Did you know that nearly 50% of women over the age of 35 complain that they do not get a full night sleep?

— February 10, 2016

Did you know that nearly 50% of women over the age of 35 complain that they do not get a full night sleep? And did you know that women are twice as likely to have sleep problems vs men?

I know that I am one of them. I usually don’t have too much trouble falling asleep (unless my husband is watching TV in bed or he falls asleep first and snores). My issue is that I often wake up I and toss and turn until the alarm goes off at 5am. I also wake up when a child sneaks in my bed during the night. And then there’s the problem of falling back to sleep after I wake…

While I have issues with sleep, my husband can pretty much fall asleep standing up. I’ve also seen this phenomenon in my dad and my brother. Is it a male thing??? My husband can lie down and be out cold in less than a minute. And if he gets woken up during the night, he can fall back to sleep in less than a minute. He is often totally unaware of the nighttime activities that transpire in our house. The next morning I can tell him full stories of a crisis that occurred with one of the kids and he’ll have no clue. And we don’t have a huge house – it’s not like he’s asleep in another wing or something.

Getting a good night sleep (and enough sleep) is so important for so many facets of our life – when we are tired we are less productive, more stressed and irritable, have a lower sex drive and immune system, get more headaches and muscle aches… just to name a few. Sleep is when our bodies regenerate and if we don’t have that opportunity, it puts our health at risk. And if you are a working mom, juggling a million priorities, sleep is non-negotiable for our sanity. It’s time to stop joking about how sleep deprived we are, and look at it as the more serious issue it really is!

So why do women have so many issues with sleep and why do they get worse as we get older? According to Dr. Carol Ash, DO, the Medical Director at the Sleep for Life Center in New Jersey, “There is a biological basis for insomnia and just being female is a risk factor for insomnia. The menstrual cycle and menopause all complicate the normal sleep patterns. And unfortunately, as we age the changes in hormones that causes sleep problems.” So in other words, I should beware of what is coming! Sleeping pills here we come!

OK, wait… before we start popping pills, here are some tips to help us sleep better “au naturel”:

Make the bedroom a “sleep zone” – no TV, computer, books, etc. (also make it cool, dark and quiet)
Avoid caffeine, alcohol and nicotine in the evenings (preferable none after 2pm)
Don’t go to bed on a full stomach
Keep a regular sleep schedule (i.e. go to bed and wake up at the same time every day)
Keep a pen and paper by your bedside so you can write thoughts down and forget about them until the next day
Exercise regularly (but not right before bed)
Have a comfortable mattress and pillow
Develop a relaxing bedtime routine
If it takes longer than 20 minutes to fall asleep, get out of bed and go somewhere else in the house to relax (keeping it quiet and dim)
And I guess some ear plugs or a white noise machine for those of us with husbands who snore!
If you have some tips that work for you, please do share!