Weekly “Spot” for July 10, 2019

Announcements:

Your Ben’s Friends team (including TJ and Seenie) will be hosting a casual get together by the pool for members on the evening of Wednesday, July 24th. We’ll be staying near San Francisco Airport (Burlingame) and we’d love to meet you in person.

If you’d like to join us, please email info@bensfriends.org, telling us your Ben’s Friends community and screen name, as well as your real-life name. We’ll email you with the details as soon as we have them finalized.

Hope to see you there!

Please share our Go Fund Me Campaign across your networks, if you haven’t already (or it might help to reshare) This fundraiser is to raise the necessary funds to build 15 new communities. Just a few weeks left before your team starts their Hike and Paddle adventure:
https://www.gofundme.com/help-support-rare-disease-communitie

How Does Chronic Illness Affect Sleep?

The pain and fatigue that people with chronic illness experience has a large impact on their daily lives, including sleep. Because of their illness, these patients often have trouble sleeping at night and are sleepy during the day. This is especially the case for people who have neurological (nervous system) diseases. Insomnia and other sleep disorders can make a person’s pain and quality of life worse. In addition, some drugs used to treat chronic illnesses can cause sleep problems.

People who have a chronic illness may also suffer from depression or anxiety, which can also cause sleep problems.

How Are Sleep Problems With Chronic Illness Treated?

The first step to treating sleep problems linked to chronic illnesses is to try to control the pain associated with the illness. Once pain is controlled, sleeping may not be a problem. Your doctor can prescribe the appropriate pain-relieving medication that suits your condition.

If following adequate pain control, you are still experiencing sleep problems, these simple steps may help.

  • Keep noise in the room and surrounding area down as much as possible.

  • Sleep in a dark room.

  • Keep the room temperature as comfortable as possible.

  • Eat or drink foods that induce sleep, such as warm milk.

  • Avoid naps during the day.

  • Avoid foods and drinks that contain caffeine.

There are a number of other non-medicinal approaches that are effective for sleep problems, including biofeedback, relaxation training, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and sleep restriction techniques. These therapies are most often administered by a psychologist who specializes in sleep disorders. Learn about behavioral treatments for insomnia and other sleep problems.

If these methods are not effective, there are several prescription medications to help people sleep.

It’s usually a good idea to try non-drug pain-reducing methods before turning to sleeping pills. When sleeping pills are prescribed, it’s best to use them for a short time only (less than two weeks). If they are used for longer periods, sleep medications may cause tolerance and psychological dependence.

Talk to your doctor to find the best sleep solution for you.

ABOUT THE ARTICLE: the original may be found here: https://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/guide/sleep-chronic-illness with additional links to articles about healthy sleeping habits, what impacts sleep, and other topics of interest