As seductive as a warm bed may be on a cold morning, staying in bed too long can lead to disrupted sleep and a sleep-sapping case of the winter blues. These are the times when we need to resist the urge to hibernate and force ourselves to get going. Here are some tips to keep the winter chill from disturbing your sleep and your mood. 1) Don’t surrender to sleep inertia. Let’s face it, waking up is hard to do particularly when facing the cold reality of a dark winter’s morning. Thanks to Celebrex commercials we are all very familiar with Newton’s First Law — “A body at rest tends to stay at rest, while a body in motion stays in motion.” A similar construct applies to sleep, which we call “sleep inertia.” Simply stated, it is very difficult for your brain to make an abrupt shift from a sleeping state into a wake state. In other words, a body at rests tends to want to stay that way. When we are forced to wake up abruptly, our brains are essentially in an in-between state — not fully awake, and not fully asleep. This results in feelings of grogginess and fatigue that can last for a few minutes, an hour, or longer. Although there is no real “remedy” for sleep inertia, there are some things you can do to reduce the intensity or duration of this uncomfortable transitional state. Fighting Sleep Inertia: 10 Tips For Waking Up Refreshed Sleep inertia is something that occurs when a person is woken suddenly from the deepest stages of sleep. When this occurs, the body's sleep cycle is interrupted, resulting in diminished functions and extreme grogginess. Here are 10 tips for fighting sleep inertia and waking up refreshed. Maintaining a regular sleep schedule based on sufficient hours of quality sleep will allow you to avoid the increased risk of sleep inertia that comes from sleep deprivation. And now that you know that sleep inertia is a normal biological state with no known remedy, my best advice is to just force yourself out of bed as quickly as possible. Don’t think about it. Use the invigoratingly cold temperatures to your advantage by throwing the covers off and immediately putting your feet on the floor. Once you’ve done that, the hardest part of the battle is done. A few jumping jacks, push-ups or running in place before beelining to the warm shower, can help get the blood pumping and shake the cobwebs off. Maintain a Schedule Circadian rhythms, or the body's natural sleep/wake cycle is very sensitive. Even minor changes to a person's schedule can cause sleep disturbances. To avoid this, it's important to maintain the same routines, whether it's a weekday or a weekend. Often if people don't work on the weekends, they will stay up later and then have hard time going to sleep on Sunday, when they have to prepare for work the next day. So by maintaining a regular bed time and waking time, the body won't experience as many sleep disturbances. Avoid Caffeine in the Evening, But Drink Up in the Morning Caffeine is a powerful stimulant. While many people don't feel any affects from a cup of coffee, the body definitely responds. Consuming caffeine in the afternoon and evening can linger well into the night, wreaking havoc on the body's sleep rhythms. However, caffeine in the morning can help give the body the jolt it needs shake off the effects of sleep inertia. If functioning is a problem first thing in the morning, try a coffee maker with a timer and leave it set up the night before so that the coffee is ready when it's time to wake up. Exercise, But Not Too Late Exercise is a known energy booster. By exercising at night, one might think that they are going to tire themselves out, but the opposite will actually happen. By exercising in the morning or early afternoon, a person will get an energy boost to get rid of sleep inertia and be ready to sleep well at night. Be Careful with Napping Napping is a great way to boost energy during the day if one is feeling groggy, but it can actually cause sleep inertia if not careful. The reason is that if someone naps for too long, they progress into a deeper level of sleep, and when they wake, they will experience sleep inertia. If someone is going to nap, be sure to avoid dark places as this will make the body think its night time, and keep the nap to one hour or less. Anything more can cause sleep inertia when waking as well as make sleeping at night difficult. Set the Alarm Clock Earlier than Needed If waking up is a problem for some people, they should set the alarm to go off earlier than they actually need to get up. This will give them a buffer to ensure that they aren't late. For those with extreme sleep inertia, it may be necessary to set an alarm to go off in intervals, say every 10 minutes, to ensure that they don't fall back to sleep or just ignore the first alarm. It also helps to place the alarm on the other side of the room so that the person has to get up to turn it off. Avoid Dark Shades or Blinds in the Bedroom Since the body's circadian rhythm responds to light, it's important to make sure that the light cues from the environment are not interrupted. This is particularly difficult for those who work second and third shift, because they need to sleep when it's light out. This often leads to a condition called "shift work disorder." Use regular window treatments in the bedroom so that the natural light from the environment can help regulate the body. Try a Zeo or Sleep Tracker These are great devices for anyone who has chronic sleep problems. These are monitors that attach to body and track sleep. The information can then be downloaded to the computer so that a person can track how their sleeping and even share that information with their doctor, helping to pinpoint problems which lead to sleep inertia. Some even have features that are specifically designed to help people avoid sleep inertia. Keep a Journal It may seem funny, but often the things that trouble sleep are the things that trouble people in their daily lives. Relationship concerns, financial concerns, work concerns and the like all lead to people being unable to sleep properly because the mind doesn't relax. By keeping a journal and writing down the things that are going on in one's life, it gets it out of the mind and allows someone to come back and deal with the problem rested. Jump Out of Bed...Literally By jumping up out of the bed, the body gets a sudden jolt of energy that will counter the effects of sleep inertia. Any type of physical exercise in the morning will help clear the cobwebs, so try working a morning workout into the routine before it's time to walk out the door. Melatonin Light is a powerful thing. Darkness triggers the body to release melatonin which is what makes us sleepy at night. If falling asleep at a decent hour is a problem, try a melatonin supplement. They are available inexpensively over-the-counter. This can help alleviate sleep inertia by making sure that a person gets enough sleep to wake rested. Sleep inertia can be a serious problem, but it's by using these tips, people can find some relief and hopefully find a better night sleep. 2) Consider buying a light box. With the temperatures as dangerously cold as they have been, many of us are doing everything we can to limit our time outside, resulting in reduced exposure to light. Seasonal affective disorder (SAD), a type of depression that usually strikes during the winter, is thought to be caused by lack of sunlight. Reduced exposure to light can disturb your internal biological clock (circadian rhythm) and your sleep-wake cycle, leading to poor sleep quality and depressed mood, irritability, and fatigue during the day. Researchers from the University of Chicago found that office workers that are exposed to natural light are more physically active and sleep an average of 46 minutes longer at night than their sunlight deprived colleagues. A relatively inexpensive ($100 or less) light box can provide hope for the windowless. I recommend using a light box of 10,000 lux for approximately 30 minutes each morning, immediately upon awakening. You can read a book or do your make-up as you sit in front of the light box and get some energy-generating morning light to kick-start your day, and set yourself up for a more restful sleep the upcoming night. 3) Reward yourself with some kindness. These temperatures are unpleasant, there’s no way around it, but taking care of yourself and finding little moments of pleasure during the day can help you avoid the winter blues and keep your sleep schedule intact. Show yourself some kindness with a special latte (decaf if it’s late in the day, of course) or other treat. Give yourself the time to try a new exercise class — now would be a great time to try out the “hot yoga” craze — get a good workout and actually feel too hot for a change. The idea here is to reduce the tendency to slip into negative moods by increasing the amount of pleasurable activities in your life. Take some time and write yourself a list of practical, but pleasurable activities and make sure to do at least one per day. Having a really down day, boost it up to two. Source 1 Source 2
