Does this sound familiar? You’re exhausted and you can’t wait to get to sleep. In fact, you may have already fallen asleep on the couch. You get up and get into bed. Then in the middle of the night you wake up and find yourself looking at a clock that says 3:00 a.m.! Not only are you frustrated, but you have read that people who sleep less than seven hours die younger and last night and the night before you got …!
We need sleep. At least seven hours a night. Yet, how many articles have you read about the obsessed CEO who claims to get up at 4 AM seven days a week so that they can hit the treadmill before their 8 am morning staff meeting? Although, note how these same CEO’s embezzle and run off to a remote tropical island. Or, what about Edison? He claimed to sleep 4 hours a night but he once electrocuted an elephant. I guess you can draw your own conclusions!
I know I need more sleep. Yet, I’ve tried everything: exercise in the morning/exercise at night; no coffee; red wine; not eating at night/eating at night. I know that when I go on vacation, I sleep more and am more relaxed but much as I would like, I can’t go on vacation every day! And, just like most Americans, I’ve gotten so used to chronic sleep deprivation that maybe I don’t know what it feels like to feel fully alert, awake, and aware.
Google the terms “sleep and aging” and you’ll get millions of search results, a good indication of how common insomnia is among older adults. Moreover, there’s quite a bit of talk about insomnia, women and hormones. First they say that in your 30’s your hormones and child-bearing will cause the lack of sleep. Then there’s perimenopause (for about 8-10 years) that will do the same thing – what the heck?? Add menopause and post-menopause (another 10+ years) and your life is over — and without the joy of much sleep! (Don’t forget the cartoon machine that shows all the balls moving around – indicating that women have millions going at one time (causing insomnia) and men only have two!)
I’m not quite sure how I’m going to solve this problem. It’s not like there’s someone to do the laundry and clean up the kitchen each night before I go to sleep. Nor is there someone to pay the bills, answer my emails or help kids with homework. So where does that leave me? Since I like to get up by 5:30 a.m. (no comments please!), I am going to make a point of getting into bed by 10:30 at least 5 days a week. Maybe it’s like all those habits … the more we do it, the more ingrained it becomes. So, here’s a message to my kids: on my “early to bed” nights, the kitchen is now going to close at 10 p.m. and I am cutting all electricity off to your rooms by 10:30 … (that should help, right???).
Have a great day!
theyearof50 