How to Sleep Well as You Age
How to Sleep Well as You Age
The most common causes of insomnia and sleep problems in older adults include:
- Poor sleep habits and sleep environment. These include irregular sleep hours, consumption of alcohol before bedtime, and falling asleep with the TV on.
- Pain or medical conditions. Pain can keep you from sleeping well. In addition, many health conditions such as a frequent need to urinate, arthritis, asthma, diabetes, osteoporosis, nighttime heartburn, menopause, and Alzheimer’s can interfere with sleep.
- Medications. Older adults tend to take more medications than younger people and the combinations of drugs, as well as their side-effects, can impair sleep.
- Lack of exercise. If you are too sedentary, you may never feel sleepy or feel sleepy all of the time. Regular aerobic exercise during the day, at least three hours before bedtime, can promote good sleep.
- Psychological stress or psychological disorders. Significant life changes like the death of a loved one or moving from a family home can cause stress. Anxiety or sadness can also keep you awake, which can, in turn, cause more anxiety or depression.
- Sleep disorders. Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) and sleep-disordered breathing—such as snoring and sleep apnea—occur more frequently in older adults.
- Learned response. People with a legitimate cause for having trouble sleeping—after suffering a loss, for example—may lie in bed and try to force themselves to sleep. Eventually their bodies learn not to sleep. Even after your original reason for sleep disruption has passed, the learned response can remain. How to Sleep Well as You Age
