After recovering from Covid, I often had trouble sleeping, tossing and turning and stayed up many nights with anxiety and stress. Please advise how to improve to sleep better?
Reply:
Post-Covid insomnia can happen at any age. Some people have trouble sleeping, tossing and turning, some people do not sleep deeply, do not sleep straight with anxiety and worry. This long-term condition affects the ability to live, making the patient’s ability to concentrate less. Without timely treatment, the patient is at risk of health deterioration, depression, and even self-harming behaviors and tendencies.
To improve, the patient should start over and maintain a regular sleep routine. The time to go to bed and wake up is the same every day, can vary by about 20 minutes.
Avoid sleeping during the day for a full night’s sleep and a deeper sleep. Do not stay awake for more than 5-10 minutes in bed. Do not use TV or social media or use your phone during these times as the blue light from screens can affect your circadian rhythm.
Turn off the television and other extraneous noises that can disrupt sleep. If your pet wakes you up, leave them outside the bedroom.
Choose a bedroom with windows to ensure that you get plenty of fresh air. If you want to avoid drafts, you can use an air purifier to remove bacteria and odors from the room. Create a quiet, comfortable bedroom. A thermostat can be placed in the bedroom at a comfortable temperature to make it easier to fall asleep.
Exercise every day such as gym, yoga, swimming, cycling… Avoid intense exercise before going to bed because this increases the secretion of endorphins into the body, which can make it difficult to sleep. Meditating before bed also helps you sleep better.
Eat in moderation every day, avoid eating too much before going to bed. Limit the intake of beverages containing caffeine because the effects of this substance last a few hours after drinking…
In addition, tobacco, alcohol… also make sleep fragmentary. Many people also use alcohol or tranquilizers to sleep. This habit is only effective at first, but over time can lead to alcohol abuse or addiction.
In case of long-term insomnia accompanied by stress and anxiety, you should see a doctor for psychotherapy and medication to recover soon.
Doctor Nguyen Viet Chung
Department of Mental Health, E Hospital, Hanoi
at Blogtuan.info – Source: vnexpress.net – Read the original article here
