on missed TV shows or read a few chapters without that pesky self-imposed guilt telling me I should be doing something productive.
​
{Since the only thing I SHOULD be doing at the moment is SLEEPING!). Yep, I’ve decided to embrace the sleepless nights. And if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to grab an afternoon nap… - Jennifer
Sleep...so far lost in my life...where did you go? Insomnia had come to stay, but help was only a blood test away. My Mom and I both have chronic insomnia and have tried many meds, routines to fall asleep/stay asleep. The one thing that has helped me is the reduction in my thyroid medication. Two years of reductions, and I am finally sleeping better. From 125 mg to 88 mg. Your thyroid controls more than you think:
Key Body Functions Controlled by the Thyroid:
-
Metabolism & Weight: Regulates the speed at which you burn calories.
-
Heart Rate & Blood Pressure: Affects how fast or strong your heart beats.
-
Body Temperature: Controls sensitivity to heat or cold.
-
Brain & Mental Health: Affects concentration, mood, and mental activity.
-
Energy Levels: Influences feelings of energy or fatigue.
-
Growth & Development: Crucial for development and skin/bone maintenance
-
Bowel and Stomach Issues: Can cause diarrhea or constipation, gas, bloating, pain, SIBO, or IBS.
My advice is to have your thyroid tested if you have any of these symptoms. I wish I had known this years ago; it would have saved me from a colon resection surgery and years of insomnia, diarrhea, pain, and more. I would have slept like I did before I turned 40 and my thyroid went rogue. – Cathy
I’ve never been a good sleeper, usually because my mind is working overtime. Since I’ve been in the throes of menopause, I use supplements to help me sleep better, such as Centrum Restful Sleep Menopause Support Tablets. Also, my husband and I have a nightly routine of praying and reading a section of Scripture together. That tells my mind it’s time to shut down and go to sleep. Some nights when that hasn’t happened yet, I open my Kindle and read some fiction until I’m ready to sleep. - Angela
​
During the course of a week, I may have some nights where I sleep great, and then a few nights where I'm wide awake at 4am and that's it. I'm up. Of course, it's maddening. I really don't know what makes me wake up so early, but I do know that I don't require a lot of sleep to have a good day. If I get seven hours, wow, that's the best. Here are a few things I consider at night...
I eat dinner early, if possible.
I listen to worship music, right before I get ready for bed.
I scroll the TV (yes, this helps me!) get sleepy.
I love a fan for noise, tucked in covers all around me, but my comforter has to be loose at the bottom or it bothers my toes!
I unburden my thoughts to Him.
I smile. Yes, it makes my face and mind settle down as I drift off...
I make sure I use lotion on my dry hands! Yes, dry hands can keep me awake! – Marcy
I used to have no trouble sleeping whatsoever. My normal was around 6 hours or so and I liked to stay up late and get up early and usually didn't need a nap; but in the last 9 months or so, my sleep has been somewhat erratic. Sometimes I fall asleep too early, then wake up at 2ish and can't get back to sleep for a couple of hours. If I go to sleep normally at 10-12 I wake up at 5 or 6 which is good. But this past winter, I sometimes slept until 7 or 7:30 which feels very late to me. Sometimes I wake up around 4 and find it's better to just get up rather than struggle to go back to sleep. Then I can take a nap if needed (a luxury of being retired!) I'm hoping the long days of summer help me normalize again, but with getting older (unbelievably 70), I think naps are here to stay because I tend to take one when I'm tired, when it's too hot, when it's too cold. - Dina
​
I have struggled with middle-of-the-night insomnia pretty much my entire life, but only about half the time. I haven't found a rhyme or reason to it, either, but here is what has helped.
Walking or other physical activities, especially since I tend to have RLS
White noise
No alcohol
Relaxing conversation with my daughter right before bed
Speaking out loud, "He (God) is with me." Helps to chase off anxiety.
Definitely good support pillow under my neck - not too extended - and moisturizer on my hands. - Pam