If you sleep better, you think better. If you think better, you plan better. If you plan better, you execute better. If you execute better you make more progress. If you make more progress, you are a happier person. Sleep also helps you heal; its an important part of life and you want to do it well. Here are a dozen things you can do to improve your slumber.
1. Exercise. Every pemphigus and pemphigoid patient should exercise. There are at least 100 good reasons to do so, but you only need one: it will help you sleep at night. Talk with your doctors and a physical therapist to come up with a realistic set of exercises, even if its only walking around the block but avoid exercise within 4 hours of bedtime.
2. Get into a healthy routine. Stick to a regular bed time and wake up time, too.
3. If you cant sleep, relax. Normally it takes 20 to 30 minutes to get to sleep. If you cant sleep, dont just toss and turn. Get out of bed and try some relaxation techniques, or some other activity to relax. The bed is for two things only and one of them is sleep!
4. Avoid big meals just before bedtime. Give yourself a couple of hours before you hit the sack. (This will also help you avoid gaining weight.) Sometimes spicy foods can keep us up, see if this applies to you.
5. No stimulants! Avoid caffeine, alcohol or sugar before bedtime and watch your daily intake levels too. Drink a class of warm milk or herbal tea if you must drink something, but not if it will wake you in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom.
6. Sleep Ritual. You can program your mind to prepare for sleep if you develope a daily set of activities just before retiring. Lock the doors, put out the cat, read something happy, inspiring or relaxing (but not in bed!), or some other such activities that signals your body to prepare for sleep.
7. Use sleeping pills sparingly, if at all. Prescription or nonprescription pills should not be used regularly, some are even addictive. The best sleep is natural sleep, but if you just cant get to sleep, go to method #9. Avoid naps--if you can. Sleep experts suggest avoiding naps, especially if they are over 20 minutes and certainly if they right before your regular bed time. They want you to keep your regular schedule, but if its the only way to get some sleep, then do it and dont feel guilty about it.
8. Talk to your doctor. If you are having persistent problems getting to sleep discuss it with your doctor. There might be a physical problem or more likely its your medications. Some meds might be taken earlier to prevent sleep disruption. Prednisone might keep you awake, if so, get all the rest and relaxation you can. Dont stress over a missed nights sleep, but try to keep to your regular schedule. Avoid doing too much when you are feeling well, which might lead to more fatigue. Try to maintain an even pattern of activity and sleep. Moderation, remember?
9. Temperature. Not too hot, not too cold. There are many ways to control the temperature. If the room is too bright, use an eye shade, or pull a knit cap down over your eyes.
10. Quiet. Sounds like common sense: you cant sleep with bothersome noises. If you cant eliminate the noise, counter it out with soft music, or a tape/CD of the ocean. Ear plugs are another option.
11. Positive thoughts. If you think you will get a good nights sleep, you are more likely to. You want a good nights sleep. You deserve one and you need it, so go ahead and enjoy it. If something is bothering you, write down a brief note and deal with it in the morning when you are rested and clear headed.
12. Relaxation techniques - Find a relaxation technique or two from the list on this page. They work! Use em!
Here are five tried-and-true relaxation techniques. Try them all to find the one that works best for you.
