We’ve all been there. It’s midnight, and you have to wake up extra early to study for your test the next day, so you decide that it’s time to go to bed. You get in your comfiest PJs and get under the covers, hoping that within 5 minutes you’ll be out like a light. But, instead you lay there; tossing and turning every 10 seconds, taking a break every once in a while to stare up at the dark ceiling. You think to yourself, “Why can I never fall asleep when I need to?” Minutes, maybe even hours pass and there you are, still wide awake and frustrated as ever. You get a drink of water, go to the bathroom and yet nothing seems to help. It’s not the wrong choice of pajamas causing your inability to fall asleep; it’s what you may have done throughout the day that’s causing you to lay there helpless. Here are the top 6 reasons you can’t fall asleep at night.
1) Too much caffeine: You have a huge test the next day and need to find a way to stay up really late to cram everything in last minute. Your little helper is called caffeine. Whether you took a 5-hour energy or drank a coffee, having too much caffeine in your body before sleep can have you lying in bed for hours. There is a molecule called adenosine, which I’m sure anyone who has taken a Biology class before has heard of. Adenosine promotes sleep and while we want that little molecule to help us more than ever right now, caffeine blocks the effects of adenosine, making us more awake than ever. At this point, your only solution is to wait for the caffeine to wear off. Next time, try a bottle of water to help boost your energy, and definitely lay off the coffee.
2) You slept in too late: During the weekdays we find ourselves waking up relatively around the same time each day especially when we have class. On the weekends when most of us get a chance to sleep in until anywhere from 11 to 2, we acquire more sleep than our bodies are used to. When it’s time to go to bed that night, our bodies are not ready to fall asleep. Our brain isn’t ready for sleep yet, because you haven’t been awake for the “x” amount of hours that you normally are each day. To help with this, try to wake up and go to bed around the same time every day. This way your sleep patterns won’t be disturbed, and you should find yourself having a regular night’s sleep.
3) You used your computer/phone too close to bedtime: In the middle of our brain is a tiny region called the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). This tiny region is responsible for controlling a very important part of our sleep/wake cycle called our circadian rhythm. Our SCN is extremely sensitive to light. When we are sitting in bed waiting to fall asleep the darkness tells our SCN that it is time to go to bed, which happens to be in accordance with our circadian rhythm. When we lay in bed before we are about to fall asleep, writing a paper, or scrolling through Facebook on our phone, the smallest amount of light emitted deactivates our SCN, therefore creating a sense of “daylight” to our brains. When this happens our circadian rhythm is off and tells our brain that it is time to wake up. So from now on, you shouldn’t scroll through your social media feeds right before bed; this way you can ensure that your brain knows it is time to fall asleep.
4) You Are Stressed: You’ve probably heard the saying, “You’ve got too much on your mind.” Well whoever told you that was right; sleep deprivation has many negative effects on our health and body, but one main influence is our mood and what is on our mind. Since we are in college now, we seem to find ourselves going days, and possibly weeks at a time being continually stressed about tests, work, roommates, etc. When your body is stressed, you not only have trouble falling asleep, but you also have trouble staying asleep. Not too mention that stress has multiple side effects like high blood pressure and heart disease. Definitely two things we don’t want.
5) You Don’t Have Proper Hygiene: No, I’m not talking about showering and brushing your teeth, but good hygiene for your bed! The best thing to do for your room is to create the most comfortable sleeping environment. Pick your favorite sheets and comforter for your bed. Also keep your bed only for sleep (and sex). Although it might be comfortable, you should get a desk or a different comfy chair to do your homework and read in. This will ensure that whenever you hop into bed, you know that it is time to go to sleep.
6) You Exercised Too Late: Exercising too late increases heart rate and breathing, which makes your body work harder to keep everything in homeostasis. By not exercising too close to bed, you have more time to relax and get yourself calm, two very important factors for a good night’s sleep.
So while you may have been struggling to fall asleep lately, you can now be cautious of your daily activities that may have kept you up at night. Hopefully you will have no problem catching some Zzzz’s when you want to!
Photo Credit:
http://www.elyciasang.com/2010/11/im-nocturnal-human.html
Source:
Dement, William, Roth, Thomas, Kryger, Meir. “Principles and Practice of Sleep Medicine.” Normal Sleep and Its Variations. Ed 5. Saunders, 2010. 1-11. Print.