We all need sleep. Sleep helps in relieving our mind and body of all the stress we encounter when performing our daily activities. When we are sleeping, the body’s system goes on auto-function and heals itself to get it ready for the next day’s tasks. Whereas the body undergoes recuperation while fully relaxed, the mind on the other hand stays active and performs systemized organization of gathering data and information stored at different nooks and crannies of the brain hence the possible manifestations of dreams.

Unfortunately, as we age, our sleeping patterns suffer tremendously. As a newborn child would, it seems that the body doesn’t recognize time anymore and won’t respond to the circadian rhythm like it used to. Due to this very unfortunate occurrence, a senior’s body will have to put up with the very destructive effects of sleep deprivation.

While sleep problem with seniors has relatively unknown cause except for a couple of potentially plausible explanation such as medication side effects or diminishing sleep hormones, there are ways to induce “the mood” and help you achieve better sleep. Here are some of the ways you might want to try tonight:

·    If you find that alarm clocks work for you, then it too may work to remind you of your bedtime. The body needs to prepare itself for hours of sleeping even if you already had a long and tiring day. In other words, it needs conditioning, best if you can do it for about an hour. Within this hour, before-bedtime rituals should be done but they need to be relaxing such as reading a book or listening to soothing music. Set your alarm clock one hour before sleeping to remind you when it’s time to wind down.
·    Emotional status of the person prior to sleeping plays a big role in his or her capacity to sleep. We all know that it gets quite hard to attain sleep when you are bothered or troubled but try as we might, clearing up the head is easier said than done so the next best thing you can do is try to slow things down even for a bit.
·    Avoid worrying too much if sleep doesn’t visit you right away for there are days that it won’t really come easily. Just don’t do anything that will stimulate your senses in getting active again such as action-packed movies or exercising. Never force yourself to sleep when you are not feeling it since it will only create panic if it doesn’t come at once.
·    Seniors tend to suffer nocturia or night-time urination. This disorder is extremely common among men but it also manifests in women. Try to lessen your trips to the toilet during the night by avoiding drinking water and diuretics prior to sleeping.

Sleep deprivation has many effects on one’s health. It is most advisable for seniors to try to get sleep as much as they possibly can and not to be overly conscious of the time it arrives. One golden rule for seniors’ sleeping problem, when sleep strikes, grab the opportunity and sleep!