Sleep is essential for our bodies to restore our energy and recharge to keep us going. Seldom is sleep more important than when coping with cancer, its treatment, and survivorship. Yet sleep is so connected to how we feel physically and mentally that cancer-related stress can often disturb our sleep quality and patterns. Getting a good night’s sleep may be most elusive when we need it the most.
Sleep Basics
Understanding how sleep works can give you insight into how to improve your sleep while coping with cancer. One of the ways we balance sleep and wakefulness is through the buildup of sleep pressure that occurs the longer we are awake. Sleep pressure is at its lowest after a full night’s sleep when our sleep needs are met.
If sleep is too short or is disturbed by many awakenings, we don’t get the deep, restorative sleep we need. This may lead you to take daytime naps to make up for poor nighttime sleep. However, if naps are too long or late in the evening, they may interfere with the normal “pressure” to sleep at night. Sleeping too much during the day may cause your days and nights to get mixed up. If you do need a nap, both the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the National Sleep Foundation recommend taking short naps of about 30 minutes and avoiding naps too close to bedtime, so as not to interfere with nighttime sleep.
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