Women need to know Prediabetes and sleep is important! Disordered sleep is a risk factor for Prediabetes (and Insulin Resistance). Read on to see what bad sleep can do…and 14 simple things you can do to get sleep working for you and your health.
Nobody likes slugging through the day with a bad night’s sleep. Bad sleep can affect your performance and even contribute to getting diseases like…
This Prediabetes And Sleep Stuff Is Important!
Ever been jet lagged…it feels terrible!
Turns out disordered sleeping is just like giving yourself jet lag over and over and over!
“If you’re constantly changing your sleep routine, it can have the same effect as giving yourself jet lag. You should aim to get a sufficient amount of sleep each night and be consistent with the times you go to sleep and wake up each day.”
Michael Grandner, director of the Sleep and Health Research Program at the University of Arizona
Consistency Is The Key!
Try to go to bed at around the same time every night and get up at the same time every morning.
Aim for at least 7 hours every night.
Need Some Help Getting To Sleep Or Staying Asleep?
- Avoid electronic devices (phone, TV, computer) an hour before bed
- Get a spoonk mat and have an ‘acupressure massage’ before you go to sleep (ok, it looks like hell, but the Spoonk is actually very comfortable. I use mine all the time -- without a shirt!)
- Sleep with the window open
- Make sure you are not too cold or not too hot
- Eat a small snack before bed (a handful of nuts and 1/2 banana)
- Replace your pillow once a year
- Make sure your mattress is supportive and replace if necessary
- Spend the last 30 minutes of your day journaling and counting your blessings. Learn more about journaling and your Prediabetes here!
- If you wake up in the middle of the night and can’t go back to sleep, get up and eat 1/2 banana and immediately go back to bed
- Take a natural sleep aid with valerian root, it induces sleepiness. Sleepsmart is a great choice! (and is NOT addictive)
Sleeping In To Catch Up?
— It doesn’t really work…you need to have proper sleep every night!
Need some help keeping on track?
1. Get a Fitbit
2. Set some sleep goals on your Fitbit
3. Let your Fitbit track your progress for you!
…oh, by the way, you can track your steps with your Fitbit too! (hint, hint)
That Should Help
So those are the 14 simple things you can do to get sleep working for you...and your health.
Pick 1 or 2 to start with, then add more as you master each one.
Like I said, Prediabetes and Sleep is important – you need to get a handle on this to avoid Type 2 Diabetes. Keep working at it!
Night, night! Sleep tight tonight!
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