Sleep Archives - Page 3 of 4

Are You Getting “Overtired” Every Night At 11pm?

by Ellen Vora, MD on Nov 1, 2018 / Share

Having a baby taught me a thing or two about adult sleep. Today we discuss “overtired.”

Snoozing: Natural Ways To Fix Your Sleep

by Ellen Vora, MD on Oct 31, 2018 / Share

The problem with snoozing, and what to do about it.

What Kauai’s Roosters Taught Me About Sleep

by Ellen Vora, MD on Oct 18, 2018 / Share

Kauai has a population of wild roosters that serve as an island-wide, unsnoozable alarm. Here’s how that fixes everyone’s sleep.

My Fix For Jetlag

by Ellen Vora, MD on Oct 13, 2018 / Share

I’m coming to the end of my around the world journey, having changed time zones more times than I can count. This is the trick I use to help quell jet lag.

Having Trouble Falling Asleep? Can’t Stay Asleep? These 10 MD-Approved Tips Are Actually Proven To Work

by Ellen Vora, MD on Oct 8, 2018 / Share

Original article in mindbodygreen

Image: Studio Firma

October 8, 2018 — 9:30 AM

So you can’t sleep? You’re in good company (read: nearly everyone these days), but it’s still a lousy problem. Chronic sleep deprivation can make you depressed, anxious, prone to getting sick, at higher risk for cancer, and it makes you more likely to gain weight and develop diabetes and dementia. Poor sleep is at the root of so many cases of ADD/ADHD, and, worst of all, it shortens our life span. And of course it doesn’t feel good to be jolted awake by an alarm when your body is screaming: No! I haven’t gotten enough sleep yet.

Let’s try to solve this problem right here and now, in eight steps—because you’re tired, and that’s about all you can handle at the moment…

13 Steps to Managing Postpartum Sadness, Anxiety & Overwhelm

by Ellen Vora, MD on Oct 8, 2018 / Share

Original article in mindbodygreen

Image: Holly Clark

October 7, 2018 — 9:24 AM

The postpartum period is an incredibly vulnerable time. Countless new moms are sitting in their gliders right now, isolated at home, surrounded by spit-up and burp cloths, delirious with sleep deprivation, nerves frayed from the confusing cries of their infants, and feeling overwhelmed, sad, anxious, and alone.

Every time this happens to a new mom, I feel we have failed as a culture. It’s normal to experience the transition of becoming a mom as a complicated mix of joy and an unexpected gut punch, but when a mom is isolated and feeling like her sadness and anxiety are about to swallow her whole, there is more we can be doing to support this mom. Here are the steps I find most helpful in my holistic psychiatry practice…

A Blood Sugar Crash + 4 Other Reasons You’re Waking Up In The Middle Of The Night

by Ellen Vora, MD on Aug 28, 2018 / Share

Original article on mindbodygreen.

Photo: Michela Ravasio

August 9, 2018 — 9:25 AM

Waking up in the middle of the night, aka “middle insomnia,” is an extremely common type of insomnia and extremely frustrating for those who suffer from it. This is especially true for those who really try to prioritize sleep and good sleep hygiene; those who did the responsible thing and brushed their teeth, got in bed, fell asleep by 10 p.m.—but now it’s 2 a.m. and they’re wide-awake and wired. What gives?

Insomnia of any kind is a multifactorial issue, deeply related to underlying health issues, and typically can’t be attributed to just one thing. Before you turn to over-the-counter medications or talk to your doctor about a prescription sleep aid, consider these five common causes of middle insomnia…

3 Steps to End Insomnia

by Ellen Vora, MD on Aug 1, 2018 / Share

Take these 3 steps to sleep better starting tonight.

If You Do Nothing Else, Do This

by Ellen Vora, MD on Jul 16, 2018 / Share

This may be the easiest and most impactful health intervention you can do.

Here’s Why Your Friends Are Sleeping With Weighted Blankets

by Ellen Vora, MD on May 10, 2018 / Share

Full article on the Bulletproof blog.

By: ALISON MOODIE

Here’s Why Your Friends Are Sleeping With Weighted Blankets

Excerpt:

Weighted blankets and sleep

According to Ellen Vora, M.D., a holistic psychiatrist, weighted blankets may turn down anxiety by recalibrating our nervous system. Our ancestors made a point to keep infants in constant physical contact with another person, usually the mother, she says. Nowadays, babies typically spend a lot of time in cribs, strollers, and swings, depriving them of close touch. (Note that weighted blankets should never be used on children under age 3.)

“Perhaps the relative absence of that early touch in modern life leaves the nervous system in a state of feeling slightly more stressed, slightly less relaxed, which can manifest as depression and anxiety later in life,” says Vora. “Perhaps a weighted blanket is effectively like a big, belated hug, attempting to reprogram the nervous system that we are in fact okay and secure.”