Conservative studies estimate more than 60 percent of people living with Parkinson’s have significant problems with sleep. While some have trouble falling asleep, others report they wake up too often or too early. The most common complaint is interrupted sleep. Doctors call this sleep fragmentation.
Parkinson's disease medications can interfere with sleep, as well as the side-effects of living with Parkinson's, or just the consequences of aging such as restless legs, trips to the bathroom, pain, depression, confusion, hallucinations, and sleep apnea. Improving your sleep may require you and your neurologist use some diagnostic tools, and some trial and error, to find some solutions for you.
As with many challenges in Parkinson's, your physician's skill in prescribing tests and medications may be your best weapon. Based on your symptoms, your physician may pursue a number of strategies including adjusting your Parkinson's-related medications, or introducing a sleeping pill. Considering the effects of medications you are currently taking may also be an important strategy to making sure you sleep.
Sleep hygiene” is simply a set of rules that will make your sleep better. A lot of these guidelines are obvious. A recent publication about sleep in Parkinson's listed the following elements of sleep hygiene:
- Spend as much time in bright daylight as you can. Avoid day time naps. Stay as active as
possible during the day
- Avoid stimulants
such as caffeine and tobacco close to bedtime. (Remember there are a few Parkinson's medications that have a stimulant effect.)
- Avoid alcohol before bedtime
- Avoid drinking a lot of fluid before you go to bed. This will reduce trips to the bathroom
- Avoid heavy late-night meals
- Do things that
help you relax before you go to bed
- Maintain a regular
sleep routine
- Create a routine
for going to sleep at night and stick with it
- Don't stay in bed
after you wake up. Use
the bed for sleeping. If
you like to watch TV in bed, consider watching from a different
location. That way
your mind knows the bed is for sleeping.
- Use your bedroom
for sleeping. Use
other rooms in your house for reading, watching TV, working,
exercising, etc.
When you visit your physician, he or she will likely ask you a few questions about the trouble you are having with sleep. We went back into our files and found this checklist of symptoms to help you communicate your situation to your physician:
Sleep Disturbance Checklist
__ I have trouble falling asleep.
__ I wake up too early and cannot get back to sleep.
__ My sleep gets interrupted many times during the night.
__ I have a hard time turning over and moving in bed.
__ I get stiff at night.
__ I get muscle cramps at night.
__ Tremors interrupt my sleep.
__ Other spasms or unintentional movements, that are not tremors, interrupt my sleep.
__ I have vivid dreams.
__ I have nightmares.
__ I sleepwalk.
On average, I wake up ____ times per night.
On average, I get ____ hours of sleep per night.
