Do you toss and turn at night because of fibromyalgia pain or discomfort?
"People with fibromyalgia tend to have very disturbed sleep," says Doris Cope, MD, director of Pain Management at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. "Even if they sleep 10 hours a night, they still feel fatigued, don't feel rested."
Research shows that with fibromyalgia, there is an automatic arousal in the brain during sleep. Frequent disruptions prevent the important restorative processes from occurring. Growth hormone is mostly produced during sleep. Without restorative sleep and the surge of growth hormone, muscles don’t heal and neurotransmitters (like the mood chemical serotonin) are not replenished. The lack of a good night’s sleep makes people with fibromyalgia wake up feeling tired and fatigued.
The result: The body can't recuperate from the day's stresses -- all of which overwhelms the system, creating a great sensitivity to pain. Widespread pain, sleep problems, anxiety, depression, fatigue, and memory difficulties are all symptoms of fibromyalgia.
Insomnia takes many forms -- trouble falling asleep, waking up often during the night, having trouble going back to sleep, and waking up too early in the morning. Smoothing out those sleep problems -- and helping people get the deep sleep their bodies need -- helps fibromyalgia pain improve significantly, research shows.
Medications can help enhance sleep and relieve pain. But doctors also advocate lifestyle changes to help sleep come naturally.
No comments:
Post a Comment