BellaOnline Forums Health and Fitness Geriatrics Napping

My naps have turned into full blown sleeping sessions. Lasting 5 hours or more. Am wondering if this psychologically bundles with my procrastination issues. Like as long as I nap I can avoid things.

It just might bundle procrastination... I have a doctorate in that. I would love to just be able to sleep five hours at a time. A nap would be a luxury.

Hi Jana and Sheryl, Thanks for your feedback on Napping. Did you mean to post your napping discussion as a Geriatrics Forum? If so, I wrote an article about sleep and older adults that you might find interesting as it lists reasons why people may not sleep well at night (and therefore be more prone to napping during the day). Of course, avoidance, stress and other mental health issues affect sleep and sometimes a sleep clinic is recommended by family doctors to discover causes. Here is the article:

As people age they tend to have a harder time falling asleep and more trouble staying asleep than when they were younger. It is a common misconception that sleep needs decline with age. In fact, research demonstrates that our sleep needs remain constant throughout adulthood.

Michael V. Vitiello, PhD, Editor-in-Chief of Sleep Medicine Reviews is based at the University of Washington School of Medicine, and reports that along with the physical changes that occur as we get older, changes to our sleep patterns are a part of the normal aging process.

Changes in the patterns of our sleep - what specialists call "sleep architecture" - may contribute to sleep problems. Sleep occurs in multiple stages including dreamless periods of light and deep sleep, and occasional periods of active dreaming (REM sleep). The sleep cycle is repeated several times during the night. Although total sleep time tends to remain constant, older people spend more time in the lighter stages of sleep than in deep sleep.

Many older adults, though certainly not all, also report being less satisfied with sleep and more tired during the day. Studies on the sleep habits of older Americans show an increase in the time it takes to fall asleep, an overall decline in REM sleep, and an increase in sleep fragmentation (waking up during the night) with age.

Research suggests that much of the sleep disturbance among older persons can be attributed to physical and psychiatric illnesses and the medications used to treat them. However, there are other types of sleep disorders that are more prevalent in older age:

• Insomnia - is fairly common in older age, and according to the National Sleep Foundation's 2003 Sleep in America poll, 44% of older persons experience one or more of the nighttime symptoms of insomnia at least a few nights per week or more.

•Snoring - is the primary cause of sleep disruption for approximately 90 million American adults; 37 million on a regular basis. Snoring is most commonly associated with persons who are overweight and the condition often becomes worse with age. Loud snoring is particularly serious as it can be a symptom of obstructive sleep apnea and is associated with high blood pressure and other health problems.

•Restless legs syndrome (RLS) - is a neurological movement disorder characterized by an irresistible urge to move the limbs. With RLS, unpleasant, tingling, creeping or pulling feelings occur mostly in the legs, become worse in the evening, and make it difficult to sleep through the night. Its prevalence increases with age and about 10% of people in North America and Europe are reported to experience RLS symptoms.

•Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) - is another common cause of sleep problems. The pain also makes it difficult to sleep.

Medical conditions such as diabetes mellitus, renal failure, and respiratory diseases, such as asthma and immune disorders, are all associated with sleep problems and disorders. Diseases such as Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis also commonly cause problems sleeping.

In general, people with poor health or chronic medical conditions have more sleep problems. For example, hypertension affects approximately 5 million Americans and is linked with snoring, sleep apnea, and other disorders.

If sleep problems persist, it is recommended that we discuss the issues with our physician or perhaps consider a sleep clinic where tests are conducted that can determine the cause of our lack of sleep.

My wife and I, both in our mid-70s, both suffer from insomnia. She goes to bed early and is awake for two or three hours in the middle of the night, when she reads herself back to sleep. I take one "sleep-aid", the night after two successive disturbed nights.

I used to have a nap of an hour or two most afternoons, but then I discovered (I forget how!) that eating bread is what caused me to doze off. So I cut bread out of my diet altogether. Now, the only time I need to nap is when I've over-eaten. I have to discipline myself to stop eating before I'm full.

I hope this discovery is useful to someone else here.

Thanks for this post Gordon!

My husband, especially suffers from insomnia - however, he's a big refrigerator visitor. Despite what I say, he denies any bad eating habits..

Well, we have been through a lot this year. We had a house fire in New York, me and the kids were on life support (no burns, thank the Lord,) and my husband at his wits end through it all. We were all in the hospital for a good 3 months off and on, especially myself. Had a stent put in my throat because of the damage through interbation (trachea stenosis) at one of the hospitals and now have pulmonary embolisms which were all intertwined with this disaster. So now we are in California with our family and have a place to live.

So to cap it all off, I was very active on my daily job working 48 hours per week, running around like a crazy person and loving it, to trying to think of something else to do with my talents (and I have, writing!)

So, often I have sleepless nights now. I can understand how my husband feels. I think once I feel secure again, this will subside. I think stressors in your life bring abnormal behaviour. Thoughts?

Gosh, Allyson, I can see why you have trouble sleeping. Try one of the things called "sleep aids" - 25 mg diphenhydramine. I buy cheapo generic tablets - 12 for about $1.20 here, and probably less in the US. The packet says "take two", but I (and my wife) only take one, and only when we've had a couple of sleepness nights on the trot. They don't send you to sleep, but what they do is send you *back* to sleep when you wake up. If you see what I mean! They're not addictive, but one can get a bit *dependent* on them if one takes them regularly.

Hi to all. I use melatonin to get to sleep.... sometimes also benadryl which helps my allergies and puts me to sleep. Just don't buy the "no drowsy" kind!

There are so many things that keep people up at night. Sleep is so important that we can't let sleeplessness go on for too long. In Allyson's case such huge trauma will take awhile to abate, and she and her family will have to take steps to feel as secure as possible while healing.

Some things that keep people awake is that they can't shut off the "worries." When we go to sleep and all is quiet, that's when the "worries" arrive. Some are legitimate, but many are "what ifs." The best way to shut the worries down at night is to tell yourself you will deal with the problem and write out an action plan the NEXT DAY. And then do it. That seems to help a lot of people who feel that it is the inaction on the same problem day after day that keeps them up at night.

I recognize that what was keeping me up was the issue that I may have made a wrong decision on where I finally retired. So I mapped out a plan with a timeline to make decisions along the way about how I was going to determine either my next move or the benefits of staying where I am. I have been sleeping much better since! I'm sure some other gnarly issue will come along, but as long as I stay action-oriented and face the issues as they arrive, I think that will help my sleeping.

This "face the music" plan won't work for every circumstance, of course, but it works for worries with potential solutions and also helps alleviate the "what if" worries. Regaining peace of mind after a serious trauma takes time and needs a lot of support from friends and family, and sometimes professional psychotherapy, to overcome.

Thanks for the advice Gordon, I appreciate it. I'll look for those in the pharmacy.

Lots of great advice there Pat, thank you!

I love napping - it's refreshing at any age :-)