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Good Morning America this is your Wakeup Call

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How do you sleep at night? Do you wake up too early or have a hard time waking up at all? If you wake up too early and can’t get back to sleep what can you do? You need to keep your room as dark as possible. Getting up to use the bathroom and trying to go back to sleep after you’ve turned on the light interrupts your sleep/wake cycle. Keep a night light on so you can find your way there. The best solutions for this problem is too eliminate or reduce the amount of liquids you consume at night. If this issue is persistent you might talk to your doctor. You could be suffering from overactive bladder. He may recommend physical therapy to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles. Watch out for other liquids like soup or fruit and vegetables that are mostly water; celery, watermelon or cucumbers to name a few. Read more »

Sleep Apnea and Congestive Heart Failure CHF take the Sleep Apnea Quiz

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Recently there was news of a high school alumnus, Danny that passed away in his sleep at the young age of 59. Shocked and saddened by the news, I found out that he died of congestive heart failure. Knowing that congestive heart failure has many symptoms and causes no one knew at the time of the funeral why this young, easy-going man had CHF without knowing he had it. Just yesterday I was told it was due to SLEEP APNEA! He had symptoms of sleep apnea for years and did nothing about it, because he didn’t know the signs or how life threatening sleep apnea can be. Sleep apnea is a major health issue that affects millions of people and they don’t even know they have it. Studies have discovered an association between sleep apnea and congestive heart failure. People with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may damage the right side of their heart because it has to pump harder to maintain the lungs attempt to overcome the airway obstruction. Nearly one half of the people in the study had not been diagnosed. Read more »

Dr Oz 4-Step Plan take Magnesium to Sleep Easy and Lose Weight

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Sleep deprivation may be the reason why you can’t lose weight. You can now learn how to sleep easy and lose weight with this 4-step plan by Dr. Oz and Dr. Michael Breus, author of The Sleep Doctor’s Diet Plan. Breus a.k.a. The Sleep Doctor is a clinical psychologist board certified in clinical sleep disorder and both a Diplomat of the American Board of Sleep Medicine and a Fellow of The American Academy of Sleep Medicine. He is the sleep expert on WebMD and appears regularly on television shows including Dr. Oz. He provides expert advice and guidance in leading national publications and web sites like the Huffington Post. Read more »

Meditation used to Overcome Insomnia

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Insomnia is America’s number one sleep complaint and many people will go to great lengths to fall asleep easy and stay asleep throughout the night. One women’s quest for a good night’s sleep ended up in a new book, Wide Awake, A Memoir of Insomnia that describes her three year journey to conquer her sleeplessness. She tried sleeping pills, psychotherapy, prayer, sleep music, ear plugs and even had her sleep evaluated in a sleep lab. Read more »

S.L.E.E.P. Tips

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Spring break is here and a lot of us are planning to get away for some fun and relaxation. The days before leaving can be hectic getting ready for your vacation; packing, buying last minute items, arranging hotel stay or flight arrangements etc. Do you find that you are too excited to sleep? I know what you’re thinking that you can make up the sleep you lost once you get to your destination, right? In the meantime you’re cranky and short with your family and coworkers. Losing sleep whether excited or worried/anxious even for a short period of time can cause memory loss, irritability, impaired physical judgment and lack of concentration. Here are some S.L.E.E.P. tips to help! Read more »

HELP I cant Sleep

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HELP I can’t sleep! What’s it called when you can’t sleep easy or wake up during the night? INSOMNIA! Many people can’t sleep at night and overtime prolonged sleep loss will affect how you function physically and mentally. Are you depressed, irritable, suffer from tremors or slur your speech? These are all symptoms of insomnia. Insomnia is also the cause for heart disease, diabetes and obesity. Insomnia can be classified as transient, acute, or chronic, according to Wikipedia.org: Read more »

Causes of Insomnia Part 10 Sleep Doesn’t Come Easy with ObamaCare RFID Chip

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Ok, I know that the ObamaCare RFID chip doesn't cause insomnia, but worrying about being micro-chipped and what is going to happen with my health insurance in 2014 can cause many sleepless nights. Is human micro-chipping Fact or Science Fiction? According to my research the new Obama 2012 healthcare plan has a hidden law that allows an RFID chip or what is known as the VeriChip to be imbedded in those on overnment programs (including Medicare individuals) to scan identification data and medical records. Besides the religious implications those individuals that are micro-chipped will be controlled by the government without their consent. The VeriChip consists of three connectors which activate the device with radio controlled frequency waves which can read, control and transfer information within one’s body and mind by satellite and computer network files. If the government can monitor every aspect of your life they can eventually control you! Read more »

Why do I wake up tired

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Did you get enough sleep last night? Did you remember to set your clocks ahead an hour for daylight savings time? How well do you adjust to the time change? For most people missing an hour on Sunday means a tired Monday and a quick nap to catch up. But for some, especially for night owls, that extra hour can take an entire week to get back their lost hours of sleep, which can cause irritability, lack of focus, workplace injuries and even is blamed for increased car accidents. While trying to adjust to daylight savings time sleep and naps may not be enough to make you feel refreshed in the morning, you need rest which isn’t the same as actually sleeping according to psychiatrist Matthew Edlund, MD former medical professor and author of The Power of Rest. Read more »

Sleep Easy with Dr. Oz Lettuce Opium

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Dr Oz as I have touted about natural alternatives to prescription and over –the-counter (OTC) sleep aids. Why? We see in the news about celebrity deaths due to prescription drug abuse and recent news articles like the one from The Washington Post that described a study that suggest people who take sleeping pills as Ambien, Lunesta, Retoril and Sonata were more likely to die 2 ½ years earlier than those that do not use these drugs, with the risk rising along with the amount of medicine taken. People prescribed 18 or fewer sleeping pills a year have are 3.6 times as likely to die as those didn’t take these drugs. Also people taking high doses were 35% more likely to develop a major cancer, not including melanoma during that period. Studies show that 6 to 10 percent of Americans take sleep aids! Read more »

Causes of Insomnia Part 9 Sleep Better with COPD

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COPD definition is a chronic obstructive lung disease associated with chronic bronchitis (long-term wet cough) and emphysema (breakdown of lungs over time) causing the lungs airways to narrow. This leads to a limitation of the flow of air to and from the lungs resulting in shortness of breath (dyspnea). This limitation is nonreversible and usually worsens over time. If you suffer from COPD sleeping is difficult and other health conditions like acid reflux, sleep apnea and even pregnancy can worsen the condition. Symptoms of COPD such as coughing, wheezing, chest pain or tightness make it hard to fall asleep easy and stay asleep during the night which results in insomnia. Read more »

Causes of Insomnia Part 8 Sleep Noise Pollution

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What is sleep noise pollution? Noise pollution can be defined as any noise that disrupts your sleep whether it is inside or outside your bedroom. Inside noise pollution can be better controlled unlike outside noises like traffic, loud neighbors or barking dogs. Not getting enough sleep from noise disruptions can have a negative impact on your health and cause insomnia. What are the causes of sleep noise pollution? Read more »

Causes of Insomnia Part 7 Perimenopause or Pre Menopause Symptoms

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Perimenopause, or pre menopause is the time in a women’s life when her ovaries start to produce less estrogen. Pre menopause lasts until menopause when the ovaries stop releasing eggs. In the last one or two years of pre menopause the decline of estrogen increases and many women experience menopausal symptoms. When does pre menopause start? It usually starts in a women’s 40, but can start as early as a women’s 30’s. How long does pre menopause last? It varies with each individual. The average is four year, but for some it may last a few months or continue for 10 years. Pre menopause officially ends after the first year a women has gone without having her period. Menopause on average occurs when women are 50-51 years of age, so the duration of pre menopause depends on when a women starts showing signs or menopausal symptoms. Read more »

Causes of Insomnia Part 6 Obstructive Sleep Apnea OSA

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Keeping up with today’s schedules, workloads and family life there seems to be little time to relax and take care of the most important person in your life…YOU. We tend to stay up too late at night to get all of our to-dos done before the next day. We lay in bed tossing and turning each night wondering if we haven’t forgotten anything we have to do. As time ticks by we get less and less sleep and many of us resort to some kind of sleep aid in an effort to avoid insomnia. Causes of insomnia can vary from the mild to the extreme, but there is one cause that gets overlooked and that is obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Why, because we tend to ignore the symptoms of OSA such as snoring and excessive daytime sleepiness because we don’t realize the connection between the two and/or the impact OSA has on one’s health. Also, OSA has joined type 2 diabetes as a condition largely associated with the national epidemic of obesity. Read more »

Causes of Insomnia Part 5 De-Stress to Rest

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Some of the causes of insomnia for a majority of the population is primarily stress and/or a sleep disruptors like uncontrollable noise, adjusting to a new babies sleep schedule, jet lag, night shift work that affect a person’s sleep sleep/wake cycle. If a person suffers from insomnia more than a month the symptoms become more serious see Causes of Insomnia Part 4 Symptoms of Major Depression for more information. However, short term insomnia's (under a month) number one cause is stress and not being able to sleep only makes your stress worse. Secondly, you need to look at your diet as many foods like those that contain caffeine such as tea, coffee, sodas and chocolate can contribute to the feeling of stress and sleepless nights. Changes in your diet can help you to overcome anxiety that will help you sleep better and is the first step to successful weight loss. Read more »

Causes of Insomnia Part 4 Major Depression Symptoms

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What is depression? Depression is a medical illness that involves both the mind and body. Depression can be called major depressive disorder, clinical depression and major depression as it affects how we act, think and feel. Depression can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems that can affect your daily lives or be severe enough to feel that life just isn’t worth living. From time to time many of us suffer from feelings of melancholy but we usually snap out of it and move on with our lives. Depression is a chronic illness that requires long-term medical treatment involving medication and counseling. What are the major depression symptoms? Read more »

Causes of Insomnia Part 3 New Year’s Resolution

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Getting through the holiday season can be stressful with office parties, family dinners, dealing with crowded stores and finding those perfect gifts. Have you ever asked yourself how the holiday season is affecting your sleep? Stress is the number one nonmedical reason people suffer from insomnia. Now is the time of year many people make a New Year’s Resolution. How many of you have decided this year is the year I will drop a few pounds? STOP the stress about dieting and losing weight and make your New Year’s Resolution GET MORE SLEEP! Here are some reasons getting a good night’s sleep is essential for your mind and body. Read more »

Causes of Insomnia Part 2 Clinophobia The Fear of Going to Bed

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Clinophobia (derived from the Greek “klinein” as to bend, slope or incline during sleep and “phobos” meaning fear) is an abnormal and persistent fear of going to bed. Unlike somniphobia the fear of going to sleep that is a symptom of an anxiety disorder usually caused by an apprehension about not being able to wake up or frightened of not being aware of what goes on around them as they sleep. Even though clinophobia sufferers realize that going to bed is normal and is not a threat to their well-being, they worry about having uncontrollable nightmares, not being able to fall asleep easy or wetting the bed. If they do fall asleep, they wake often and overtime this phobia causes insomnia. Read more »

Causes of Insomnia Part 1 Grief Cycle

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Last Monday I had to lay my father to rest. Dad was 82 and even though some consider that he lived a full life no one understands the pain of losing a parent. 12 million Americans lose a parent annually and adult children often feel abandonment and panic when caught by a sudden death which can lead to depression and insomnia. We may live many years, but we will always be a child in relation to our parents. Our lives are full with our careers, family, friends but we naturally expect our parents to be there for us. When they die our world becomes a different place. No matter what age or how their death happened, the pain for the surviving adult children can be very hard. Read more »

Kindle for Sleep Kindle about Sleep

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Do you like to read before going to bed at night because it helps you to relax? Reading is another popular way to relax. Pick something that you enjoy reading, something with a nice pace and nothing too scary. Curl up in a comfy spot and read away. Before you know it, you will be ready for bed and relaxed enough to go right to sleep. Do you read from a book or one of the new electronic e-readers like iPad or Kindle? Read more »

Lark Personal Sleep Coach

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Lark announced today its association with sleep experts on its new Personal Sleep Coach. Lark the same company that has the first, patent-pending silent and natural-feeling wake-up silent alarm clock and wireless sleep tracker. The Personal Sleep Coach goes beyond simple sleep monitoring; it will help you to understand your sleep patterns and sleep health while giving you ideas on how to improve the quality and quantity of your sleep. Over time your Personal Sleep Coach will track your improvement and urges you to improve with words of encouragement. The new Lark coaching experience is a great Christmas gadget gift for those who have trouble falling asleep easy or can’t get enough sleep during the night. Read more »