Tag Archives: awake

Do your pets keep you awake?

06 Monday Jul 2020

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Don’t shoot the messenger here, but cats are more likely to ruin your sleep than dogs. Sleep specialist Dr. Michael Breus says dogs usually sleep through the night. But cats are more disruptive than any other animal because they’re nocturnal. In the wild, nighttime is when cats do a lot of their hunting. But a house cat will simply walk all over you, gallop around the house, or bat their toys around while you’re trying to sleep. And in order to get the rest you need, you may need to make your bedroom off-limits to your cats at night.

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Is your e-reader keeping you awake?

28 Tuesday Aug 2018

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If you don’t think your e-reader is keeping you awake – I have some stats to share with you. According to the journal Sleep Medicine, when people read a book on paper, versus an e‑reader, they fell asleep 28% faster and were 65% less likely to wake up during the night. It’s all down to the blue light emitted from back-lit e-readers. Yes, we’re a broken record on this, but it DOES make a difference. So if you love to read yourself to sleep, pick up a real book. 

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Nightmares have a silver lining:

25 Monday Sep 2017

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They mean you’re more creative! That’s according to the University of Montreal. For their study, they asked people who have regular nightmares to complete creativity tests. Participants also had their brains monitored while they slept. The result? People who have frequent nightmares also have a dreaming life that triggers the parts of the brain that govern creativity and positivity. And that creativity isn’t limited to just sleep. They also think more creatively while they’re awake.

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Not tired? DON’T go to bed!

17 Thursday Aug 2017

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When bedtime rolls around, if you’re not tired, DON’T go to bed and lie there awake… You’ll only condition yourself to associate your bed with staring at the ceiling and frustration. But you should associate it with peaceful slumber. So instead, stay up half an hour – or an hour – later. But set your alarm for the usual time the next day. According to the Annals Of Internal Medicine, that’ll help you get sleepy before you hit the hay.

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Are you having trouble getting to sleep?

13 Friday Jan 2017

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Maybe you’re emotionally wound up from watching the nightly news – or a gripping TV show. Try this: Read the most boring thing you can find. Sleep medicine specialist Dr. Christopher Winter calls it an anti-page-turner. Remember how you used to have to fight to keep your eyes open during reading assignments in school? That same impulse can help you fall asleep now, because reading helps the brain relax. It’s down to the repetition – page after page, line after line – which distracts you from thoughts that can keep you awake.

Having trouble sleeping?

28 Wednesday Dec 2016

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Stop paying bills or watching the financial news before bed. The National Sleep Foundation says 27% of people are kept awake by money worries. Instead, Dr. Rubin Naiman, a sleep specialist from the University of Arizona, says to watch a comedy before bed. Laughter reduces blood pressure and decreases your heart and respiratory rate, helping you relax.

Avoid these late night delights – unless you didn’t want to sleep.

02 Tuesday Aug 2016

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Here’s a quick list of foods sleep doctors say to avoid before bedtime – otherwise, they’ll keep you wide awake all night:

•First: Obviously anything with caffeine. Like soda, coffee, and chocolate – even coffee and chocolate ice cream. Would you believe a scoop of coffee ice cream has more caffeine than a can of cola or a cup of tea? Also, caffeine can linger in your system for up to 14 hours! And can increase the number of times you wake up at night, and decrease the total amount of sleep you get.

•Another food to avoid at bedtime? French fries – or anything fried and fatty. Research shows that high-fat foods push your digestive system into overdrive. Which can keep you awake.

•Finally, avoid really spicy foods. It’s not because they cause heartburn. It’s because they increase your core body temperature – and we need our body temperature to drop to achieve quality sleep.

Which is worse: Going to bed full, or hungry?

21 Thursday Apr 2016

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NYU sleep specialist, Dr. Rebecca Scott says going to bed full is worse. That’s because it can cause acid reflux, which can wake you up, or cause restless sleep. But going to bed with a growling stomach isn’t ideal either. Low blood sugar could also cause you to wake up in the middle of the night. So if you’re hungry before bed, eat a very small snack, like almonds or yogurt. The protein will digest slowly, so your stomach won’t rumble – but it won’t be too heavy or fatty and keep you awake.

Are you taking melatonin?

06 Friday Nov 2015

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If you’re popping melatonin to help you fall asleep, don’t think more is better. MIT scientists say taking a tiny dose – like point-3 milligrams – two hours before bed is more effective. That’s because a higher dose may linger in your system, making you drowsy during the day and then more awake at night.

Snoring could be waking you up at night!

25 Wednesday Mar 2015

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It can cause “micro-arousals” – that repeatedly wake you up for a second or two. That prevents you from getting deep, restorative sleep. But there’s a fun way to combat the problem. Sing. In a study, people who sang every day for 20 minutes snored less and had deeper sleep. That’s because singing strengthens the muscles in the soft palate and upper throat – the ones that are the primary cause of snoring.