Sleep - 60 Minutes | Arthritis Information
Hey All,
Last night 60 Minutes had a really interesting segment on sleep. Given that most of us have periods where we can either not sleep due to pain, or are awakened from it, I thought it very relevant to RA (and fibro).
They discussed how lack of sleep
- affects our ability to reason and make logical decisions
- makes us react more emotionally to situations
- increases disease activity (including diabetes)
- can cause obesity by making us think we're hungry
- may be responsible for age-related disease
- and on and on ...
Interestingly, it also shows that, when we are tired, we are unable to accurately assess our own level of ability (or lack thereof).
Plus, many of the problems listed above occur when we are unable to reach (or maintain) the deep sleep phase. They show it in relation to a test where the fellow was constantly disturbed by noise, but I would suspect this is the case from pain too.
So why do I bring this up? To emphasis just how important it is to get good, restful sleep -- even if it means more or different pain management techniques.
If you're interested, you can watch the segment online: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/03/14/60minutes/main3939721.shtml
Looking forward to a good night's sleep,
- Joy
What if you just do not feel rested no matter how much sleep you get, even if half of it is restful?
That is how my sleep is. I can sleep and sleep and still feel so tired. Then I can also stay awake for 24hours straight and be sleepy and all the signs of being sleepy and still not be able to feel like I slept.
I can even wear myself out and be so tired and still not feel like I had not had a restful sleep.
Most of the time I feel like I am overtired, you know how you feel when you get like that? You feel tired and feel drained and you think "I should sleep good tonight." and then just lay there for hours and hours.
I am not sure why my sleep is like that, it has always been like that since I was a kid. It is like I can never get enough sleep.
Ya, that's one of the crappiest things about RA ... we are just sooo friggin' tired when our RA is not controlled.
I'd wonder if your sleep, when you get it, isn't deep enough to get that full rest that you really need.
You mention how hard it is to sleep and that its been like that since you've been a kid. I wonder if there isn't more going on there than RA.
Sleep is sooo important that it should be treated as an issue on its own. Have you spoken to your docs about your sleep patterns and how your tiredness is affecting your quality of life?
Yep, and I was given Rozerem. Took it twice, but stopped taking it because I could not get 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep like it said. Both times I took it and woke up the next day, did not feel rested and I was VERY grouchy or as hubby puts it - B!tchy.
I am going to try the Rozerem with Tylenol PM, like RD suggested, just have to REMEMBER to get some Tylenol PM when I am in town.
Man-o-man, sometimes there just aren't any breaks, are there? Do try the Tylenol PM. You really do deserve a good night's rest.
Other ideas out there that might help out Joonie?
RA can and does affect the endocrine system of many people dealing with autoimmune diseases. This would include the thyroid.
I have been having a terrible time sleeping. I can seem to relax enough. Whenever I take tylenol pm, I wake up around 2 am, and can't get back to sleep. Remember, it works differently with everyone. I recently tried melatonin tablets, and it does help me relax a bit, just enough to help me go to sleep. I haven't been taking it on a regular basis, though. Not really long enough to tell if it is really working, or if those nights I wasn't as restless.My PRA's controlled and I'm still not sleeping. It's part of the disease process. I'm studying (with a brain that's exhausted so lets see how long THIS takes) ways around this. There has to be a way.
Watchingwolf - thyroid maybe can influence it but the real problem is the Pineal Gland.
Everybody interested - follow the links. It's AMAZING!
Pip
I get more than enough hours of sleep and i wake up horribly tired every day. Now, i know my RA is very aggressive and i know that being that way can make you tired, but I feel like i got kicked by a mule sometimes.
Now, i do wake up about 5 times a night and go to the bathroom and i have extremely active dreams each and every night, long enough of dreams to almost fit an entire movie in length. I heard that people who dream like i do can be very very vrey tired because of how active the brain is all night. So i guess that's me.
Truely Pip watch i think it was on the Discovery Channel. The show was called I Woke Up In A Morge. The end of the show may have alot of the answers your looking for. Joonie, Do you have any benadryl at home? That is the other ingredient in the tylenol PM to help you sleep. I buy the generic benadryl capsules at Walmart. They work great. I only take one though instead of 2 like it says. I was so tired the next morning when I took a full dose!No we do not have any benadryl in the house. We did, but hubby was getting rid of old meds and I guess the bendryl was one of them that was expired.
Copyright ArthritisInsight.com