Sleep Disorders In Women

Studies and research done on sleep disorders in women have revealed that the likelihood of women suffering from sleep disorders is twice as much as that of men.

The factors that cause sleep disorders in women are hormone level fluctuations, pregnancy, menopause, illnesses, lifestyle, stress and sleeping environment.

Women in their menstrual years face sleeping problems more in the PMS phase of the monthly cycle. Some of the sleep disorders that women suffer from in their menstrual years are disrupted sleep, difficulty in waking up, daytime drowsiness and insomnia.

However, as a woman enters menopause, the likelihood of sleep disorders increases.

Pregnancy is a factor that influences the sleep patterns of a woman, mainly due to the hormonal and physical changes in her body. A pregnant woman needs to pay more attention to the sleep requirements of her body.

The sleep needs and schedules may vary as the pregnancy develops. In the first trimester of her pregnancy, there is an increased need for sleep. She may feel drowsiness during the daytime and the need for sleep is felt more than usual.

This changes in the second trimester and her need for sleep reduces and returns to normal. The feeling of drowsiness during the daytime also reduces. In the third trimester, the hormonal variations make the woman sleep much less than usual.

In addition to these normal variations in the sleep patterns during pregnancy, the pregnant woman may also experience sleep disorders like sleep apnea, snoring and nightmares.

Menopause is another important stage in a woman’s life where she is troubled by sleep disorders. In general, women suffer from sleep disorder almost twice as much as men.  However, the likelihood of sleep disorders on menopausal women is even higher. A combination of reasons could contribute to sleep disorders in a menopausal woman.

The main reason for the lack of sleep during menopause is the hormonal changes during this stage. There are also physical changes related to menopause that will make it difficult for her to fall sleep or stay asleep.

A menopausal woman will be very prone to mood swings or depression due to the hormonal and physical changes that her body is experiencing. This will also cause severe emotional and mental stress that will in turn cause sleeplessness and related difficulties.

Stress is a very major factor of sleep disorders in men and women, in general. Physical and emotional stress leads to anxiety, one of the major causes of sleep disorders.

Anxiety can cause nightmares, sleeplessness and sleep disruption. If no known physical reason is causing sleep disruption, an underlying anxiety or stress may be the culprit. It would be advisable to try and identify the reasons for the stress and treat it.

Stress management is a very efficient technique to relieve stress and handle the tensions in a better way.

This could help in releasing piled up anxieties from the mind, and would also help to take care of day to day worries without becoming exceedingly affected by them. This would help to improve sleep patterns as well.