What are sleep problems?
Having a good night’s sleep is very important for our health. Having a baby temporarily disturbs sleep because in the early months babies need to be fed during the day and night. During this time it is important for new parents to develop different sleep patterns in order to catch up on lost sleep.
Sleep problems are very common in people who have mental health problems. Not having enough sleep can make it difficult to function well and can slow down recovery. So in addition to the normal sleep disturbance experienced by all new parents you may also have problems getting to sleep, staying asleep, waking up too early or have poor quality sleep.
What causes sleep problems?
There could be different reasons for your sleep problem. These may include:
• Needing to care for your baby
• Pain
• Some medicines
• A loss or bereavement
• Stress and worry
• Low mood
• Noisy surroundings
• Normal effects of ageing
• Medical problems such as needing to go to the toilet during the night.
How it might affect you
Low in mood
Upset
Anxious
Hopeless
Irritable
Lethargic
Not doing much
Staying in bed
Avoiding going out
Neglecting personal hygiene
Tiredness
Tension
Waking up early
Difficulty in concentrating
Loss of energy
“If I do not sleep I will be tired”
“I cannot sleep”
“I am going mad”
“I am a burden on others”
“I cannot be bothered”
“I can’t do anything”
“I am worthless”
“I can’t cope”
“Nobody cares about me”
Avoiding people
Getting into arguments
Isolating self from others
What can help?
Here are some suggestions that may help:
• Have a routine about going to bed
• Create a regular routine for your baby around bed time
• Make your bedroom warm and comfortable
• Take a warm bath or shower before going to bed, as this will relax you
• Eat at least two hours before going to bed
• Take regular exercise as this will help you get healthily tired
• Avoid caffeine, for example tea or coffee. Decaf tea or coffee is ok
• Avoid watching television in bed, as it will prevent you from calming down
• Avoid alcohol or street drugs
• Avoid smoking close to bedtime
• Avoid using your bed for other things other than sleep
• Do not worry about getting enough sleep as this will keep you awake
• If you can’t sleep, get out of bed and do something that relaxes you
• If you are worried about other things at bedtime, try to deal with them during the day
• Don’t go to bed until you feel sleepy
• Take medication for some short term help.
These suggestions have helped some people with their sleep problem. You would need to try and try again as it takes time to change some habits.
If you are concerned about your sleep pattern talk to a member of staff.