Exercise and sleep
Question:
Recently (three months ago) I started cycling into work (8 miles each way). Now I sleep incredibly lightly and keep waking up in the night. I have very (seemingly) long vivid dreams and I wake up incredibly tired. Has anyone else experienced similar problems, and if so what did you find that helped. Thanks in advance, James Nicolson
Response:
In article <01bc7be2$2c8e4d40$a6b78fc2@jamesnpc>, "James Nicolson" <james@NO_SPAMxara.com> wrote: > Recently (three months ago) I started cycling into work (8 miles each way). > Now I sleep incredibly lightly and keep waking up in the night. I have very > (seemingly) long vivid dreams and I wake up incredibly tired. Has anyone > else experienced similar problems, and if so what did you find that helped. > Thanks in advance, > James Nicolson
******************* Not sure if I can help, but some things to consider might be: Do you snore? You might have an upper airway resistance or sleep apnea condition that was largely asymptomatic until sleep-drive-propensity and deep-sleep debt from daytime exercise could not be redeemed fast enough from existing disordered sleep. Are you on medications that might be therapeutically altered with exercise? Has a new duress emerged from subliminal safety concerns inherent in biking on the roads and in traffic — without the "safe" metal enclosure of an automobile? Hidden fears can generate insomnia (a recent NAPS abstract summarized observations of 60+ patients with "psychophysiologic insomnia"; I lament that in conventional medicine, everything unexplainable physiologically gets automatically filed in the "psycho"-prefixed folders). The long, vivid dreams might be indicative of REM rebound, which could be implicated in sleep-disordered breathing or narcolepsy. Narcolepsy might have lied largely dormant or mild until confronted with sleep challenge. Finally, unless you’re in good shape, you should not exercise soon before sleep (I can’t remember the recommended avoidance time-frames), as sympathetic CNS activity may disrupt sleep architecture. Irregardless, you should get yourself evaluated overnight in a sleep disorders clinic in your state, and one accredited through the American Sleep Disorders Association; furthermore, you should maintain the same habits that make you symptomatic for excessive daytime sleepiness when participating in a polysomnography study. After all, you’d like to be biking in ten years, right? Good luck, Doug ——————-==== Posted via Deja News ====———————– http://www.dejanews.com/ Search, Read, Post to Usenet
Response:
I am a 50-year-old male, overweight and leading a sedentary lifestyle. I have severe apnea, only marginally controlled by CPAP and drugs. I am stuck in a repeating pattern of sleep disruptions that last days or weeks and result in chronic, debilitating fatigue and depression. After much prodding from my doctor, I am adding exercise to the mix. Last week I bought a used treadmill and was pleasantly surprised that walkiing on it was not the tedious gerbil-like activity I had feared it would be. I began the first day walking only five minutes at a time several times a day. A week later, I am up to one session of 20 minutes. My doctor has always quoted the magic figure of 20 minutes per day, three times a week as the minimun for producing benefits. Anyone seen any sleep improvement from exercise? How much exercise and how frequently? What time of day? How long to see any effects? Dick Evans
Response:
My personal opinion is that there is much about sleep apnea that doctors do not understand. They learn some things, see some successes, and that becomes the conventional "paradigm". For instance, CPAP is the "gold standard", and even after futile nasal surgeries to rectify congestions, they will still bawl out, "CPAP! CPAP! They will not consider very maintenance free, aesthetically adequate tracheotomies (like I have, and am pleased with), because "CPAP" is what’s in vogue! (and besides, one can get more "kick-backs" from the CPAP industry). Likewise, they will proclaim "exercise" as the answer. Who cares if your heart is enlarged and your blood pressure is high and your sleep deprivation is at critical mass–who cares? Overlook the trauma, weakling! If you snore, you are obviously character-flawed, and, therefore, part of your character flaw is your lack of motivation to exercise, you lazy sap! Doctors constantly pushing exercise to someone with sleep apnea is like your dad asking you to undergo rigorous training as a football player when you are in a wheelchair. But its part of the "paradigm"! Its the vogue thing to demand of you! When all else fails, it is the "hail mary". Now, with that having been said, any exercise is beneficial, even if just walking. Even impaired cardiovascular systems are benefited from exercise. Even the effects of apnea are if only slightly mitigated in an exercised organism. But, heh, sleep doctors, please go easy on those demands. They are well-founded, but are not the panacea. We are sleep and oxygen deprived, remember? Doug
Response:
Jo, A "Tracheostomy" is a hole in your neck, just under the adams apple, that opens into your airway or Trachea. Doing this bypasses the mouth and nose for breathing. As long as you keep something in it (a trach tube for example), it is permanent. Once you take the tube out, it will close up in a couple of days or weeks. Bypassing the mouth and nose bypasses the normal means for humidification and filtering. Also it is very prone to infection and, pardon the expression, bugs like flies and ladybugs. Yes, I have seen a ladybug crawling into a persons tracheostomy and causing him to almost choke to death. You cannot swim well with this unless you have a very watertight seal. Yes, it does cure obstructive sleep apnea. But is it worth the cost? Pardon me, but I will be happy to put my little CPAP mask on at night and "Rest easy". BillsCPAP in Seattle – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Would you mind expounding on this tracheotomy? I’m having > pictures in my head that don’t look very pleasant. Was this a one-time > thing or is there something implanted in your throat that everyone can > see? ’Xcuse my ignorance, please. > -Jo-
Response:
Unfortunately, I can’t give you my own success story, but I REALLY believe exercise is key to wellness, including sleep patterns. I’m still struggling to get into an exercise routine myself. My sleep specialist asks me about exercise every time I see him. Keep up the good work! I’d give it two or three months before I judged the effectiveness of the exercise (based on what I’ve heard). I’ve never been able to keep a routine going for that long (I travel a lot and my routine is easily disrupted), and that’s my goal! Good luck! Gina ————————— g…@erols.com On Tue, 29 Oct 1996 04:25:18 GMT, info…@ral.mindspring.com (Richard – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -T. Evans) wrote: >I am a 50-year-old male, overweight and leading a sedentary lifestyle. >I have severe apnea, only marginally controlled by CPAP and drugs. I >am stuck in a repeating pattern of sleep disruptions that last days or >weeks and result in chronic, debilitating fatigue and depression. >After much prodding from my doctor, I am adding exercise to the mix. >Last week I bought a used treadmill and was pleasantly surprised that >walkiing on it was not the tedious gerbil-like activity I had feared >it would be. >I began the first day walking only five minutes at a time several >times a day. A week later, I am up to one session of 20 minutes. >My doctor has always quoted the magic figure of 20 minutes per day, >three times a week as the minimun for producing benefits. >Anyone seen any sleep improvement from exercise? How much exercise >and how frequently? What time of day? How long to see any effects? >Dick Evans
