Sweet Sleep Blog

Tips for Your Routine Winding down You need to have a period of relaxing before bed.  During this time you should avoid screens and things that stimulate your body and mind.   Try things such as reading a book, having a cup of calming tea, taking a warm bath, gentle yoga, or meditation.  Explore and find the best relaxing thing for you to do. Try journaling   If you are stressed try writing out the problem or making lists.  Once you have everything written down it can help you relax because you don't have to worry about forgetting something.  Make sure that this is a step you do before your winding down period so these things aren't still on your mind.  Choose your bedtime snacks and drinks carefully Avoid that caffeine later in the day and skipping heavy meals right before bed is better for sleep and better for your overall health.   Stick to a schedule Monitor your sleep patterns and get an idea of how much sleep...

Article Find of the week! This week's article is about snoring!  That little thing most of us have experienced at least some in our lives. It can be a little cute baby snore or the super loud snore of our bed partner that wakes you up at night.  Read more about snoring here!   

Excessive Sleepiness What is it?   Excessive sleepiness is feeling very tired or drowsy during the day. It is often confused with fatigue, but they are different struggles.  Excessive Sleepiness vs Fatigue  Fatigue is dealing with low energy. You can be physically, mentally, or emotionally fatigued.  This is usually a result of either a medical condition or overusing your body or mind.    Excessive Sleepiness makes you feel so tired that it ends up interfering with your daily life. Excessive sleepiness is often a sign you may have a sleep disorder that is keeping you from getting the sleep you need to function.  Treatment Since excessive sleepiness is not actually a condition, but a symptom, the best way to treat it is by determining the cause.  If being excessively sleepy is keeping you from daily tasks and affecting your work, relationship, or what you need to get done, call to schedule your visit with Dr. Bhat  (...

Eat well, sleep well As we've discussed before, diet is a huge part of your health.  When you eat well you are healthier.  A great diet leads to better health and better sleep. What you eat can effect your sleep greatly, like when you eat sugary snacks to get you through the morning then by afternoon you're crashing.   Instead of reaching for those sugary snacks in the morning, start off with a great breakfast like this one!  Open-Faced Broiled Egg, Spinach, Tomato Sandwich Skip a drive-thru egg sandwich and make this easy-to-prepare one at home. (It uses hard-boiled eggs, so you don’t even have to soil a pan.) Spinach and tomatoes provide valuable vitamins and antioxidants; a fiber-filled whole wheat English muffin combined with protein in the egg helps you stay satiated through lunchtime. PREP TIME: 10 minutes TOTAL TIME: 13 minutes SERVINGS: 1 ½ whole wheat english muffin ¼ c fresh spinach, cooked and squeezed dry (about 4 o...

Weekly Article This week's article is about Sleep Apnea.  We will talk all about the sleep disorder and some great info about how to help cope.   https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health-topics/sleep-apnea 

Insomnia We've talked about insomnia over the past couple of days.  Many times people will go undiagnosed with a sleep disorder, feeling that they're just a light sleeper, or that they just don't need a lot of sleep to function.  The truth is that you do need sleep.  Your body cannot function correctly without enough sleep and it is very rare for a person to actually need under 7 to 8 hours of sleep.  Many common signs of insomnia are Fatigue Problems with attention, concentration or memory (cognitive impairment) Poor performance at school or work Moodiness or irritability Daytime sleepiness Impulsiveness or aggression Lack of energy or motivation Errors or accidents Concern or frustration about your sleep If you are suffering from any of these symptoms you should consider speaking with a sleep specialist.   Insomnia or Not? How do you know if it's insomnia keeping you up?  Sometimes it's not a disorder at all that keeps yo...

Nutrition Nutrition is one of the key parts of being healthy and keeping your body on track to get the sleep it needs.  Getting a good night's sleep involves so many factors including having a good diet.  This recipe is amazing if you are suffering from Insomnia. Berry Smoothie 1/4 cup frozen strawberries 1/4 cup frozen blueberries 1/2 cup spinach 1/2 banana A handful of walnuts 2 tbsp raw honey Why This smoothie is perfect for great sleep because it is full of tryptophan.  This is an amino acid that is perfect for helping you fall asleep.  When your body breaks down tryptophan is turned it into serotonin and melatonin and this helps your body start the sleep process. 

The Key to Understanding is Knowledge  When you are facing a sleep disorder the key to dealing this them is education.  You must do research, consult with doctors, a sleep specialist, and peers who are also dealing with your condition.   We're talking about Insomnia today.  Here is a great read that we found full of great information.  https://sleepfoundation.org/insomnia/content/what-is-insomnia Don't forget to come back tomorrow for our next blog!

What is acupuncture? Acupuncture is a technique in which practitioners stimulate specific points on the body.  This is most often done by inserting thin needles.   Are there risks? The main risk from acupuncture is non-sterile needles and incorrect delivery.  Make sure that when you are scheduling your acupuncture you go with a professional with a sound reputation and a very clean office.   Most states require a diploma from the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine for licensing to practice acupuncture. Benefits Acupuncture is used by many to treat pain, stress, headaches, and more.  Relieving your body of stress and pain can lead to being able to fall asleep faster and sleep better.  Those who suffer from insomnia can also find relief after acupuncture.  Beijing University of Chinese Medicine performed a large analysis that showed " patients who were taking medications or herbal treatments t...

Your body's natural clock In our last blog , we discussed jet lag and the effects of travel on our body's natural "clock".  Let's learn more about that natural clock and how it effects  our sleep.  What is our natural clock?  Our body's natural Circadian Biological Clock  regulates the timing of periods of sleepiness and wakefulness throughout the day.  Your body's  circadian rhythm dips and rises throughout the day.  Adults usually experience the largest dips during early morning times around 2 to 4 am and afternoon. Making sure that you have had plenty of rest will help you to avoid a serious dip in the afternoon that can leave you feeling drowsy at work.   Changes to your natural clock You may notice that your teen seems to suddenly be sleeping in and staying up late.  This is due to changes in their  circadian rhythm.  Many teens experience a delay in their sleeping phases and suddenly they are struggling ...

What is Jet Lag? Jet Lag is a very common temporary sleep disorder.  Most people have experienced this disorder while traveling.  It's not only for those flying long distances but for driving and any sort of travel that takes you from your usual time zone.   What causes Jet Lag? Circadian Rhythms are the key to jet lag.  Our exposure to sunlight helps to determine our sleeping patterns.  Jet lag comes from your body's natural biological "clock" becoming thrown off from the time zone changes.  Your body has a natural "clock" where it is used to the sun going down, then bedtime.  But when you change time zones your body is used to the sun being down at a different time and you can experience jet lag.  What can you do about Jet Lag?  Try to arrive at your destination in the early evening and stay up until 10:00 PM.  Make sure you start working on local time by setting your watch to the local time when you begin your trip....

Sleep Environment Your sleeping environment can be a huge key to your successful night's sleep.  If you're uncomfortable in your space for any reason, or it just isn't relaxing enough it may actually be key to that poor sleep. Visual What you see is a large part of creating your ideal sleeping environment.  Is there too much light? Do you have electronics that immite blue light? This can interfere with your body's natural melatonin production.  Having your room dark is absolutely best for sleeping.  Having a peaceful room with simple flat paints in colors that are relaxing such as blues and greens can also get your body ready to sleep.  If you get up in the middle of the night to use the restroom try not to turn on any lights as this will start your brain's wake up process. It will be harder to fall asleep when you get back to bed. Installing a few nightlights around your home can make this easier.   Sound Sound is the next part of c...

Connecting Sleep to Anxiety When we sleep our brains clear out the clutter.  It gets rid of the choas of the day and gets our brains ready for the next day.  When your sleep is disrupted and you're waking often in the right it can cause your thoughts to become stuck in a pattern of negative thoughts.  This leads to an increase of feeling anxious.   Connecting Anxiety to Sleep Anxiety is a terrible feeling to battle.  When you are feeling anxious it can cause you to have a difficult time sleeping.   As you're struggling with sleep, the lack of sleep will then lead to feeling more anxious.   Stop the Cycle  If you do not have any medical situations keeping you from sleep you can do some simple things to help you get more sleep.  Try getting rid of those electronics.  Stop staring at your phone about an hour before bed.  Establish your sleeping schedule and keep with it through the weekend too.  Try t...

Q&A Many clients all have a very important question that they ask.  How much sleep do I actually need?  I feel fine after just sleeping for 6 hours while my partner seems to sleep forever! How Much Sleep Do You Need? How much sleep each person needs varies slightly from person to person.  Most adults need a minimum of seven hours of sleep to be able to function correctly and feel rested.  Some adults do need more and very few need less sleep.  A sleep journal is a perfect way to find out how many hours you need to sleep. Finding Out The best way to determine exactly how much sleep it takes for you to feel rested is to go to sleep when you feel tired in the evening and sleep without an alarm.  This can be tricky around work schedules so starting this when you’re on vacation or over a long weekend is a great idea.  Starting Friday night, instead of staying up to binge watch that favorite show, go ahead and have an early dinner aroun...

Pets! Let’s talk about pets.  We all love our fluffy family members! They provide unconditional love and great cuddles.  But what do they have to do with sleep?  A lot. Sleeping with Pets According to research done by the Mayo Clinic pets can be great and terrible for sleep.  Their research showed that people who sleep with their furry family members in their bedroom had a higher quality of sleep.  However, they also found that if you let those fluffy little pets under your covers to sleep you may end up suffering from a poor quality of sleep instead.  So instead of letting your cuddle happy dog into the bed try getting a nice dog bed for them and training them to sleep beside the bed instead of joining you. Let's Hear From You! I’d love to hear from you!  Do you let your pets in bed with you? How many pets?  Do you find that they wake you up at night? 

New Year, New Goals With the New Year, everyone has been focusing hard on those New Year’s Resolutions!  How are you doing on yours?!  I hope it’s going great for you!  I wanted to take a little time today and talk to you about a super important topic that I believe should absolutely be a goal for everyone this year.  Getting more sleep. Get More Sleep Life is busy and a lot of times we just grab that extra cup of coffee and yawn throughout our day.  Sleep isn’t really one of those things we think of as a goal.  Parents stay up late after the kids go to bed just to have some quiet time, or you get excited to catch up on your favorite show and binge watch it on TV until the next thing you know it’s 1 am and you’ve got work in the morning.  We’ve all been there, but what is this doing to our bodies?  Sleep is Important Sleep is a vital part of our health.  It’s how our body heals, resets, and gets ready for the next day!  ...

MEET DR. BHAT Dr Abid Bhat has been in the practice of Sleep Medicine for over 10 years.  He has provided medical care to people with various sleep disorders, including insomnia (difficulty falling sleep or staying sleep), sleep apnea (a person snores loud and stops breathing in sleep), parasomnia (sleep walking), restless legs syndrome (urge to move legs while trying to fall sleep) and a number of other related conditions.  Millions of Americans continue to suffer from sleep disruption but, unfortunately, majority of them are undiagnosed. Sleep is quintessential in preventing chronic ailments like obesity, heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure. Dr Bhat’s passion is to present sleep as THE essential ingredient to maintain a positive state of health and well-being by combining Western medicine and Holistic Medicine.   ​ Dr Abid Bhat did his fellowship in Sleep Medicine from the State University of New York at Buffalo. He also earned a Mast...