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Recognise that the natural hormonal changes that occur during pregnancy and after giving birth are common and normal and therefore some sleep disruption is likely to happen to almost every expectant mother. As long as you don’t get panic or anxious and accept these changes as they happen will give you the best chance of tiding over the sleep disruption. Good luck and congratulations!
Sleep disruption is extremely common during pregnancy! Some sleeping tips include (material copied from Alaska Sleep Clinic):
Pregnancy Sleep Tips
If you’re an expectant mother you shouldn’t let the potential for developing a sleep disorder scare you too much. For many pregnant women, sleep troubles can be fixed by following a few simple sleep hygiene practices to minimize the risk of sleep disorders and maximize the amount of nightly sleep. Furthermore, many of the tips for sleeping while pregnant are also very useful sleep tips for just about anybody suffering from sleep loss.
Maintain a regular sleep/wake cycle. Prioritizing sleep is key in getting sleep. Making sure that you’re going to bed and waking up at the same time every day (including weekends) goes a long way in feeling more awake and alert during the day.
Exercise regularly. Unless your doctor advises against it, regular exercise should be done at least 30 minutes a day. Getting out any pent up energy through exercise will increase circulation, improve mood, and help you fall asleep easier at night. However, no vigorous exercise should be done too close to bedtime. If you prefer to workout later in the day, some light exercises such as yoga are recommended.
Cutback on fluids at night. It’s very important to stay hydrated during pregnancy, but to help reduce late night trips to the bathroom avoid drinking large amounts in the hours leading up to bedtime.
Avoid Spicy Foods and heavy meals before bedtime. Eating spicy foods before bedtime can increase the chances and severity of heartburn at night. Eating heavy meals before bedtime makes the body work harder during sleep to digest your food, distracting it from working on the repairs your body needs for the next day’s activities. If you’re feeling hungry close to bedtime, try eating a light snack such as a banana, crackers and cheese, or a small bowl of cereal. For more information on foods and sleep click here.
Sleep on your left side. During the third trimester of sleep it is recommended that expecting mothers sleep on their left side. This increases the flow of blood and nutrients to the fetus, uterus, and kidneys. Also, try to avoid sleeping on your back for extended periods of time.
Use pillows. Special pregnancy pillows can go a long way towards nighttime comfort. Another pillow tip to reduce back pain is to lay on your left side with hips and knees bent and place pillows between your knees, under your abdomen, and behind your back.
When having trouble sleeping get out of bed. If sleep is alluding you, don’t lie in bed willing it to come. Get out of bed and do another relaxing activity such as reading, writing, take a warm bath, or any other relaxing activity before returning to bed.
Take short naps during the day. For the most part, naps are usually advised against as they tend to disrupt regular sleep cycles making going to sleep at night more difficult. However, studies have shown that napping while pregnant can prove beneficial. A poll by the National Sleep Foundation found that 51% of women reported at least one midweek nap and 60% reported napping on the weekends. However, if you choose to nap make sure they’re no more than 20-30 minutes long, and don’t nap too close to bedtime.
Hello Rix!
Thank you for your best wishes. Hope you too are well on your way to sleeping well.Hello there!
There is nothing fundamentally wrong with your sleep then and now. If before you were able to sleep after waking up and using the bathroom, you should be able to do it today too because the human mind process both sleep related or non sleep related thoughts exactly the same way and they have no bearing on your body’s ability to fall asleep. It is simply your reaction to sleep thoughts and the awakenings that’s generating anxiety and causing your sleep disruption. So if you find yourself awakening too early, then just do exactly like before. Go to the bathroom and go back to bed. Go timeless and don’t look at the time. Tell yourself it is still early anyway and if you can sleep before then you can sleep now also. Have complete confidence in your own sleep ability. I experienced the same as you. I used to wake at 4 am against my out of bed time of 6am but I slowly built up my confidence as I slept for 15, 20, 30 minutes, 1 hour and now I could sleep for almost 2 hours until my get out of bed is now 630 am. Your recovery path should be the same as mine, it is a bit slow and will take time but you will get there eventually if you have absolute confidence in yourself. But what I found is that sleeping more doesn’t make a difference in how refreshed I feel after I got my minimum 6 hours of sleep. I can now sleep from 10pm to 5 am straight, but I usually stay in bed until 630 am anyway. I find I can sleep in that 2nd stretch from 5 am onwards but I get mostly just light and REM sleep with lots of brief awakenings and dreams, this sleep has little effect on how refreshed I feel after waking up or the rest of my day, it would be exactly the same if I just got up at 5 am. So bear in mind, sleeping more doesn’t mean feeling better.Hello and greetings!
A difference of 15 minutes is really not a lot so it is up to you whether you want to implement them. You should select a sleep window that fits your current lifestyle. But that said, a wake time of between 6-8 am is best because you can then take advantage of sunrise to really anchor your get out of bed time by exposing yourself to sunlight after getting out of bed. Whatever you choose, it’s a good idea to stick to it for at least 2 weeks to give time for your body to respond. Good luck to you and best wishes!Hello! After reading your lengthy post, one thing comes to mind. Too much sleep monitoring going on inside your head. Because of all that monitoring, your mind is kept active and too wired to shut off. Stop monitoring when you are about to fall asleep, just allow it to happen. Getting into a hypnagogic state and getting hypnic jerks when falling asleep is very common and normal! It is your response to them that is the problem. Paying no attention to them and going to bed after being awake long enough, usually 16-18 hours, should get your sleep back on track. Good luck!
Hello!
What is your current sleep window like? How many hours are you sleeping on average every night?Regression is extremely common for any recovery in progress. Think about it. If you are sleeping better and longer, your sleep drive is then naturally reduced and you find it harder to fall and stay asleep. This coupled by the surprise and bewilderment why this is happening compounds the problem further. Stick with the program the best you can and give your body time to respond and over time, it will. Expect regressions to happen because the more you get, the less affected you become by them. By getting more accustomed to difficult nights, you should start becoming less anxious and then you start sleeping better again. Resist the temptation to “tweak” anything or trying more sleep efforts in an attempt to get more sleep because then you start monitoring for results and that often can lead to backfiring and more frustrations when everything fails. The less you do, the better. Good luck!
Hello!
How long have you had insomnia and what was your sleep window like before this? If it’s different from now, it may be likely your body isn’t used to the current sleep window yet. And any reason why you chose 4 am as your get out of bed time? 4 am is probably still very dark, I think 6 am would be more preferable. This is because after you get out of bed, you should try to get some sunlight exposure to reinforce it. The human body is regulated by an internal body clock and a circadian rthym where light plays a large role. I think a sleep window of 12-6 am might be more appropriate for you, unless you are a shift worker and need to work in the early morning. Good luck!Hello Gabriel
I still am reading a lot of sleep monitoring going on! Using an app that supposedly tells you how you slept, what kind of sleep you got and whether you are getting any deep sleep etc, all of these are suggesting you are trying to control sleep which is impossible! Nobody can control sleep. After you’ve fallen asleep, your body does its thing just like digestion happens after eating your meals. Realise it is completely useless and futile to control or monitor your sleep simply because it is impossible and which serves no useful purpose either because it doesn’t help you to sleep well in the future. A complety pointless and aimless exercise. Like I said, less is more when it comes to sleep and absolutely nothing is best! With regards to your question about not sleeping the entire night, I realise the answer for me to get my sleep is this: Not sleeping. That’s the irony about sleep! Not sleeping (especially for longer periods) will get your body to fall asleep faster and deeper. Sleep is entirely self-regulating so letting go of complete control is key. Also if you go to youtube and look up a channel called Insomnia Insight hosted by a sleep coach called Daniel Erichsen, he talks about sleep as being a “gas and brake” model where gas is sleep drive and brake is a phenomenon called hyperarousal. Watch Insomnia Insight #356, the Bermuda Triangle effect will help you understand more about hyperarousal and how to reduce it. Good luck!Hello Edgar!
I read about your posts and truly feel sorry for you. If you go to youtube and search this guy named Daniel Erichsen and his podcast called insomnia insight, he has put up a lot of videos talking about insomnia which he refers to as a “gas and brake” model. The gas part is basically sleep drive and the brake hyperarousal. I think you are too hyperaroused and that may have been a product over years of mind conditioning. Watch podcast Insomnia Insight #356 – the Bermuda Triangle effect. I think you might benefit from that.Hello Gabriel!
Are you constantly checking the time when you wake? If so, please stop doing this immediately! Resist the temptation to look at the clock and trying to figure how much you slept. Clock watching is very anxiety producing for people with sleeping problems. So the only time you look at the clock is ideally one hour before bed, then settle into your one hour relaxation period before bedtime and then you don’t check the clock anymore. You then either go to bed because you start feeling sleepy, with heavy eyes/difficulty staying focused reading/watching tv OR you feel the time is right. After you gone to bed, do not check the clock when you are woken up. All you know is that the alarm hasn’t gone off and you just go back to bed and try to sleep if your body wants it. Go timeless. Monitor and check absolutely nothing.Hello Lee!
Occasional sleep disruption is very common and everyone gets them once in a while. But sleep usually gets back on track once the event or stressor causing the sleep disruption has passed or is removed. If you continue to experience insomnia after that, it is usually because you have started thinking about sleep and are taking steps to “fix” it by making modifications to your sleep routine (sleeping in or going to bed earlier) and adjusting your daily life to focus on getting more sleep. Do you now have a consistent go to bed and get out of bed time? Are you also taking naps during the day and sleep medications to help you sleep? From now on, stop ALL sleep efforts and have consistent sleep timetable. If you are currently taking medications, consult with your doctor on a tapering off plan. Set a get out of bed time based on your lifestyle and from that, by allowing a 6 hour sleep window, you get your go to bed time. That will be your earliest time to go to bed and try not to nap during the day. Always get out of bed at that fixed time no matter how much you slept. Then when you start sleeping better, try increasing your time in bed by going to bed earlier in 15 minutes intervals until you arrive at a magic number that works for you because everyone is a bit different. Most people generate 6-8 hours of sleep after being awake for 16-18 hours. You’ll have to experiment to find your magic number. Understand that sleep is just a core biological process your body goes through after being awake long enough. Nothing including sleeping pills can generate sleepiness EXCEPT staying awake long enough. Sleep drive works a lot like hunger and both accumulate from not sleeping/eating long enough. You may also find after sleeping well or longer, you may start having difficult nights again and this is normal! It is a sign you are sleeping well and your sleep drive is getting less. Your body will slowly adjust to the new sleep schedule as long as you are patient and give it time to respond. Good luck, we all here will be wishing you the best and we hope to hear your success story in a few short weeks!Hello Gabriel,
I am reading a lot of sleep efforts! Because you are constantly changing things, your mind is constantly monitoring for results and when something doesn’t work, you then get frustrated and that perpetuates the cycle of sleep disruption. From this point on, just do one thing only, whatever single thing you think is helping you the most and stick to it. If it doesn’t help then abandon it and do nothing! Sleep is not something you need to do a ton of things to achieve. It is natural and effortless. Did Covid mess with your head and “damage” something? Well nobody knows, not even the scientists so why should you even bother?? The problem is beyond you and has happened. So focus on the present and just do this one thing: Go and get out of bed at the same time every day. At first, allow a 6 hour sleep window with no naps and no sleeping in. Make this consistent for at least 2 weeks and your body should adjust to the new sleep window. If it is safe where you live, go out more in the morning to get sunshine because light plays a very big role in realigning your circadian rhythm and try to stay active throughout the day. One hour before bedtime, try doing something relaxing like having a warm shower, a nice cup of hot chocolate, watch your favourite tv series or anything you find enjoyable. Then go to bed with no expectations. Tell yourself you might sleep, which is great, or you might not, which is also okay because there will be endless opportunities for sleep in future. Either outcome is okay and you don’t really care anymore. Over time you become less attached to the outcome and you will begin to loosen your grip on trying to control sleep. Then when you are sleeping great for a week or 10 days or so, try adjusting your sleep window to allow more time in bed in 15 mins increments. Take note your body will react to this by waking up more or take onger to fall asleep because you are making adjustments and this automatically makes the mind start monitoring for results. Also, when you are sleeping more, the harder it will get for your body to fall asleep because you are no longer as sleep deprived as before. So expect all this to happen and there’s no surprise when you get a difficult night or two. But be consistent with any sleep window for at least 10 days to give time for your body to respond. If you find your sleep getting worse, then reduce time in bed and vice versa. Find that number that works for you where you can fall asleep pretty quickly and wake up not feeling as tired or groggy. Actually waking up a bit groggy is normal and everyone has it. It is also normal to feel sleepy during the day especially at midday where most people take naps. You should get back to how you were sleeping before when you implement these steps. Good luck and we all here are wishing you the best. Hopefully we’ll hear your success story in a few weeks!Hello David!
Resist the temptation to try any sleep effort because I found after trying them, the brain will want to monitor the result, whether it’s working etc. It is this active monitoring that keeps the mind active when you are trying to sleep and makes sleep difficult. When you’ve done nothing, there is nothing to monitor and the mind can shut off easier. With regards to your anxiety, realise it is normal. You are actively trying to escape it which is making it coming back more and more. Give up the struggle by not caring how sleep anymore. If not sleeping well makes you feel like crap the next morning, then expect it to happen and imagine having it already. Don’t shun it, allow yourself to be uncomfortable with the senario of sleeping badly. Over time, you’ll get used to it until you are not afraid of it anymore! You will have become accustomed to it and realise it can’t hurt you! You got through days when you slept badly the night before, many times, didn’t you? Well what makes it any different this time or in the future?? Not sleeping well can’t harm you and studies show insomnia have no long term effects on your health and wellbeing. There may be some short term discomfort but you’ll get through it like so many times before, so what’s the big deal? People with insomnia tends to spend lots of time in bed trying to sleep, sometimes 10-12 hours, almost half their lives, and even after all that, spend whatever amount of time awake, worrying and obessesing over sleep. Haven’t you realised how ridiculous this has become? Are you going to spend the rest of your life like that? Don’t you agree that is a horrible way to live, that you won’t even wish upon your worst enemy? Forget about the obessesion and forget about sleep for a while. Life is about enjoyment and fulfilment and it’s your birth right to enjoy life in this earth, not tormented by something you cannot actively control anyway. Did you think God sent you into this world so you can sleep half the time and therefore miss out on the other things that are fun and enjoyable?? Hell No! So you can tell your insomnia to go to he** and you will enjoy your life as you please from now on. Enough is enough and you will not put up with this nonsense anymore. Strengthen your circadian rthym and build your sleep drive naturally by going to bed after 18 hours awake and then slowly scaling that back in 15 minutes intervals to 17, 16 hours until you find your magic number. Good luck! We all here are wishing the best for you.There’s nothing wrong with you. If you can sleep 3-4 hours, even just 1-2 hours means your sleep system is working perfectly fine. What you are describing is very typical for an insomniac. It’s your thoughts about sleep and the efforts you are doing that are making it worse. Do absolutely nothing except going to and getting out of bed the same time every day. Any endeavour you are doing to make sleep happen WILL fail because sleep just doesn’t respond to any type of effort, mental or physical. It is something that just happens naturally and your body produces sleepiness naturally, after being awake long enough. Sleep drive is a lot like hunger, both accumulate after not sleeping/eating long enough. Just go to bed after being awake for at least 18 hours continuously and if you find you fall asleep pretty fast, then start decreasing that to 17, 16 hours. Find the magic number that works for you because everyone is a bit different. Resist the temptation to try any sleep effort because after you done them, your mind will want to monitor the result, whether it’s working etc. It is this active monitoring inside your head that keeps you awake at night because your mind just can’t shut off. Stop all the monitoring and let your mind drift and wander as it wants, do not actively check whether you have fallen asleep, let it just happen naturally. You will find after sleeping better for few nights, you then tend to have diffficulty falling asleep again as fast as before. Expect this and accept this is normal because when you slept better, naturally your sleep drive is reduced and it then takes longer to drift off into sleep. But over time, your body will adjust so give it time and patience. Do these steps and your sleep should recover within a few weeks. Good luck!
