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Fibromyalgia Pain At Night
10 Tips to a Better Sleep
By Jeanie Lerche Davis
WebMD Feature
Do
you toss and turn at night because of fibromyalgia
pain or discomfort?
"People with fibromyalgia tend to have very
disturbed sleep," says Doris Cope, MD, director of
Pain Management at the University of Pittsburgh
School of Medicine. "Even if they sleep 10 hours a
night, they still feel fatigued, don't feel rested."
Research shows that with fibromyalgia, there is an
automatic arousal in the brain during sleep.
Frequent disruptions prevent the important
restorative processes from occurring. Growth hormone
is mostly produced during sleep. Without restorative
sleep and the surge of growth hormone, muscles don’t
heal and neurotransmitters (like the mood chemical
serotonin) are not replenished. The lack of a good
night’s sleep makes people with fibromyalgia wake up
feeling tired and fatigued.
The
result: The body can't recuperate from the day's
stresses -- all of which overwhelms the system,
creating a great sensitivity to pain. Widespread
pain, sleep problems, anxiety, depression, fatigue,
and memory difficulties are all symptoms of
fibromyalgia.
Insomnia takes many forms -- trouble falling asleep,
waking up often during the night, having trouble
going back to sleep, and waking up too early in the
morning. Smoothing out those sleep problems -- and
helping people get the deep sleep their bodies need
-- helps fibromyalgia pain improve significantly,
research shows.
Medications can help enhance sleep and relieve pain.
But doctors also advocate lifestyle changes to help
sleep come naturally.
Tips to Get Better Sleep With
Fibromyalgia
Creating a comfort zone at home is key to better
sleep, whether you have fibromyalgia or not. It's
all about easing into bedtime feeling relaxed -- and
staying relaxed so you sleep through the night.
These 10 tips can help people sleep
better:
-
Enjoy a soothing (warm) bath in the evening.
-
Brush your body with a loofah or long-handled
brush in the bath.
-
Ease painful tender points with a self-massage
device (like a tennis ball).
-
Do yoga and stretching exercises to relax.
-
Listen to calming music.
-
Meditate to tame intrusive thoughts and tension.
-
Sleep in a darkened room. Try an eye mask if
necessary.
-
Keep the room as quiet as possible (or use a
white-noise machine).
-
Make sure the room temperature is comfortable.
-
Avoid foods that contain caffeine, including
teas, colas, and chocolate.
Therapies to Treat Insomnia When You
Have Fibromyalgia
If
you're still having sleep problems, several
therapies can help, including biofeedback,
relaxation training, stress reduction, and cognitive
therapy. A psychologist who specializes in sleep
disorders can discuss these therapies with you.
The
therapies help people handle stress better, which
helps control fibromyalgia episodes, says Doris
Cope, MD, director of Pain Management at the
University of Pittsburgh Medical School.
"Fibromyalgia comes and goes," she tells WebMD.
"When you're stressed out, that's when it's worse."
That's when you're most likely to have insomnia,
too.
Medications can also help ease fibromyalgia pain at
night, or directly treat insomnia. Medications to
ease fibromyalgia at night include antidepressants,
anticonvulsants, prescription pain relievers, and
sleep aids.
No
one therapy will control fibromyalgia pain 100%,
Cope adds.
"Medications help some. Exercise helps some. Stress
reduction helps some. Cognitive behavior therapy
helps some... If you can get restful sleep, you're
going to function better when you're awake."
©
WebMD. All rights reserved.
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The lack of a good night’s sleep makes people
with fibromyalgia wake up feeling tired and
fatigued. |
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