Habits That Cause Sleep Woes
If you’re struggling with sleep woes, you’re not alone. In fact, trouble falling and staying asleep is a pretty common problem for people in recovery. According to one study, you have a five times higher risk of insomnia than the general population.
There are several reasons why addiction and poor sleep are bedfellows. For one, addiction can mess with your sleep cycles. In addition, you may have relied on your addictive habits (a nightcap or joint, for instance) to lull yourself to sleep. Throw anxiety, stress and depression in the mix and there’s no wonder why you’re tossing and turning night after night.
A chronic lack of sleep can make sticking to your sobriety and achieving your recovery goals even harder. That’s because insomnia has been linked with fatigue, mental fog, concentration troubles, difficulty making decisions and more.
The best way to help manage your sleep woes is to take a good look at your everyday habits. One of these sleep-stealing culprits may be to blame:
- Smoking cigarettes. Nicotine is a stimulant and, if you smoke a pack a day, you can lose 24 minutes of sleep per night, according to research.
- Drinking coffee late in the day. That midday coffee habit may be more harmful to your sleep than you think. Why? It can take up to 14 hours for caffeine to wear off completely.
- Bringing electronics to bed. Making your bedroom an electronics-free zone is one sleep habit you’ll want to stick with. The blue light from your smartphone or e-reader has been study-proven to suppress levels of the sleep-inducing hormone melatonin.
- Ignoring your mental health. If the above lifestyle changes aren’t helping, it may mean you need to talk to a mental health professional. Conditions like anxiety and depression have all been linked to insomnia.
Learning Good Sleep Habits at Seabrook
We offer our clients a variety of wellness programs, including sleep hygiene and stress management, along with our traditional addiction treatment. To learn more, call today: (888) 223-0298.
