Sleep can be an issue for many of us and living with dysautonomia doesn’t make it any easier. For years I struggled with insomnia… waking up at 3:00 am, then tossing and turning until time to get up for my day… feeling like the walking dead and not even being able to turn to caffeine for help! We all know that lack of sleep impacts our ability to carry out daily life tasks. Without adequate rest we have less patience to deal with loved ones, less brainpower to make good decisions, and less energy for all the things we need to get done. Besides that, the vagus nerve resets during sleep, a necessary function for everyone, especially those living with dysautonomia. So, if we want to live a vibrant life, getting a good night’s sleep is key. Beleiving this, I went on a mission to increase my quality of sleep and here’s what I found.

For one, hormones definitely play a role in our ability to get a good night’s sleep. The worst of my insomnia issues were always cyclical, falling during ovulation and just before or at the beginning of my period. Recognizing this I sought out a naturopath for help. She performed saliva hormone testing, as well as blood work, and recommended a treatment plan for my specific case. Among other changes, adding a low dose of progesterone from ovulation to menses helped my cause tremendously. So, if you think hormones could be a culprit for you, get tested!

Next, I began paying attention to how diet impacted me getting those beloved zzzs. I’m forewarning you, if you are emotionally tied to your red wine and carbs you may want to have some tissues handy. Here’s the deal, I enjoy a glass of red just as much as the next person and pizza, oh my god, my favorite food. However, they don’t help matters in the sleep department. If I have more than one glass of red wine it’s almost guaranteed that I will wake up during the wee morning hours sweaty, heart racing. Same with too much pizza! Now, sometimes life calls for more than one glass of wine. I get it! When that’s the case I opt for a lab tested, low sugar version to increase my odds of feeling great through the night and into the next day. If I still don’t sleep I chalk it up to a trade-off and try to squeeze a nap in the next day. Never forget, truly living is all about vitality and joy!

Now back to that pizza. We all love carbs, right? The issue is they can really jack with our insulin levels and heart rate making it difficult to get good quality sleep, especially if our body’s regulation system isn’t functioning properly, as is the case with dysautonomia. In the beginning of my experimentation process I had been adhering to a ketogenic diet most of the time. I had been eating that way for over a year to increase deficient energy levels and control erratic heart rate caused by POTS and NCS. As part of that process I’d allow myself grains or higher carbs one day a week to come out of ketosis for gut health, then I’d loop back in to keto, or I’d offer my body a few more carbs during my cycle if necessary. If you read How I Changed My Diet and What It’s Done for Me or Dysautonomia Tips and Tricks you may already remember that! However, the longer I stayed low carb the more I noticed a disturbance in my ability to rest at night, especially during the points in my cycle where sleep was already an issue. So, I decided to experiment with adding a few more carbs in the evening to see how I’d sleep and feel upon waking. Remember, one reason I had cut carbs was for increased energy during the day and a more stable heart rate so I wanted to make sure I didn’t mess with that! To my surprise I noticed a difference from night-time carbs almost right away. I was sleeping like a baby and still able to fully function the next day. After a few weeks of successfully having a little white rice or sweet potatoes with dinner or a small amount of raw honey for “dessert” and still feeling energized during the day I was on to something! For me, the key is to have just enough carbs to help with rest and not so many that it causes a racing heart or wipes me out the entire next day. So, start small and work your way up as needed. Trust me, finding the exact amount that works for you is worth the experimentation. This little shift has made a huge difference in both my quality and quantity of sleep. Generally speaking, these days I sleep through the night and get back to sleep more easily if I am awakened.

Finally, let’s talk light. In today’s eco-friendly culture LED lights have become all the rage. The issue is they can mess with our mitochondria and disrupt melatonin production (have your read Head Strong by Dave Asprey?). The fix? Choose a few lamps and light fixtures throughout your home and replace those LED bulbs with a non-LED, non-fluorescent version. Then, once dusk hits only use the non-LED lights. In our home we have specific switches we use after dusk and often opt for candlelight to make things extra cozy. This allows our bodies time to wind down, begin melatonin production, and signals to our brain that it’s time to rest. Another light tip, purchase blackout curtains and cover any electronic sources of light in the bedroom with black tape. Remember, we are evolutionary beings, tied to the rhythms of sun and moon, meaning light affects our sleep wake cycle. It’s much easier for the body to sleep when there are no signals to wake. That said, darken your rooms, people!

Now as the universe so often has it, synchronicity happened just as I was getting ready to publish this blog post. The day after writing I a Bulletproof Radio podcast was released dedicated to nothing other than sleep! So, if you’re really serious about upping your rest game I urge you to head on over to their YouTube site or iTunes Podcasts and have a listen. The episode is full of helpful information including more on the topics I have outlined here. For me, it was super neat to hear the “experts” talking about all the same things I have experienced and am teaching you!

In conclusion, I have found sleep to be one of the top influencers of my health and relationships. When I’m well rested everything seems better. That said, if you have other tips you’d like to share with our community feel free to do so in the comments section. I hope you have found these ideas helpful on your quest for vitality and joy. If you’d like more information or one-on-one support please contact me! I’d love to hear from you.

Life is a contradiction, embrace it with me!