Ahuriri Pharmacy advice: Top tips on getting a restful sleep

Pharmacist Mel Barber (right), of Ahuriri Pharmacy, assists a customer.

OPINION

Whether your sleep struggle is constant or a time-to-time issue, everyone has had sleepless nights at one point in their life. Ahuriri Pharmacy pharmacist Mel Barber shares her top sleep times with Napier Courier readers.

Our sleep is regulated by homeostatic and circadian processes, causing a feeling of sleepiness with activity, hours awake and darkness.

Melatonin, the “sleep hormone”, acts in the circadian process, but our natural levels decline from age 35. This may lead to difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep, known as insomnia.

For management of long-term insomnia, lifestyle changes should be tried first.

Practise good sleep hygiene by:

• Taking half an hour to wind down in the evening and going to bed only when you are ready for sleep.
• Establishing a routine where you are active throughout the day and are going to sleep and waking at the same times each day.
• Making your bedroom dark, quiet, cool and comfortable.
• Removing stimulants and turning devices off an hour before bed.
• Avoiding caffeine, smoking and alcohol in the evening, instead trying chamomile tea or milky drinks.
• Getting up and doing something non-stimulating in another room if you don’t fall asleep within 30 minutes of going to bed. Reading, relaxation or yoga are good options.

If sleep still eludes you, your pharmacist can offer you medicines to help, like melatonin slow-release tablets, which mimic the pattern of endogenous melatonin if taken 1-2 hours before sleep.

The tablets can be provided to people over 55 for short-term treatment of insomnia (up to 13 weeks) that is not caused by other medical conditions.

They should be swallowed whole, and it may take up to three weeks before the sleep-wake cycle is restored.

It is best to avoid alcohol and other medicines for sleep while taking melatonin. It is usually well tolerated and doesn’t seem to cause daytime drowsiness, dependence, withdrawal effects or rebound insomnia; however, if drowsiness does occur, avoid driving or operating machinery.

If you are affected by insomnia, speak to your pharmacist or doctor about what treatment will suit you best.

The information provided is a guide and not intended as a comprehensive medical service. It should not be used as a substitute for seeking professional medical advice.