It is crucial to remember that just when kids sleep 8 to 9 hours every night, it doesn’t necessarily mean that it is good to sleep. On the other hand, just because they only receive 6 hours of sleep every night doesn’t always imply that it’s poor-quality sleep. You or the in-home healthcare professionals can keep an eye out for fatigue or exhaustion symptoms. There are several techniques to increase the Sleep Quality for Seniors if they don’t seem to be sleeping well.
Identify the issue.
Find the source of the issue if your elderly loved one is having trouble sleeping. If you are unable to identify the root cause of the issue, finding a suitable remedy is challenging.
Several things can prevent you from getting a good night’s rest to reduce the risk of insomnia in seniors receiving home health care including:
- Taking painkillers too close to bedtime
- Drinking caffeinated beverages later in the day
- Exercising too close to bedtime
- Having loud noises in the home
- Sleeping with the lights on
- Using devices in the bedroom
If you or your home care providers can assist your older loved one in determining the cause of their poor sleeping habits, then you will be able to devise a strategy to address this issue.
Learn More: How To Cure Insomnia In 12 Minutes
Creating a Schedule
Does your senior loved one have irregular sleeping hours? Maybe some nights they won’t go to bed until three in the morning and other nights they will. They may sleep in until 11 a.m. some mornings and wake up at 5 a.m. on other occasions. The less restorative sleep your senior loved one gets, the more unpredictable their sleep routine will be. You or in-home carers can work with your elderly loved one to establish a better sleep schedule if this is the case. The optimal time for them to wake up in the morning should be determined. They should then determine how much Sleep Quality for Seniors they require to feel rested. Some older people only need about 6 hours, while others may require much more. There will be some trial and error involved.
This is great counsel for many of us. According to the National Sleep Foundation, which is the organization that is sponsoringSleep Quality for Seniors Awareness Week, just under half of all Americans indicate that they are getting the recommended amount of sleep, and an even smaller percentage claim that they sleep well. These ten recommendations for enhancing sleep quality come from experts:
Give sleep a priority
Put it on your to-do list if necessary! If you set an alarm to wake up in the morning, consider setting another to remind you to begin winding down before going to bed.
Maintain a routine
Going to bed and waking up at the same time every day can be helpful if you have difficulties falling and staying asleep. Do relaxing activities while you get ready for bed, such as reading, listening to relaxing music, having a warm bath, or practicing meditation. Your brain learns to release sleep chemicals at the appropriate time through regularity.
Shut off all of your gadgets
Phones, tablets, laptops, and TVs can inhibit melatonin, the hormone that helps us sleep. Also, these gadgets lure us to stay up later than we had intended. Also, keep your phone out of your room; studies have shown that even when it is off, we may feel tempted to check our social media or email.
Increase your workout
Sleeping at night is made simpler by daytime exercise. As sunlight throughout the day also encourages better sleep, a walk outside might be just the thing. But avoid exercising too close to bedtime because it can awaken us and make us more alert.
Steers clear of heavy meals right before night
“The brain runs the digestive system, which requires a few hours to process food and calm down for the night,” recommends the Houston Methodist doctors.
“The mind can’t relax and get ready for sleep until the stomach calms down.”
Take caffeine and alcohol into account.
Get your final cup of coffee before noon if you drink it. Some people are recommended to completely stop drinking anything with caffeine. Even while it’s a fallacy that a “nightcap” might help us fall asleep, drinking alcohol too soon to bedtime prevents the most rejuvenating types of sleep from happening.
Renovate your sleeping area.
While some people can fall asleep in virtually any environment, the rest of us are likely to be disrupted by factors such as heat, temperature, noise, and light. Installing curtains that completely block out the light will make the space darker. You can drown out sounds with earplugs, a fan, or a white noise generator.
Reconsider using sleeping medications.
These drugs may help us sleep, but drugged sleep is generally absent from the regular sleep cycles that are optimal for the brain. Under the guidance of a healthcare practitioner, they should only be taken temporarily.
Get your sleep issues assessed.
Today’s sleep specialists can diagnose and treat a wide range of sleep issues, including insomnia, nocturnal awakenings, snoring, and sleep apnea, a condition that disrupts breathing as you sleep. (As an added incentive, studies have shown that these patients’ bed companions also benefit.)
Avoid attributing sleep issues to “simply being older.”
The National Sleep Foundation notes that while aging does cause some shifts in how one sleeps, most cases of insomnia and wakefulness are caused by something more serious, such as arthritis, anxiety, or incontinence. Taking care of these issues can enhance sleep. Also, patients should ask their doctor or pharmacist to check all of their drugs because some can cause sleep disturbances.
Home Healthcare: Conclusion
So many seniors don’t sleep well or enough. Remember that oversleeping can also cause problems. You and your senior need home care provider services to identify sleep concerns. Afterward, you may assist them to establish a strategy to start obtaining quality sleep regularly.
Home Care Near Me Let’s Get Started!
Get Immediate Help with Information, Costs & Payment Options.