- Do you suffer from coronasomnia?
- The link between post-traumatic stress disorder and sleep problems
- Three ways to get your body and brain into a sleepy state at night
Ever heard of the term ‘coronasomnia’?
Nope, neither had I until I started researching today’s newsletter.
I have been reading so many accounts of sleep problems during this lockdown that I thought it would be good to revisit the subject.
Lo and behold, I discovered there was a name for this phenomena:
Corona (as in the virus) + somnia (from ‘insomnia’).
This is what you have if you’ve been so affected by lockdown that you’ve had a change in your sleep patterns.
That could be the quality of sleep…
How long it takes you to get to sleep…
How many times you wake up during the night…
How hard it is to get out of bed in the morning…
And how rested you feel during the day.
If these problems have got worse in the past year, then you might have ‘coronasomnia’.
Dr Steven Altchuler, a psychiatrist and neurologist at the Mayo Clinic, has said:
“If you’re having insomnia, you’re in good company – much of the world is, too. It’s a consequence of all the changes we’re experiencing in Covid.”
He makes an interesting link between insomnia and a form of post-traumatic-stress disorder (PTSD).
You might imagine this is only something frontline workers will experience.
But that’s not true…
Dr Altucher believes that when there’s a major disaster, for instance devastating wildfires, terrorist attacks or a pandemic like Covid-19, it does cause a form of deep trauma, even in those not directly involved in the action.
And this in turn leads to the kind of sleep problems associated with PTSD.
Make no mistake, we’re all affected by this, even those of us who ‘think’ we’re ok.
And the problem is widespread
This week I read a fascinating report about a study in France looking at what happens when people are confined for even a short period of time.
They found that a massive 74% of the participants (1,005 subjects) reported trouble sleeping!
That was after just TWO weeks.
The research concluded: “These results suggest that the COVID crisis is associated with severe sleep disorders among the French population.”
Meanwhile, a UK study at the University of Southampton last August showed that the number of insomnia sufferers rose from one in six people to one in FOUR people.
That means a quarter of the population aren’t now getting a good quality of sleep.
Now, I’ve written to you about the many health effects of poor sleep in the past.
The instant effects are obvious – poor concentration and foggy thinking, slower reaction times, bad mood and a quick temper.
But there are longer term effects too, including obesity, anxiety, depression, cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
If this is something that concerns you, I’ve got some advice on natural remedies on the Good Life Letter website for you to read (for free, of course!).
I recommend you read this one: Is A Good Night’s Sleep Just A Dream? It contains advice on lifestyle measures, as well as foods that encourage better sleep.
Also, here’s a letter I wrote after the end of the first lockdown, when these sleep problems were just emerging: A Problem Few Saw Coming
I also wrote a letter about your body’s natural programming, and how we’re not all the same when it comes to our sleep patterns.
Learning to recognise this can be a step towards fixing the problem.
You can read that one here: Are You A Lion, Wolf, Bear or Dolphin?
Three ways to get your body and brain into a sleepy state at night
Finally, this is just a reminder that there are three natural products which we stock in our shop that might help you get into a sleepier state each night:
- Vitamin B12 helps make more serotonin, the neurotransmitter that gives you a boost of the sleep hormone, melatonin. We stock Together Health’s B-Complex Vitamins which contain vitamin B12 in the form of methylcobalamin – the most absorbable kind. Click here for more details.
- Magnesium can boost your serotonin production which also increases melatonin production. Just take the supplement before 6pm to get the best out of it. You can get hold of some from our shop here.
- Calmophytum is a blend of natural herbal sedatives, which can help you with a better quality of sleep. Find out more here.
All three are available to try to see if they have any effect. Should they not help you feel more restful over the course of 35 days, then let us know within the trial period and you can get a refund – no problem at all.
As I always say, natural remedies take time to have an effect, and not everyone reacts in the same way, so a good length trial period is the fairest way to let people find out for themselves.
Admittedly, there are a lot of links in today’s letter, and I’m sure you’re busy – but do check some of them out!
Remember, the website and shop are searchable, so if you’re looking for advice and recommendations, then type in a keyword or two and see what comes up!
