Do you feel like you’re not getting enough sleep? There’s a good chance you aren’t, with “more than a third of American adults” not getting enough sleep on a regular basis, according to the CDC. They warn that anything less than 7 hours each day is associated with increased risk of developing chronic medical conditions such as obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, and frequent mental distress.
“Sleep deprivation is a serious medical risk, but few people are aware of that,” concurs Joyce Walsleben, PhD, an associate professor of medicine at NYU School of Medicine. “You have to pay as much attention to your sleep as you do to eating a nutritious diet.”
Not only does a lack of sleep affect you, but it also affects the world around you. Indeed, it can lead to hostile interpersonal dynamics at work, according to a recent piece published on Harvard Business Review:
“ … (I)n our latest project we sought to examine how sleep influences the development of leader-follower working relationship quality in newly assigned leader-follower pairings. We start from the premise that sleep deprivation would make leaders and followers experience more negative emotions at work (in the form of hostility). You can probably easily remember a time in which you had a short night of sleep and had a bit of a short temper at work the next day. This is a very common experience, and is largely driven by the fact that sleep deprivation undermines the parts of your brain involved in regulating emotions.”
If this happens, albeit infrequently, that’s natural — everybody has a bad day every once in awhile. Unfortunately, when it happens more often than not, those negative feelings become deep-seeded and turn into long-lasting judgements. This is fast becoming a problem in a workplace, according to NECTAR, “ … so much so that many companies are beginning to adopt a nap at work policy.” Indeed, NECTAR reports, over 60 million Americans reported dealing with insomnia last year.
Okay, so we know that lack of sleep is bad — that part seems obvious — but the real question is: why can’t I sleep? While it’s always advisable to consult a doctor about medical issues, here are seven potential reasons you’re missing out on sleep.
1. Over-Caffeination
Whether it’s coffee, tea, soda or energy drinks, America fuels itself on caffeine. It’s how many of us start our day and get motivated to work. Unfortunately, too much caffeine can be a problem.
According to Healthline and the Mayo Clinic, the recommended caffeine limit is usually 400 milligrams per day for healthy adults, 200 mg for pregnant women, and 100 mg for children and adolescents. Anything more than that, and you risk caffeine overdose, the symptoms of which can include irregular heartbeat, seizures, and an inability to sleep.
Try to limit yourself to decaffeinated beverages in the evening and make sure that you’re not drinking more than the recommended amount.
2. Nicotine and Tobacco
Whether you’re an analog smoker or an e-cigarette vaper, nicotine in the bloodstream can make it harder to sleep. This is because nicotine acts as both a stimulant and a sedative, with a minor kick caused by a reaction that releases epinephrine from the adrenal glands.
If you’re a smoker and like to light up (or vape) before bed, try cutting back your nighttime cigarettes after dinner time, at least a couple of hours before you go to bed. If you’re really looking to improve your health, consider developing a smoking cessation plan (if that isn’t why you vape already!).
Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death worldwide, according to the CDC. Not only will cutting out cigarettes help you sleep better, it could end up saving your life!
3. Technology Addiction
Do you find yourself with your phone, tablet, or laptop in front of your face seemingly 24/7? Do you find yourself in the habit of staring at a screen before bed or keeping your phone on the nightstand? This could be affecting your sleep.
“Using a screen for 1.5 hours or more seems to be when problems start, although not everyone is affected the same way,” Kathy Johnson, reporting for ABC News, writes. “The impacts on sleep are related to both the stimulating effects of interacting with a device and the effects of light from the screen.”
In the worst case scenarios, you may find that you can’t seem to stop playing games or browsing the internet. Checking your phone 10 or 15 minutes before bed is one thing — but being “unable to get off of it” could indicate a behavioral addiction to technology. While there’s an ongoing discussion about whether internet or technology addiction should be a standalone diagnosis, according to the experts Wake Forest University, technology addiction centers are popping up all over the United States, and many countries in Asia already have robust treatment programs in place.
If you or someone you know is suffering from technology addiction, seek help from a qualified professional. In any case, those seeking a sound night’s sleep should keep their phones and tablets out of the bedroom … or at least away from the bedside table.
4. Depression and Anxiety
Are you plagued by restless thoughts, persistent anxiety, or depressing emotions while you’re trying to lull yourself to sleep? You’re not alone. According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the U.S., affecting 40 million adults in the United States age 18 and older, or 18.1 percent of the population every year. Not only that, but it’s not uncommon for someone with an anxiety disorder to also suffer from depression or vice versa. Nearly one-half of those diagnosed with depression are also diagnosed with an anxiety disorder.
Like technology addiction, those suffering from depression and/or anxiety should seek help from a qualified professional. What you can try on your own however, is meditation, stretching, and even running exercises. It’s not advisable to do so right before bed, but going on a nice jog during the middle of the day can actually improve mental health. As an added benefit, the physical exertion will exhaust you, and you may find yourself winding down naturally.
5. Stress
Unlike depression or anxiety, stress is a natural occurrence that everybody feels from time to time. “Stress is how the brain and body respond to any demand,” writes the National Institute of Mental Health. “Every type of demand or stressor—such as exercise, work, school, major life changes, or traumatic events—can be stressful.”
There are essentially three main types of stress:
- Routine stress that comes with the pressures of day-to-day life, such as work and family obligations.
- Stress brought about by an unexpected change outside of your normal routine, such as divorce, financial issues, or a sudden change in employment status.
- Traumatic stress, which occurs as a result of a large, life-altering event, such as a natural disaster, terrorist attack, or assault.
Ohio University states that, although not all forms of stress are bad, prolonged exposure to stressors can lead to a number of physical and mental health issues, including difficulty sleeping, and exacerbate already existing chronic conditions.
“For the nearly 50 percent of Americans who voice concerns about chronic stress, there are actions people can take in order to better manage their symptoms,” they write. “Every person experiences stress to varying degrees, and as such, implementing an individualized self-care routine is important when combating the physical effects of stress.”
6. Circadian Rhythm
The National Sleep Foundation’s website states that your circadian rhythm is “basically a 24-hour internal clock that is running in the background of your brain and cycles between sleepiness and alertness at regular intervals. It’s also known as your sleep/wake cycle.”
These rhythms dictate body temperature, sleep and wakefulness, and even various hormonal changes, and they’re regulated by small nuclei in the middle of the brain. A pathway runs from your eyes to this control center, which is why light seems to play such an integral role in setting your circadian “clock” or cycle.
Somebody whose circadian rhythm is out of whack might be suffering from what is commonly known as “jet lag,” producing symptoms such as insomnia, daytime sleepiness, and even indigestion and irritability. If you don’t travel between multiple time zones frequently but are still experiencing these symptoms, it could be that you have irregular sleep-wake rhythm, meaning that you can’t seem to set a sleep pattern no matter how hard you try. Delayed sleep phase disorder (DSP), where you can’t seem to fall asleep until it’s late — 2:00 AM or later — and advanced sleep phase disorder (ASP), which causes people to fall asleep (and wake up) much too early, are also potential culprits.
The UCLA Sleep Disorders Center recommends myriad potential treatments for “resetting” your biological clock, including:
- Properly timed exposure to bright light (aka bright light therapy) may help shift the circadian system and reset the body’s clock by helping to either advance or delay the sleep cycle.
- Evening exposure to bright light is used to treat ASP, helping to shift the circadian clock to a later hour.
- Morning exposure to bright light is used to treat DSP, helping to shift the circadian clock to an earlier hour.
- Your body produces higher levels of the natural hormone melatonin in the bloodstream at night, leading scientists to believe that it helps signal the body to go to sleep, and that it could also play a role in resetting the biological clock. This form of treatment is still experimental.
7. Reproductive Hormonal Imbalance
While we briefly touched upon the hormone melatonin above, other types of hormonal imbalances — this time related to your reproductive cycle — may be causing your restless nights. For women particularly, poor sleep may occur more frequently during menstruation because of associated cramping, pain, and mood changes.
Poor sleep may also occur if you’re pregnant, as the body produces more progesterone in the first trimester, causing a frequent sensation of having to urinate. Pro tip: if you’ve stopped your menstrual cycle and are having to make multiple trips to the bathroom to pee throughout the night, you might be pregnant!
On the other hand, if you’ve stopped menstruating or are about to due to menopause, you’re definitely not pregnant — but you might still be losing sleep. Perimenopause in particular causes a drop in the body’s progesterone and estrogen, and may produce symptoms such as nocturnal hot flashes and insomnia.
A final word:
It’s always advisable to talk to a doctor if you have a medical issue such as persistent lack of sleep, or insomnia. However, if one of the above conditions sounds like it might be what’s plaguing you, you might be able to make simple changes to your routine that will help you catch more Zs at night.
This is not to say that “depression” or “technology addiction” are easily solved. These conditions require professional treatment, and if you are suffering from them you should seek help from a qualified physician.
On the other hand, if it is an issue like nicotine or over-caffeination, just lay off the coffee and cigarettes. Go for a run, maybe tire yourself out during the day. Try everything — like they say, “whatever helps you sleep at night.”
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