| | | | Weather Changes and a Good Night's Sleep |  | | With spring right around the corner, the sun is peeking out more and outside activities will soon be a real option. Whether it is biking, running, boating, backpacking, rock climbing or just taking a walk, it is great to get out in the sunshine. But how can this affect your sleep? If you have not been as active this winter and you are going to start getting out in the spring your first few outings may be PAINFUL! You could experience delayed onset muscle soreness. It is that feeling you get where you may not be sore immediately after you work out or even one day later, but 2-3 days late when you wake up stiff and sore. So what is an active outdoors person to do to get great sleep while shaking off winter? Consider a few stretches before bed. Here is one of my favorites for loosening up your lower back and rear (but be sure to check with your doctor before doing any exercise): The Figure 4 leg and rear stretch: a. Sit on the edge of your bed or on a chair with a back.
b. Put both feet on the floor.
c. Now take your right leg and lift and turn it inward and rest your outside ankle on your left knee (this should look like you are crossing your legs but not all the way; when you look down if you straighten out your left leg it should look like an upside down number 4).
d. With your left leg firmly on the ground and your right leg crossed making a 4 lean your body forward.
e. You should feel a pulling in your right upper thigh and buttock.
f. Now switch legs and do this again.
g. Stretch each side 3 times. | | | Spring Ahead on Sunday, March 11 At 2 a.m. on March 11 we move our clocks ahead one hour to mark the beginning of Daylight Saving Time. Every one of us will lose an hour of sleep this weekend. There are few things you can do to prepare for the sleep deprivation that this annual “springing ahead” will bring: 1. Go to bed 20 minutes earlier Thursday; then another 20 minutes earlier Friday and Saturday. This will help your body adjust to the difference. 2. When you wake up Sunday morning, immediately change the time on your bedroom clock. Help your brain visualize the time change. 3. Eat lunch and dinner 30-60 minutes earlier to get your other daily routines in sync for the new time change. 4. Beginning a few days before the time change, stop drinking caffeine at 1:00 in the afternoon to help with the earlier bedtime. 5. Make sure you get sunlight in the morning the day of the time change to help reset your body clock. | | | Take Our Sleep Poll Did you know that night owls are more affected by the time change than early birds? Do you think there are more
night owls or early birds? Which one are you? Take our poll on Facebook! We will let you know the results next month. | | | Sleep Recipe: Raspberry-Pistachio Crusted Chicken |  | | | Raspberries are filled with disease-preventing nutrients, and pistachios add color and flavor to a waist-friendly skinless chicken breast- yet another delicious way to get the lean protein necessary for maintaining a normal weight. Serve this over a bed of steamed shredded kale to up the nutrient factor even further. - 1/2 cup raspberries
- 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
- 1 TB. fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup whole grain bread-crumbs (about 1/2 slice)
- 1 TB. coarsely ground pistachio nuts
- 1 TB. minced parsley
- 1 dash, ground while pepper
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
- 1 tsp. olive oil
Combine raspberries, mustard, and lemon juice in a food processor or blender until smooth. Transfer to a shallow bowl or pie plate. In another bowl, combine breadcrumbs, pistachios, parsley, pepper, and salt. Place the chicken breasts between 2 pieces of wax paper and pound with the flat side of a meat pounder or small heavy skillet to a 1/2-inch thickenss. Dip chicken into the raspberry sauce, then into the breadcrumb mixture to coat. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add chicken- cook until opaque throughout but still juicy, about 5 minutes per side. Serve each chicken breast on a bed of kale. Per Serving: 264 calories, 7 g fat (1 g saturated), 66 mg cholesterol, 408 mg sodium, 20 g total carbs (2 g sugar), 5 g fiber, 32 g protein. Check out Dr. Breus' book for this recipe and several others!
The Sleep Doctor's Diet Plan: Lose Weight through Better Sleep | | | Sleep Disorder: Confusional Arousals: "sleep drunkenness" "Sleep drunkeness" refers to those times when something seems to have woken a person up, but in fact they are really asleep. They can carry on an entire conversation with you, answering coherently and never remember a thing the next day. These events usually happen early in the night, and occur in people with jobs of high stress. While this is more common in children and teens (17%), it can occur in adults (2-4%). This seems to run in families and for people in shift working jobs. Most people who have these confusional arousals have insufficient sleep and this can be an important part of treatment. Treatment can be with a medication, but should also include increasing total sleep time, keeping a consistent bedtime, removal of anything in the bedroom environment that might wake someone up (i.e., cellphone), reduction in caffeine by 2pm, and no alcohol within 3-4 hours of bed. | | | Ask The Sleep Doctor: Nightmares  | | | | Q: Should I wake someone from a nightmare?
A: You should first observe the sleeping person. While they may be shouting, or moving about, do you think that they are in any possible danger? Are their arms swinging near a lamp? Do they look like they may fall off the bed? If safety is a concern then you need to do something to help. If you need to wake them: start by calling their name and get louder and louder. Do not shout. If this does not work gently touch their shoulder or arm and say their name and let them know that they are having a dream. You may need to rub their arm a bit so that the nerve endings will sense something and direct their attention. BE CAREFUL- people in this state may perceive a threat and could try to attack you. In some cases, I suggest holding a pillow up in case the dreamer takes a swing. If nightmares are common for someone in your home, you should consider talking with a sleep specialist. Treatments for nightmare disorder include medicines that can reduce REM sleep (SSRIs) or journal therapy. | | | Read The Insomnia Blog Every Week |  | | Read The Insomnia Blog every week, the most widely read sleep blog on the internet | | | | | |
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