Sleep Question for Ladies in Their 40S

Changing hormones can cause sleep problems. I frequently wake at 4:00am and can't go back to sleep. Sometimes I'll take a quarter to half tablet of an antihistamine when I wake up just to put me back to sleep until its time to really get up.

Perimenopause and menopause often interfere with sleep. I'm menopausal, but I've recently started taking trazodone to sleep at night, because I'm sick of waking up and not being able to sleep deeply.

So far, it doesn't seem to have side effects.

My mom has always had a hard time sleeping since her 40s. She heard of a natural remedy and it works great for her. She eats 5 brazil nuts about 30m before bed. Something in them helps you sleep better. I have no idea why...but it's worth a try!

Yeah...it's just so much fun! Wait til you're REALLY tired and still can't sleep...yeah...fun. ;)

Could be hormones. I'm 40 and I wasn't sleeping well for a few years. It's called perimenopause. Here's what's kind of working for me-

melatonin an hour and half before I go to bed- 3 mg
progesterone cream rubbed on before bed
go to bed at the same exact time every night- between 9:30-10 p.m.
zinc has been helping too
Vitamin D 5,000 mg if I have it
magnesium/calcium- magnesium relaxes muscles and calms

Hmm... I'm sure it's different for everyone, although, there is probably something to the idea that in your 40s your body does some "resetting". For me.. I've always been able to function (not primo, but you know.. adequately) on 6 hours sleep or even less. But around age 40, I started noticing that if I didn't get 7 1/2, then I wasn't worth anything all day. The problem for me is that I almost NEVER can get 7 1/2.

I am a night owl, so my body clock lets me get absorbed in something (books, TV, online, whatever...) until 1:30 a.m. without batting an eye. And then I'll look up and say "OH... I should go to sleep." So I do. And drop off immediately. My alarm goes off at 5:55 a.m. to get the kids up for school. By 7:00 a.m., they are out the door and I am back from the bus stop, usually. I can try to go back to sleep (nap) for an hour or so some mornings. But I have a very difficult time falling asleep. Especially if my husband has an early day and I end up having my coffee while getting the kids up and out.

When I do manage to get a nap in, then I cannot fall asleep if I try to go to bed earlier than the wee hours (11:00 pm ? psahhaww... I'll toss and turn for 2 hours wondering why I can't fall asleep.)

So what has happened is that I have gotten into a horrible pattern of napping in the late morning. So I can't fall asleep if I go to bed earlier, or if I manage that, I wake up after my "normal" amount of hours of sleep (5). So, while I managed to actually get in bed and close my eyes AND fall asleep last night by 12:15 (just after midnight)... I woke up and stared at my alarm clock at 5:00 a.m. this morning.
:(

It has GOT to be age related. I never was like this before. I also never could take naps. Ever.
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Oh.. and I do tend to be more wakeful during the night as well. I don't have "insomnia" .... I CAN fall asleep (after midnight, lol). But it is wakeful. I'll wake up and check the time 2-3 times per night. Sometimes it's 3:00 a.m. and then again at 3:55 a.m. and I think I've overslept or something until I look.

I am 45.

I'm 47, and wish I could get 6 hours sleep!! I'll be reading answers to this question!!

Look into a diurnal cortisol test. There is a company called Canary Club that sells them for about $100 and you measure your cortisol via saliva 4 times in 24 hours and they analyze your levels. It may be that the hormonal changes of pre-menopause are throwing off your cortisol levels, which regulate your body's internal clock. Cortisol is supposed to spike in the morning between 6 & 8 AM and then decline during the day so that by around 10 PM, your cortisol is at its lowest point and you are relaxed and sleepy. If your levels are out of whack, you can look into ways to get them back in line. Dr. Sara Gottfried's book "The Hormone Cure" has some fascinating info on hormones and how they affect everything we do.

I don't know if that qualifies as insomnia, but I just read that insomnia is one of the lesser known symptoms of menopause.

My sleep has changed radically since hitting 40.

I have found that meditating in bed is almost as good as sleeping. If you dont meditate, get an ap to teach you -I did a free trial of mindspace--and meditate in bed.

Perimenopause will cause sleep problems.. believe me, at 49 I know.. SIGH... gone are the days of a good night's sleep..
What happens is this.. Your cortisol levels can run amuck as your Estrogen level drops off.. This is because the Estrogen is what controls the Cortisol and when your Estrogen drops, the Cortisol levels can go nuts... :) Also, you may have noticed right before your period, you get what I call the Jimmy legs... in that your legs feel jumpy and you have to get up and walk around.... that is a result of the Progesterone dropping.... Problem is.. the less sleep you get, the more the cortisol issue wreaks havoc and you end up with more sleepless nights..
A few things I have to do to help matters. one, only 1/2 cup of caffeine a day for me.... I seldom drink because when I do, I fall asleep asap, but then I am WIDE awake at night.. two.. exercise more if you can.. that will help with the cortisol levels.... if you eat too much sugar, curb that.. and any other stimulating foods... I do find that when I meditate, I can sleep a little better... but nothing like when I was in my 20s.........

I'm in my early 50's and have been having trouble sleeping off and on for a couple of years. I have found that this works for me: 1 Uni-Som at about 9:15 and another at 10:30. By 11:15 - 11:30 I'm out for 7 full hours - no hangover or groginess in the a.m.

I tried melatonin, but it just doesn't work for me.

Welcome to my world! Once menopause set in for me, sleep became a dream! I have adjusted to life on the minimum amount of sleep. I wake up during the night and look across the street to my friends house. 9 times out of 10 she is awake too! A routine does help. Same time every night, up same time in morning. Good luck.

I'm 43 and I'm having this EXACT SAME ISSUE!!!! It's so hard to make myself stay asleep! And I'm tired all day, and the less sleep I get, and the more nervous about needing sleep, I'll sleep even less!! I've actually been taking Unisom from time to time when I'm really low on sleep just to insure I won't pop awake in six hours or less :( And I never used to have this problem. And I get up early and have a busy day, healthy diet and lots of exercise. So I don't know. It must be age :( I hope it improves. I feel like a new person those rare nights I can sleep 8 hours...Actually last week I took a unisom and slept 10 hours and the day after was when I realized how much better I felt than usual. But of course I don't want to start taking sleep aids regularly either :(

I guess I am the odd ball out. I can't recall less sleep in my 40s but it was not as restful. I would get up and feel tired for a year or two. After having my hysterectomy I slept and still do like a baby. My husband hates the fact that I can fall asleep putting my head on the pillow and be out for the count.

If you can readjust your routine so that you can get your 7 hours you should do fine. Anything over 8 in my life and I am tired for the rest of the day.

the other S.

I am with you 100%. Same with me.
I have operated on 6 hrs of sleep since I was 21.
I eat healthy, rest during the day, exercise & work out.
I get btwn 6-7 hrs.
I think everyone is different. Their bodies are different & their biorhythms.
I say if you eat right, try to rest, get min 6 hrs then it works for you. You do what feels right for your body, your life.

As we age our body's cells stop dividing as much, this is why we age, get sicker, wrinkle, turn gray, get feeble and frail, etc...

While we sleep our brain does not have to do much to maintain us. No walking and talking and chewing at the same time, our brain can concentrate of cellular issues and work on fighting disease, fixing glitches, and more.

When our brain's are not fighting off disease so much it doesn't need sleep as much so we don't need as much sleep as we get older. You've probably reached a stage and just simply don't need as much sleep.

There may come a time where you'll sleep and sleep and sleep though. That time will likely be when your body is fighting off an infection or some illness that you don't even know you've been exposed to.

I have the same thing .. talked to my ob/gyn dr recommends progesterone cream.. over the counter... It is not a miracle.. but it definitely helps .. I only use the cream from mid cycle till the first day of my period.

you might want to buy some.. mine was $24 from a health food store.

I don't think it's that unusual. I go in patterns. Sometimes I need 8-9 hours, other times only 6. Last night I went to be at 11:30, had a difficult time falling asleep, tossed and turned a good part of the night, and woke up at 6:30 without the help of an alarm, and I wasn't tired .

Well, I'm jealous you actually have 8 hours to sleep. I consider it a good night if I get 6 hours. I just run out of time. After I put the kids to bed, I start my workout for 30 to 45 mins. Then, I tidy up the kitchen, get lunch and breakfast prep ready for the next day and get to bed. I usually fall asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow. Of course by then, it's usually 11:30 or midnight and I get up at 6. I must be getting enough sleep since I automatically wake up right before 6. I've never needed an alarm clock to wake me up.
I'm going to have to google this peri-menopause thing people are talking about. I'm 2 months before my 45th birthday.

i'm older than you, but i too started having more trouble sleeping in my 40s. in my case it was peri-menopause, so that's a possibility. and like you, IF i have the luxury of lying back down and willing myself back to sleep, that last bit of sleep is dynamite and i wake up feeling terrific. but we don't always get to do that.
i've never had issues with insomnia, and come from a long line of sleepy people, so my 'cure' might be overly simplistic. but i take a long hot bubble bath, with a book, every night before bed, and read until i'm in a stupor (i often fall asleep in the bath.) then i lump off to bed, and read some more until the words are blurring. this works almost all the time. if i'm having trouble despite all of this, i'll add melatonin and sleepytime tea to the routine, and that always does the trick. in the VERY rare cases where even that doesn't work, i'll take 'simply sleep' or something like that, but even the OTC stuff makes me groggy the next day so i hate to use it.
good luck and sweet dreams!
khairete
S.