There are times that you have aches and pains, you will likely lose a lot of sleep. When pains disrupts sleep, it may lead to difficulty maintaining alertness, lack of energy, impaired mood, and trouble handling stress. Lack of sleep can also put you at risk for injury, poor health, workplace accidents and motor vehicle crashes. Pain can cause difficulty falling asleep, nighttime awakenings, or waking too early in the morning. Hence, people who suffer from pain during sleep often find it difficult to function at their best. In fact, studies have shown that sleep loss can make a person more sensitive to pain. One study found that the kind of sleep deprivation caused by continuous sleep disturbances throughout the night in particular, caused an increase in spontaneous pain and impaired the body’s ability to process and cope with painful stimuli.

Whether it’s back pain, headaches, arthritis, or other health problems, you can work with your healthcare professional to identify the cause and find a treatment to improve your symptoms and your sleep. Managing pain and sleep problems requires a tailored plan to your needs that your healthcare professional may recommend a combination of treatments that includes medication, lifestyle changes or other therapies, such as exercises, relaxation techniques, dietary changes or learning to control muscle tension or other body functions. You may even consider visiting a pain specialist. With your discussion to your healthcare professional, it can help to share a complete description of your sleep experiences, including:

The number of hours you usually sleep each night
Whether you snore and if so how loudly
Whether you gasp for breath or stop breathing during sleep, are you awakening yourself with any of these symptoms
Whether you have unpleasant tingling or crawling sensations in your legs that are relieved by movement or not
How often you have difficulty falling asleep and/or staying asleep
Whether you feel sleepy during the day or fall asleep when reading, watching TV or driving
Whether you keep a regular bed and wake time
Your use and timing of alcohol or tobacco products
The time of day you use caffeinated products, exercise and eat your last meal
Whether you experience nighttime heartburn, pain or the need to urinate
Your level of stress and whether you have experienced lifestyle changes recently
Whether you are an evening, night or rotating shift worker
Your healthcare professional can provide information on medications, exercises, acupuncture or behavioral changes that may also be options. Some medications may alter your sleep patterns and make sleeping more difficult, so it is IMPERATIVE to make your healthcare professional aware of ALL medications (over-the-counter, herbs or prescribed) you are taking so that they can find the best treatment to manage both pain and sleep.

When traveling to a new time zone, our circadian rhythms are slow to adjust and remain on their original biological schedule for several days. This results in our bodies telling us it is time to sleep, when it’s actually the middle of the afternoon, or it makes us want to stay awake when it is late at night-this experience is known as “Jet Lag”.

TREATMENT:

Some simple behavioral adjustments before, during and after arrival at your destination can help minimize some of the side effects of jet lag.

Select a flight that allows early evening arrival and stay up until 10 p.m. local time. (If you must sleep during the day, take a short nap in the early afternoon, but no longer than two hours. Set an alarm to be sure not to over sleep.)
Anticipate the time change for trips by getting up and going to bed earlier several days prior to an eastward trip and later for a westward trip.
Upon boarding the plane, change your watch to the destination time zone.
Avoid alcohol or caffeine at least three to four hours before bedtime. Both act as “stimulants” and prevent sleep.
Upon arrival at a destination, avoid heavy meals (a snack—not chocolate—is okay).
Avoid any heavy exercise close to bedtime. (Light exercise earlier in the day is fine.)
Bring earplugs and blindfolds to help dampen noise and block out unwanted light while sleeping.
Try to get outside in the sunlight whenever possible. Daylight is a powerful stimulant for regulating the biological clock. (Staying indoors worsens jet lag.)
Contrary to popular belief, the type of foods we eat have no effect on minimizing jet lag.

Fatigue is the best pillow. ~Benjamin Franklin

Scientists from the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg presented their findings at the third annual Swedish Sleep Medicine Congress, organised by the Swedish Sleep Research and Sleep Medicine Society (SFSS).

Read more: Twenty Five Per Cent of Professional Drivers Report Sleep Disorder http://www.medindia.net/news/Twenty-Five-Per-Cent-of-Professional-Drivers-Report-Sleep-Disorder-68796-1.htm#ixzz0oDHs6IZn

The third piece of the puzzle: sleep
Though the exact mechanisms of how sleep works, how sleep rejuvenates the body and mind is still mysterious, one thing sleep specialists and scientists do know is that adequate sleep is necessary for healthy functioning. Research shows that all mammals need sleep, and that sleep regulates mood and is related to learning and memory functions. Not only will getting your zzz’s help you perform on a test, learn a new skill or help you stay on task, but it may also be a critical factor in your health, weight and energy level.

Sleep deprivation may also inhibit one’s ability to lose weight – even while exercising and eating well! A 1999 study at the University of Chicago showed that restricting sleep to just 4 hours per night for a week brought healthy young adults to the point that some had the glucose and insulin characteristics of diabetics. Such sleep restriction may have been a bit extreme, but it is also not altogether uncommon in our society and is a pattern deemed the “royal route to obesity” by Eve Van Cauter, PhD, who conducted the Chicago study.
Food is also related to sleep by appetite and metabolism. Research by Dr. Van Cauter shows that people who don’t get enough sleep are more likely to have bigger appetites due to the fact that their leptin levels (leptin is an appetite regulating hormone) fall, promoting appetite increase. This link between appetite and sleep provides further evidence that sleep and obesity are linked. To top it off, the psychological manifestations of fatigue, sleep and hunger are similar. Thus, when you’re feeling sleepy you might feel like you need to head for the fridge instead of bed.

What it all means: how diet, sleep and exercise affect you
By now you probably realize that health is complex – if one part of the body system suffers, you’re likely to see consequences in other areas of your life. Though diet and exercise are critical components of healthy lifestyles, it’s also important to remember that sleep is inherently linked with how we eat (and how much), how we exercise (and whether or not we lose weight), and how we function on a daily basis. Getting the proper amount of sleep each night is necessary to face the world with your best foot forward. Sleep will help you on the road to good fitness, good eating and good health!

All men whilst they are awake are in one common world: but each of them, when he is asleep, is in a world of his own. ~Plutarch

Changing and decreasing levels of estrogen cause many menopausal symptoms including hot flashes, which are unexpected feelings of heat all over the body accompanied by sweating. They usually begin around the face and spread to the chest affecting 75-85% of women around menopause. Prior to the hot flash, body temperature rises and is accompanied by an awakening. Hot flashes last an average of 3 minutes leading to decreased sleep efficiency. Most women experience these symptoms for one year, but about 25% have hot flashes for five years. While total sleep time may not suffer, sleep quality does. Hot flashes may interrupt sleep and frequent awakenings cause next-day fatigue. If you are experiencing these symptoms please contact your healthcare professional to seek advice.

Sleep is the golden chain that ties health and our bodies together. ~Thomas Dekker

Circadian Rhythm Disorders-The complex biological “clock” in humans sometimes breaks down. In delayed sleep phase syndrome, the “clock” runs later than normal. The sufferer often cannot fall asleep before 3 or 4 a.m. and cannot “wake” before noon. In advanced sleep phase syndrome, a person falls asleep early, for example at 7 or 8 p.m. and wakes at 3 or a.m. and is unable to fall bask asleep.

Insomnia-is a sleep problem experienced by over 50% of Americans, according to the 2008 NSF Sleep in America Poll, who report difficulty falling asleep, frequent awakenings, waking too early and having trouble getting back to sleep, and waking unrefreshed. Insomnia can be short or long-term and may be due to stress, an underlying medical or psychiatric problem such as depression, a loss or poor sleep/health habits.

Sleep Apnea-is commonly recognized sleep disorder. Sufferers actually stop breathing for at least 10 seconds, waking up hundreds of times per night, snorting and paused breathing as their body struggles for air. Untreated, its linked to high blood pressure, diabetes, and an increased risk of heart attack and stroke.

Narcolepsy-people experience “sleep attacks” that can occur at any time. Strong emotions sometimes bring on a sudden loss of muscle control called “cataplexy”. When falling asleep or waking up, sufferers also may experience brief paralysis and/or vivid images and sounds.

Restless Legs Syndrome-is recognized by people having unusual sensations in the legs (and sometimes arms) that disturb sleep. Only movement brings relief. Individuals may also experience periodic limb movement disorder, PLMD, or jerking of the legs during sleep.

Sleepwalking-a tendency to get up and wander about while asleep, is common in children and tends to run in families. Protect the sleepwalker by keeping doors and windows locked.

Sleep Terrors-often scream or fight but have no memory of the event the next day.

Treatments for sleep disorders may include medication, light therapy, continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) devices, and scheduled naps.

For many men, sleep is just one more thing at the bottom of the list of all that needs to be done in a day. It seems like wasted time that prevents them from getting any work done. These wrong ideas about sleep keep men from tapping into the power of a well-rested mind and body.

In reality, sleeping is your most valuable activity of the day. The more you invest in your sleep, the bigger return you will see in everything else that you do.

Sleep allows your body to actively recharge itself and prepare for the next day. Sleeping well enables you to feel, think, and perform better. It allows you to maximize your time and your energy during the day.

The best way to do all that you want to do is to make sure that you get the sleep your body needs.

I. What Keeps Men from Getting Enough Sleep?

Lack of Awareness
Many men simply don’t realize that they need more sleep. They view sleepiness as a positive sign that they must be working hard. They get used to being tired, and they think that’s the way it’s supposed to be. They believe that they just have to fight through it.

Every person has their own need for sleep. This need varies from one person to another. On average, most adults need seven to eight hours of sleep each night to feel alert and well rested.

Many men do not get this much sleep on a regular basis. As a result, they are not able to function at a maximum level of energy and concentration.

The following are signs that you are not getting enough sleep:

You feel tired and lack energy during the day.
You have a hard time paying attention during meetings.
You are unmotivated and have trouble “getting going.”
You are irritable, grouchy or lose your temper easily.
You must use an alarm clock to wake up on time in the morning.
You start to doze off when you are driving a car.
Sleeping in later is not an option for most people who have to be at work early in the morning. Not too many employers are going to let you take a daytime nap, either. The solution is to go to bed earlier.

Plan to go to bed early enough so that you will have seven to eight hours before you have to get up in the morning. Set it as a goal and make it a priority. After doing this for a while, you will have a better idea if you need even more than eight hours of sleep, or maybe less than seven, to feel refreshed when you wake up.

Work Demands
A man’s job can demand so much of his time that it doesn’t leave much room for sleep. In order to get ahead, you may feel like you have to put in extra hours at night, go in on the weekends, or be the first one there in the morning. A long commute through heavy traffic may take away even more of your free time.

Even when you are away from the job, your work can consume your time. You may have paperwork that you have to finish at home. Your cell phone won’t stop ringing. Your e-mail needs to be constantly checked. Before you are even aware of it, time has flown by and it is well past your normal bedtime.

The stress and pressure of a job can also affect your sleep. Each night might be filled with worries and anxiety about what is going to happen tomorrow. Your body wants to rest, but your mind won’t stop spinning.

As a result, you toss and turn in bed late into the night. Maybe you fall asleep quickly but wake up in the middle of the night and can’t go back to sleep. Before long, the alarm clock says that it’s time to get up and start the day.

You need to try your best to leave your work at work. As much as it is possible, don’t bring your job home with you. You need time away to relax both your body and your mind. Set boundaries and protect your personal free time.

This will be very hard if you work from home. You will need to find ways to get out of the house to relax and unwind.

You should also find a way to get your worries out of your system during the day. Talk to one of your buddies about them. Release them at the gym. Simply make sure that your bed is a place of rest, not worry.

Full Schedules
Many men have schedules that are filled with much more than just work. They go to the gym for a regular workout. They play sports or go see the local teams in action. They work on the car or on projects around the house. They are involved with a civic group, fraternal order, or local church.

Single men go on dates or out on the town with friends. Married men pick up the kids from practice or help them with their homework. The list of people, places, and things that can exhaust a man’s time is endless.

The key is to set priorities and balance your time. Take an honest look at your schedule to see if you are doing too much. Some things are more urgent than others. Not everything has to be done today, and not everything has to be done by you.

Some things that are important can still be re-arranged so that you make better use of your time. Other things may need to be scaled back so you don’t do them as often or for so long. Still other things that are not a high priority may need to be eliminated right now. You can always come back to them if you free up more time in your schedule down the road.

As you are deciding which activities are important, make sure that sleeping is one of them. Put it at the top of your list, not at the bottom.

Life Changes
Life is full of changes that can have a big impact upon how you sleep. Some changes you expect, but others catch you by surprise. Negative changes will tend to disturb your sleep the most.

But positive changes can affect you too. Along with excitement, good changes bring new duties and stress that can keep you up at night.

Examples of these kinds of changes include the following:

Getting married
Having a baby
Starting a new job
Moving
Examples of the negative changes that can greatly affect your sleep include the following:

Losing a loved one
Losing a job
Getting divorced
Being in an auto accident
Having a major illness
Being involved in a lawsuit
Making a bad investment
These changes can cause you to have feelings of depression. For many men, it begins so slowly that they never become aware that they are depressed. Over time, it can progress to the point where despair is just a normal part of their lives.

Depression can greatly disrupt the quality of your sleep. You might lie in bed tossing and turning late into the night. You also might sleep for a long time with no motivation to get out of bed.

As poor sleep progresses, men stop taking care of their bodies in other ways. They stop eating and exercising regularly. They abuse alcohol and drugs. Overall, they may lose their usual interest and pleasure in the normal activities of daily life.

Men are more likely to keep these feelings of depression trapped inside. They don’t often deal with them openly. In some cases, these feelings one day explode in a violent outburst.

Depressed men often turn this violence on themselves. Statistics show that men are four times as likely as women to kill themselves.

Many men resist seeking help from a counselor. They fear that people will think something is “wrong” with them. They need to understand that these feelings are perfectly normal. But while they are normal, they can also be hazardous to their health.

If you are struggling with feelings of depression, then at least start by talking to a spouse, friend, doctor or minister. Any of them can help you decide if you need to see a counselor. Don’t fight this battle alone.

Bad Habits
Men can develop a number of habits that cause bad sleep. The use of alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine can all affect your sleep. You should avoid these substances in the afternoon and at night. Consuming them too close to your bedtime can keep you from sleeping well.

You may also eat big meals or exercise just before you go to bed. Both of these habits can also disturb your sleep. This can be hard to avoid if you have a lot going on in the evenings.

If needed, you might want to eat a bigger meal at lunch and a smaller meal for dinner. To fit in your workout, perhaps you can try to exercise before work or on your lunch break.

Men also may keep an irregular sleep schedule. They go to bed and wake up at different times every day. This can disrupt your internal body clock and keep you from sleeping soundly. You should try to wake up at the same time every day. This includes weekends and holidays. This will help to keep your internal clock set at the right time.

Try to avoid sleeping in later on the weekends to catch up on lost sleep. Instead, go to bed earlier at night when you are tired. You should also keep naps to less than one hour. Be sure to take them in the early afternoon so you are not wide awake at bedtime.

Medical Conditions
Many medical conditions can keep you from being able to sleep well. Some of these are only temporary. A sprained ankle, the flu, or minor surgery will disrupt your sleep for a short while. Other problems may stay with you for the rest of your life. These illnesses and medical conditions become more common as you grow older.

The following are examples of medical conditions that can greatly disturb your sleep:

Epilepsy
Asthma and other respiratory diseases
Heart disease
Arthritis
Medications used to treat these and other problems can also hinder you from getting quality sleep. Some drugs might make you jittery and keep you up at night. Others will cause you to be very sleepy during the day.

Discuss these medications with your doctor. Changing the dose or when you take the drug might make a big difference for you.

II. What Sleep Disorders Affect Men?

There are many men who are unable to get quality sleep even though they spend enough time in bed each night. It may take them a long time to fall asleep. Their sleep may be disrupted and broken. They may sleep through the night but still feel tired the next day.

These are all signs of sleep disorders that are common to men. Most men who have a sleep disorder are unaware of it. Even when they are aware, many times they will not seek help for it.

Detecting and treating a sleep disorder can cause a dramatic improvement in your sleep. This will allow you to sleep your best at night and feel your best during the day.

These are some of the most common sleep disorders that affect men:

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) occurs when the tissue in the back of the throat collapses during sleep. This keeps air from getting in to the lungs. This is very common, because the muscles inside the throat relax as you sleep.

Gravity then causes the tongue to fall back and block the airway. It can happen a few times a night or several hundred times per night.

These pauses in breathing briefly wake you up and disturb your sleep. This can cause you to be very tired the next day. Men are twice as likely as women to have OSA.

Being overweight and having a large neck size also greatly increase your risk of suffering from it. These men have more fatty tissue in their throat that can block their airway.

The primary signs of OSA are daytime sleepiness and loud snoring. Snoring is due to a partial blockage of the airway during sleep. It tends to increase as you age. There is a range of snoring from simple to severe.

Simple, primary snoring is “normal” and is mostly harmless. But loud, severe snoring with gasps and snorts is a cause for concern.

Many men do not even know that they snore. It is often a spouse or bed partner who detects the loud snoring problem.

Some men consider snoring to be a badge of honor. It is a sign of true masculinity. But they don’t realize that there are dangers that can come along with it.

Sleep apnea may make it hard for you to think or concentrate during the day. If left untreated, it may also put you at risk of heart disease, high blood pressure or diabetes.

Talk to your doctor if you snore loudly and are often tired during the day. He may refer you to a sleep specialist to find out if you have sleep apnea.

Losing weight and sleeping on one’s side may help in some mild cases of OSA. Severe sleep apnea requires medical treatment.

Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is the most common way to treat OSA in adults. CPAP provides a gentle and steady flow of air through a mask that is worn over the nose. This keeps the airway open and prevents pauses in breathing as you sleep.

Surgery or the use of an oral appliance (similar to a sports mouth guard) may be a better option for some people.

Narcolepsy
Narcolepsy is the term used to describe people who suffer from extreme sleepiness. It can cause you to suddenly fall asleep. These “sleep attacks” can happen while eating, walking or driving.

Narcolepsy usually starts between the ages of 12 and 20 and can last for your entire life. It does not get better without treatment.

Talk to your doctor if you are so tired that you might fall asleep at any time. He might refer you to a sleep specialist to find out if you have narcolepsy.

Medications can be used to treat narcolepsy and help you have a more normal pattern of being asleep and awake.

Delayed sleep phase disorder (DSP)
Busy work and social schedules can cause some men to get in the habit of going to bed very late. Delayed sleep phase disorder (DSP) is when you can only fall asleep a couple hours or more later than normal. This also causes you to have a hard time waking up early in the morning.

Your internal body clock makes you feel sleepy or alert at regular times every day. Everyone’s body has this natural timing system. A consistent habit of staying up and sleeping late can throw off the timing of your body clock. This can prevent you from being able to fall asleep at a decent time.

To correct DSP, try to avoid bright light in the late afternoon and evening. Keep the lights in the house dim and make your bedroom dark when you go to sleep. Then get plenty of bright sunlight in the morning and early afternoon.

This will help to keep your body clock set at the right time. The key is for your eyes to see the light. They send the signals to your brain that will be used to set your body clock. Your skin does not need to be exposed to the sunlight.

Jet lag disorder and shift work disorder
Your work conditions can also cause you to have jet lag or shift work disorders. Men who often travel long distances by airplane suffer from jet lag. A long trip quickly puts you in a place where you need to sleep and wake at a time that is different than what your internal body clock expects.

Your body clock does not have time to adjust right away to a new location due to the speed of the travel. This makes it very hard for you to sleep well.

Men who work rotating, early-morning or night shifts often suffer from shift work disorder. Your schedule requires you to work when your body wants to sleep. Then you have to try to sleep when your body expects to be awake. This causes you to have trouble sleeping and to be severely tired.

The use of melatonin supplements has been shown to help some people who suffer from jet lag. Melatonin is a hormone that is released by the brain at night. It seems to play a role in making you sleepy.

Light therapy also may help someone with jet lag or shift work. Light therapy is used to expose your eyes to intense amounts of light. This occurs for a specific and regular length of time.

This light is meant to affect your body clock in the same way that sunlight does. Talk to your doctor to see if either melatonin or light therapy might help you sleep better.

Inadequate sleep hygiene
This insomnia might also be called “bad sleep habits.” It involves the things that you normally do every day. These habits keep your sleep from being refreshing. They can also keep you from feeling alert during the day.

These activities are all things that you should be able to control. They include such things as drinking alcohol or caffeine at night, taking long naps during the day, or keeping an irregular sleep schedule.

A sleep specialist can use behavioral therapy or sleep hygiene training to help you overcome these bad habits.

III. How Can Men Sleep Better?

Most men will sleep much better if they simply develop the habits of good sleep hygiene. Sleep hygiene consists of basic tips that help you develop a pattern of healthy sleep. See the Resources section of this site to find out how anyone can start down the path to better sleep.

Some men think that drinking alcohol will help them sleep better. Alcohol makes you sleepy and might help you fall asleep faster. But it is also likely to cause you to wake up during the night. Many people wake up too early after drinking alcohol in the evening.

This may be a “rebound” from the use of alcohol. It stays in your system for a long time after you have a drink. To improve your sleep, you should not have any alcohol within six hours of your bedtime. You should also limit how much and how often you drink. The heavy use of alcohol can be harmful to your overall health.

Men sometimes see sleeping pills as the answer to their sleep problems. These drugs can be useful in helping some people sleep better. But pills should not be seen as a long-term solution for better sleep. Doctors rarely prescribe them for more than a few weeks at a time.

You can also find many sleep aids on the shelves of your local drugstore. Most of these use antihistamine, the same ingredient found in many cold medicines. While they can have a positive effect on your sleep, they can also make you very groggy during the day. They should be used with caution.

You should not depend upon drugs to help you sleep on a regular basis. Talk to your doctor about other options that will help improve your sleep.

If you have trouble sleeping for more than a month, talk to your doctor about it. Don’t think that it will just go away over time. He may encourage you to visit a sleep specialist to find the source of your sleeping difficulty.

Before going to see a specialist, complete a daily sleep diary for two weeks. The sleep diary will help the doctor see your sleeping patterns. This information gives the doctor clues about what is hindering your sleep and how to help you.

Your sleep is too important for you to ignore the signs of trouble. You have too much to gain by seeking help from a doctor. Don’t put it off. Your sleep will affect the quality of every other area of your life.

Reviewed by Norman J. Wilder, MD
Updated on May 11, 2006

If heartburn is disrupting your sleep, take note of the frequently and if necessary report it to your healthcare professional.

It is a common experience that a problem difficult at night is resolved in the morning after the committee of sleep has worked on it. ~John Steinbeck