HORMONES AND YOUR SLEEP

Sleep plays a critical role in maintaining a healthy balance of hormones throughout your menstrual cycle, and frankly, if you’re not getting enough sleep, your hormones won’t be balanced.

Sleep is an essential restorative process your body controls and regulates automatically. We spend about a third of our lives sleeping, so if you live to age 90 you’ll have spent about 30 years fast asleep.

So why do we live in a world of chronic sleep deprivation?

My answer.... because we are in a busy epidemic!

From juggling jobs, families, seeing friends, working out, catching up with our favourite tv shows, keeping up on social media, living in noisy cities... the list goes on. Before you know it, you're only getting a few hours of sleep each night and your day to day functioning and quality of life can take a downturn.

It is important to consider the quality, as well as quantity, of sleep. Regardless of how many hours you're sleeping, if you are waking often during the night, then you're bound to feel tired the next day.

Insufficient sleep can affect hormone production, including the production of growth hormones and testosterone. It also causes the body to release additional stress hormones, such as norepinephrine and cortisol.

Some of the biggest sleep sabotagers in today's world are:

Your natural sleep cycle is governed by two processes: sleep pressure and circadian rhythm.

Sleep pressure builds the longer you stay awake it’s at its lowest point when you wake up and highest when it’s time to sleep. For most of us, this occurs in the mornings and evenings (respectively), but for shift workers, it coincides with when they sleep.

Your circadian rhythm regulates your reproductive hormone production and your daily sleeping and eating patterns on a rhythmic 24-hour cycle. However, your circadian rhythm is governed by light exposure. Exposing your body to light at night-time (when it’s dark and you’re supposed to be sleeping!) disrupts the communication between your hypothalamus, pituitary, and ovaries (your HPO axis), leading to menstrual cycle disturbances. Sleep disruptions and night-time light exposure are associated with an increased risk of menstrual cycle irregularities, pain with menstruation, early miscarriage, preterm birth, low birth weight, and infertility.

So here are some quick and easy ways you can improve the QUALITY of your sleep and improve your hormone health!

1. Sleep in complete darkness

Melatonin and cortisol rise and fall throughout the day based on your circadian rhythm and are very sensitive to the presence or absence of light. Your cortisol levels should be highest in the morning and slowly decline throughout the day, reaching their lowest levels before bedtime. Conversely, your melatonin levels should gradually rise several hours before bedtime, reaching their highest levels while you sleep. Melatonin is necessary for maintaining your normal sleep/wake cycle and is responsible for the sleepy, groggy feeling you have at bedtime however, night-time light exposure suppresses melatonin. 511 Melatonin also plays a key role in maintaining normal ovulatory function, so if you’re not sleeping in complete darkness, your menstrual cycle won’t be balanced.

You’ve got nothing to lose! Sleeping in the dark is one of the simplest and most cost-effective ways to regulate your cycles.

2. Minimize your (blue) light exposure at night-time

Sources of blue light include the sun, digital screens (computers, laptops, cell phones, tablets, etc.), electronic devices, and both fluorescent and LED lights. Daytime blue light exposure is important for maintaining your natural circadian rhythm, but night-time exposure throws off your natural hormone production. Blue light has one of the shortest wavelengths and emits the highest amount of energy. As a result, blue light has the strongest suppressive effect on your melatonin.

Turning off your devices a few hours before bed and wearing blue light blocking glasses will help you filter even more of the disruptive rays. I wear these every night and they have done wonders!

3. Get some sunlight first thing in the morning

Sunshine is a free and natural alternative to your morning coffee. Early morning sun exposure elevates your cortisol levels by over 50 percent. Cortisol gives you a natural boost of energy, leaving you feeling more energized and alert (which is why night-time blue light exposure is so problematic!). Exposing yourself to sunshine when you wake up in the morning helps to reset your internal clock and even helps you sleep better at night.

4. Limit your caffeine consumption

Caffeine increases the time it takes you to fall asleep and decreases your overall sleep time regardless of when you consume it. patterns. If getting rid of caffeine is out of the question, consider reducing your consumption, or avoiding it past 3 p.m. to minimize the impact on your sleep.

5. Get to bed early

If you’re not fast asleep by 11 p.m., you’re interfering with your body’s natural detoxification process. Getting to bed early helps to support and maintain a balanced and healthy menstrual cycle.

6. Get some exercise during the day

Regular exercise reduces the time it takes you to fall asleep at bedtime and improves your sleep quality. You can enjoy the additional benefits of natural light exposure by exercising outdoors, but you’ll benefit from improvements in sleep quality regardless of where you exercise. Just be sure this isn't too late in the day though, as this will ramp up cortisol levels and can affect your circadian rhythm!

7. Create a restful night-time routine

A night-time routine doesn’t have to be long and involved. It could be as simple as taking a bath, brushing your teeth, shutting off your devices, and spending a few minutes reflecting on what you’re grateful for. Try cultivating a few habits that put you into a more restful state as you wind down from your day.

8. Create an ideal sleep environment

Think sleep sanctuary. What can you do to make your bedroom feel luxurious?

You want your body to automatically associate your room with sleep, and the first step is clarifying which activities are off-limits. If you use your bedroom to work, watch TV, eat, or any other non-sleep-related activities, you may need to make some changes. You want your bedroom free of any electronic devices that emit light and any distractions that can interfere with your sleep. By drawing a hard line in the sand and removing your TV, computer, cell phone, and any other electronic devices, you’re taking massive strides to improve your overall sleep quality.