If so, you might be happy to know that you are not alone. A recent National Sleep Foundation poll has found that 1 in 4 Americans say that concerns and worries over personal finances, fear of job loss, and the economy is keeping them up at night. 

Instead of sleeping, we are spending more time tossing and turning and watching late night television shows.

We are also taking more drugs. 

Prescriptions for sleep medications has also grown, topping 56 million in 2008. Good news, I guess, for the pharmaceutical companies selling GABA-enhancing  ‘Z drugs’  (Ambien, Lunesta, Rozerem) that  promote sleep, decrease anxiety or relax muscles.

But while these pills may have their upside in that they help you sleep, there is also a  downside -  a whole list of adverse reactions ranging from next-day drowsiness to memory loss and drug dependence.

A National Institutes of Health-funded analysis,  published in 2005,  even indicates that the upside might not even be all that great. Their study reported that these ‘Z drugs’ only reduced the average time it took to fall asleep by around 18 minutes. Worse yet, the total increased sleeping time was only about 28 minutes.

Which should really make you ask, ‘are the adverse reactions worth it?’

So what’s the answer?

 What’s the best way to deal with insomnia?

Well, many sleep experts skipping the pills and trying to fall asleep on our own. But that might be easier said than done.

But a good place to start is by checking out these sleep tips from Gayle Greene, a bona fide insomniac and author of the book Insomniac.

(image source)

Post from: Healthbolt

So when I was contacted by a PR person and asked if I wanted to review a couple of Tempur-pedic pillows, I was all for it. But I figured that they wouldn’t want to send them all the way out to New Zealand.  Surprisingly they did.

The first thing I noticed when opening the large box that contained the two pillows – a comfort pillow and a  neck pillow – was a strong chemical odor. Not unusual apparently, but probably more pronounced due the distance travelled. A little sticker on both pillows indicated that the smell would go away after a couple of days. The reality was, at least for me, that the odor lingered for a couple of weeks during which time the pillows spent a great deal of time outside airing.

Once the smell dissipated, the testing began. First up, the neck pillow (price range $79 – $159). This oddly shaped pillow ‘that’s ergonomically contoured to support your head, neck, and spine in perfect alignment’ lasted all of five minutes before I threw it off the bed. I tried a couple of more times over the weekend but simply could not get comfortable with it. Yes, I know it’s meant to provide support for the neck but all it seemed to do was give me a neck ache.

But then not all pillows are going to suit all people.

By Monday, I decided that the only way to get a true test of this neck pillow would be to get someone else to trial it. And I knew the perfect person – a colleague at work who had suffered from a neck injury a few years ago. So I packed it back up and took it to work. A week later, a very happy colleague pronounced that, for her, the neck pillow was just the thing. While it took a few nights to get used to it, she found that  the ‘neck pillow was excellent, soft enough for comfort but firm enough for support. Since using the pillow, there was less tingling in the left arm/hand and less neck pain.’ 

Meanwhile, I started testing the more traditionally shaped comfort pillow (price range $79 – $159) and found it more to my liking. It did take a week or so to get used to the heaviness of the pillow (made from viscoelastic material, they are not light and should never be used in a pillow fight ). But once I did, I found that the comfort pillow lived up to it’s name in comfort and sleep. It is, I’ve decided, a keeper.

Which brings me to an important question? How do you choose a pillow to buy? After all, it’s not something that is all that easy to return it doesn’t suit. Not a real issue when buying cheap pillows. But Tempur-pedic pillows are not cheap. So my suggestion would be to do your research and figure out what type of pillow you are looking for.  And then go shopping a few pillows and take them over to a display bed, lie down, and rest your head on a pillow or two. It might just help.

Tempur-pedic pillows, which come in a variety of shapes and sizes, all come with removable, washable allergen and mite resistant covers.

Head on over to the Tempur-pedic website to find out more about their pillows. They also sell beds, and office and travel products.

Post from: Healthbolt

So what’s a tired soul to do?

Pay to take a nap. In a pod.

That’s right, a new craze called nap pods are hitting the scene, and for about a buck a minute, you can pay to be temporarily transported to dreamland in the nap pod of your choice.

Going with the alpha pod leaves you with a spa-like experience, since it releases aromas and has a heated, vibrating bed, a CD player and headphones. In essence, the real world around you just disappears. The energy pod, on the other hand, reclines and has headphones with music piped in.

I’m sure by now most of us know the benefits of a power nap. But is a midday rest worth spending money on? Those who have tried the pods insist it’s a more refreshing nap, in part because of the solidarity of it, and totally worth the moola.

I must say, I’d be tempted to try it. But I can’t say I’d snooze in a pod with any regularity. How about you?

Story source (with photos of nap pods)

Post from: Healthbolt

Image details: Man sleeping in bed served by picapp.com

I came across a fun article recently about sleep position and what it says about your personality. Check it out and then leave us a comment to let us know if you agree.

Back Sleeper: You’re a leader! Since this position reveals the most skin, it shows you’re comfortable leaving yourself open to vulnerability because you’re so confident. If this is you, you’re part of only 8% of the population who sleeps on their backs.

Side Sleeper: Since this is somewhere between your back and stomach, this position shows that you’re a friendly, easy-going person. You enjoy meeting new people and you’re quite trusting.

Stomach Sleeper: This position represents a “free-fall” type position, and shows that you’re an adventurer, through and through. You do tend to keep your emotional side private, sharing those thoughts only with your closest of friends and family.

Fetal Position Sleeper: A sensitive flower, you are. Curling up under your covers is your way of letting your subconscious pull itself back together. By day, you take creative risks and you’re full of vigor and creativity. Expending all that energy by day makes sleep a therapeutic necessity to you.

A Flopper: If you flop and change positions all night, it means you’re an adaptable soul. Some people call you “complicated”, but really, you are just good at finding new ways to do things. Incidentally, if this is you, you share company with only 5% of other sleepers who change positions regularly.

Story Source: Woman’s World Magazine

Post from: Healthbolt

Image details: Dry spaghetti pasta served by picapp.com

Got a thing for carbs? First of all, welcome to the club. I am the Carbohydrates Anonymous Prez, nicetameetcha.

Second, there is hope for us yet.

If pastas, breads and potatoes make your heart sing, perhaps you’re not getting deep enough sleep at night.

Huh?

Yep, evidently, sound sleeping helps regulate the hormones in charge of carb cravings and the blood sugar spikes often associated with them. It’s important to remember even the smallest of noises can disrupt your rest, so try using earplugs or a white noise machine for those carb-crunching Zzzzz’s you so desperately need.

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Image details: Thinkstock Single Image Set served by picapp.com

The lovely ladies at Alzheimer’s Notes inform us that today is National Siesta Day. Coincidentally, it’s also my birthday. Excuse me while I take that as a sign that I should be spending my Big Day snoozing.

Actually, that’s not such a bad idea. Along with the host of reasons the Siesta Awareness site gives us to nap, here’s another: Napping at least 3 days a week leaves you 37% less likely to keel over from heart disease than someone who never naps. This from a study of over 23,000 people!

Wouldn’t you have loved to been a subject in that study? And wouldn’t it be nice if instead of blood pressure meds and low cholesterol diets, doctors prescribed 30 minute naps instead?

Now there’s a birthday wish I’d love to come true.

Nap on, people. Nap on!

Post from: Healthbolt

Image details: Portrait of a young woman sleeping fully dressed on a white bed served by picapp.com

Well, you don’t have to tell me twice to follow this advice:

Get more sleep!

So the deal here is that we can go about our business, scraping for anything remotely resembling rest, or we can make sleep a priority and lose weight. Boy, I’m just not sure on that one. Lemme think a sec…

Okay, yeah, I’ll play. I am officially on board with the findings that too-little sleep ends with a 40% increase in cortisol in the blood (cortisol is a stress hormone that’s been proven to slow down metabolism). Not only that, but you might also experience a whopping 33% increase in hunger pangs and cravings, which you know you’re bound to give in to. No thanks.

Sounds like a much better plan to work at getting those elusive seven blissful hours of snooze time, don’tcha think? Me too.

Post from: Healthbolt

Image details: Couple Sleeping served by picapp.com

Is sleep that elusive thing that is so close for you, yet so far away? Well listen up, people – literally.

Since a good night’s rest is essential for the purposes of problem-solving and gaining a fresh perspective, you really need to do whatever’s in your power to get that shut eye.

And according to the Journal of Advanced Nursing, simply listening to soft, serene music for about 45 minutes before slumber time may be an easy fix. In fact, people who did so were found to sleep deeper and longer. Not only that, they also woke up more alert the next day than those who didn’t didn’t listen to restful music.

See, that iPod’s good for something other than drowning out the sound of fighting kids, now isn’t it? (Although that’s pretty important, too.)

Good night.

Zzzzzzzzzzz….

Post from: Healthbolt