Yesterday I was in a long discussion with Dr. Whitney Gabhart, ND, expert in women’s hormones. She made the comment, “How to feel better? First things first:
- Eight hours of sleep
- Healthy eating
- Gut health-elimination.”
Right off the top, how many of us get eight hours of sleep?
A maddening symptom of hormone imbalance is insomnia. Imagine the toll on your body, not to mention the quality of your life, when you are not able to sleep . . . night after night, month after month, year after year. When you experience a restful night’s sleep, you feel good all over, and when you don’t, life is miserable and just about everything is negatively impacted.
Insomnia is such a serious problem in our society today that I want to spend some extra time on this particular stressor, one of the greatest of them all. Being the queen of insomnia, I will first share some common suggestions that you can read just about anywhere. I will then share the one suggestion that I think we most often miss, the one that may have the most significant impact. However, if you are experiencing other symptoms of hormone imbalance besides insomnia, the first place to start is with hormone testing and an experienced health care practitioner who can help you get back into balance. When your glands and hormones are out of balance, there are physiological reasons that prevent you from sleeping, no matter what you do to try to induce sleep.
Frequently cited suggestions to help you enjoy a restful night’s sleep include the following:
- Include exercise as a routine part of your life
- Avoid large meals, alcohol, and caffeine late in the evening
- Do not allow a TV or computer to reside in your bedroom
- Use the bedroom for sleeping and sex only
- Maintain a comfortable room temperature
- Wear nonbinding, comfortable clothing
- Make sure your mattress and pillow are comfortable and provide body alignment and support
- Muffle outside noises with a fan
- Take a warm bath or consume a warm drink before going to bed
- Go to bed the same time each night
- Engage in relaxation techniques, deep breathing, or meditation
- Don’t obsess about not sleeping
In addition, the internet and health food stores are full of all sorts of supplementation remedies. However, the question I ask is, “What is the root cause resulting in the need for supplementation?” And that question leads me to tomorrow’s discussion of the one suggestion we most often miss…
