A Guide To Supporting Older Adults With Healthy Sleep Patterns

As we age, the body goes through many changes. This is a perfectly natural part of the human condition, but for some, it can quickly descend into pretty severe quality-of-life issues. Although myriad reasons can lead to a decline in health, one of the most documented arises from poor quality sleep. When we get older, our sleeping patterns tend to change from being able to fall into a deep sleep and awakening when your alarm pierces through the dream world, to a state where it’s often easier to nod off, but you find that you’re waking more frequently throughout the night and never truly feeling as though you had a decent night's slumber. Fortunately, as with many other ailments, it doesn’t have to be this way. This post will explore ways in which older people can acquire healthier sleeping habits, which ought to, in turn, improve other facets of their lives.

Understanding Age-Related Sleep Changes

Before we can really grasp the remedies, we need to take a step back and take a look at what sort of sleep-related changes most older adults struggle with. And according to the Home and Sleep Center over at https://homesleepcenter.com/, if not addressed appropriately, it can lead to physical and mental problems with your well-being. For most, these sleep changes can be broken down into two broad categories:

1. Normal: These include anything that you could describe as “normal” in the sense that it simply comes about due to age. In this category, you can include things like reduced slow wave and REM sleep patterns, and earlier bed and waking times. Nothing to worry about specifically, but something to look at trying to improve.
2. Problematic: For many, things become problematic when their sleep is disturbed by outside influences that stem from aging, such as sleep apnea, chronic insomnia, and even something as seemingly innocent as too much napping throughout the day.

Common Contributors To Poor Sleep

When it comes to the variables that can affect sleep for the elderly, some specific contributors can lead to poor sleep, which in turn creates a knock-on effect that further diminishes health.

• Medical conditions like urinary problems, arthritis, and heart or lung issues can have severe consequences for how long and how well you’re able to sleep.
• Certain medications can have side effects that wreak all sorts of havoc with your sleep patterns.
• Mental health problems plague the elderly community far more than many people think. These issues can make it harder to fall asleep and stay asleep for a long time.

So with all of this in mind, what can we do to ensure that those we love and care for can drop off into a deep slumber and wake up feeling better than when they fell asleep?

Environmental Strategies For Better Sleep

Part of the fix is environmental. This is particularly true if there are no other outside variables like medication or poor health adding to the mix (and even if they are, creating an environment more conducive to better sleep can still help enormously).

Creating A Comfortable Sleep Environment

Plenty of older people will still be sleeping on the same mattress, pillows, and sheeting that they probably bought years ago. The thing is that even if you bought the most high-tech mattress made using the highest-quality materials, they can still degrade over time, and will eventually need replacing. Some of the best things to change that will yield the most effective results include:

• Supportive mattress: There are no end of opinions here, but if you are able to afford it, opting for a memory foam mattress is most likely to help you fall into a deep sleep more effectively. The right mattress can even help to reduce pain from medical issues like arthritis, etc.
• Correct pillow height: This tip isn’t only for the elderly, because ensuring your pillow allows your head to align with your shoulders will keep you from tossing and turning all night.
• Breathable bedding: Many elderly folks have issues with staying warm enough, and if they do add additional blankets, they can overheat. The right bedding materials can offset a lot of these problems by allowing the body to breathe and wick away sweat, keeping you comfortable all night long.
• Room temperature and humidity: If your room is too hot, cold, damp, or dry, you will have trouble falling asleep.

Reducing Environmental Disruptions

Many of these fixes are relatively straightforward and will have an incredible effect on your sleep right from the get-go.

Daily Habits That Promote Better Sleep

Aside from the environmental fixes just discussed, there is are range of habits that, when performed or avoided daily, can really help to boost he quality of one's sleep.

• Consistent sleep schedule
• Morning and daytime sunlight exposure
• Regular physical activity
• Limiting naps
• Reducing fluid intake
• Avoiding caffeine after noon and alcohol in the evening

As you can see, many of these suggestions are relatively common sense, but you need to know the problems before you can fix them. Perhaps for most, the best results will be seen from trying to limit the number and length of daily naps, reducing their fluid intake before bed, and regular activity. The best part about maintaining a physical activity routine is that you will see spill-over effects for your general health that are further compounded by finally being able to fall asleep and into the highly regenerative REM stage of sleep.

The older we get, the more it seems that life wants to throw us a curveball. In the case of sleep, it can appear that most older adults have no trouble falling asleep, but the main concern isn’t if they sleep, but the quality of sleep they receive. Although some of the tips in this post may seem obvious at first glance, when combined, they can have enormous beneficial results.