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...

Talking in Your Sleep Sleep talking is not dangerous and shouldn't be a huge concern if you or someone you know does it.  Sleep talking can cause some awkward situations or become annoying to your bed partner, but the talker is not usually aware of the incident.  It can range from full conversation to mumbling and can be triggered by someone talking to the sleeper, or it can be completely spontaneous.   Treatment  Treatment is usually not needed at all.  However, if you want to minimize the events there are some things you can do.  Stick to a schedule, get plenty of sleep, avoid alcohol and heavy meals before bed.  Stress will also increase the likelihood and severity of the events.  

Parasomnia  Do you have any abnormal things happening while you're asleep such as sleepwalking, sleep terrors, sleep eating disorders, sleep paralysis, nightmares, bedwetting, or sleep talking?  The crazy part of having a parasomnia is that you may actually not even know these things are happening. These episodes can be mild and cause little problems or they can become dangerous such as  REM Sleep Behavior Disorder .  REM Sleep Behavior Disorder is when you act out your dreams dramatically by kicking, punching, flailing etc and can lead to harm to yourself or your partner.  Sleepwalking can also become dangerous.  If you suspect that you or your partner are suffering from a parasomnia you should consult a medical professional right away.  Do you have parasomnia?  If you are struggling to stay asleep all night or feel that you are tired the next day and cannot find a reason talking to your doctor and setting up a sleep study is the best w...