If you live with fibromyalgia, then you have heard of the cliche that in order to have less pain, you need more sleep. As someone living with fibromyalgia, getting any sleep is difficult for someone suffering from chronic pain. If you need more sleep, there are ways to break the crazy chaos and establish a healthy sleep-wake cycle.
Not getting the sleep needed when you need it
It first starts when you get out of bed in the morning – tired, stiff, and ran over most of the time. You are so hit by fatigue you could easily slip under the covers and catch a few more hours of zzz’s. One eye is on the clock as you move through the day waiting for the hour you can get back in bed for the night. Only, when the night comes, you find yourself wide awake staring at the ceiling and pondering over the details of the universe and everything contained within it. The same as last night, and the night before that, and the night before that. This cycle is known by fibromyalgia and chronic pain sufferers all over the world.
Tips for Better Sleep
Getting sleep is difficult for those of us with fibromyalgia and other chronic illnesses. The little sleep we do get is oftentimes not quality sleep. And it’s essential for hurting bodies to get sleep in order to restore the body and lower pain levels. This article has tips for quality sleep so you can break the sleep-pain cycle.
How to Break the Sleep-Wake Cycle
Step 1
Creating a peaceful sleeping environment is one of the first steps to getting better sleep. This means no intruding lights or sounds, a comfortable bed, and a room temperature that’s suitable for you. It’s important to have no background noise such as the television playing or any lights shining on you (such as an alarm clock).
Step 2
It’s also good to establish a healthy nightly routine. A nightly routine includes transitioning smoothly from evening activities to bedtime such as setting a limit for screen time, clearing your head of any thoughts or worries, and turning off the television. It involves brushing your teeth, taking medications, and doing anything else you do prior to going to bed.
Step 3
If you are unable to fall asleep right away, leave your bed and bedroom and go to another part of your house. Do something that helps you fall asleep or become tired. Drinking warm tea, reading a book, or sitting quietly to work through any thoughts. Do NOT watch television or use your phone. The lights from these devices signal your brain that it’s awake time making sleep even more difficult. Do this whenever you have trouble falling back to sleep after waking.
Optional Step
You could also use meditation or sleep apps to help guide you to sleep. There are various free apps to listen to while trying to fall asleep. There are several guided visualization exercises that train the brain to relax and fall asleep and can be found in the app store. You could also check out this article.
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Brandi, This is some wonderful information. I have a friend who suffers from fibro and I’m so excited to pass this news and link on to her. Thank you.
I love to hear about someone passing information along to others with fibromyalgia! Please let me know if either of you have any questions! I’m always here to help.
I have heard of the connection of these two before and really think you can find some relief with natural healing from both. Great share there are so many who suffer with this.
Yes, I also believe natural healing can help with both. Not everyone can seek comfort in natural healing, so hopefully this information can help. Thanks for reading!
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It is a vicious cycle. My sleep isn’t consistently good but it’s better than it was when I worked full time. Being more physically active with my little one helos. But then Remicade nights are awful as I have hardly slept in spite of getting Benadryl today. Thanks for sharing with Small Victories Sunday linkup. Will pin tomorrow to our linkup board.
My sleep has improved when I changed some of my nightly habits. It’s not great, but better is good. Being physically active with the kids does help as long as I don’t overdo it. Thanks for stopping by!
Hi Brandi,
I’m a friend of Tanya’s and I came across your articles and blogs on her Pinterest board. I also have fibro and I’d like to invite you to share your articles with us at Create With Joy (I host several parties a week – Inspire Me Monday and Friendship Friday would be particularly suited for your health articles).
I have a number of readers in my community who also deal with fibro and other chronic health issues who would benefit from this info and would love meeting you as well!
Have a wonderful weekend as we ring in spring! 🙂
Thanks for stopping by! I’d love to connect during your link parties. Thanks for inviting me!
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