Insomnia

Insomnia is the difficulty in falling asleep. A sleep disorder is the difficulty of staying asleep or sleeping soundly enough to feel adequately rested. Insomnia is a common occurrence among perimenopausal and menopausal women, often caused by fluctuating hormonal levels.

Most often initial sleep is achieved; however, many women waken around 3:00 a.m. and are not able to return to a deep, restful sleep. Insomnia can be a serious problem, since it affects the amount of REM (or rapid eye movement) sleep.  REM sleep is important for all sorts of cognitive functions such as problem solving, creative work, and memory. Even those who get a total of eight hours of sleep may find themselves tired if they wake up frequently. Those who experience a lack of sleep in general, and a lack of REM sleep, in particular, over time will experience a number of problems, including decreased concentration, decreased memory, extreme tiredness, decreased motor skills and irritability.

Most of us fall asleep when our body temperature is declining. As heat is lost through the skin and the core body temperature declines drowsiness increases. The hormonal changes that come with menopause affect the body’s temperature-regulating mechanisms, which contribute to the increased sleep difficulty that comes with menopause and aging. Women who experience hot flashes and night sweats have poorer quality sleep than women who do not. In fact, one study showed that nearly 100% of women who experience nighttime hot flashes also experience a waking episode at the same time.

Chronic stress causes adrenal exhaustion and suppresses levels of DHEA, a vital regulator of sleep. When overstressed your body releases excessive amounts of stress hormones such as epinephrine and norepinephrine and cortisol. This excess of cortisol interferes with the production and use of vital hormones, such as progesterone, pregnenolone and DHEA, all of which act as precursors to estrogen and testosterone. Insomniacs with the highest degree of sleep disturbance secrete the highest amount of cortisol, particularly in the evening and nighttime hours when cortisol levels should be low. This means that insomniacs are producing stress hormone levels that actually prevent them from sleeping. They are suffering from sustained, round-the-clock activation of the body’s system for responding to stress. Continually living with the stress of too little sleep can aggravate and intensify other medical conditions like high blood pressure and digestive disorders, as well as weaken the body’s ability to fight off illness.

Bioidentical estrogen replacement therapy has been shown to improve sleep quality, facilitate sleep onset, and decrease nighttime restlessness and awakenings. Women taking Bioidentical estrogen replacement report feeling less tired in the morning, and throughout the day. They also report that other symptoms of menopause such as hot flashes, muscle aches, and mood swings are improved. A significant percentage of non-symptomatic women also reported improved sleep quality with Bioidentical Hormones.

Additionally, another positive effect of estrogen replacement on sleep disturbance is its ability to reduce stress reactivity. Low estrogen levels have been associated with increased heart rate and blood pressure, in response to stress. Restoring estrogen to more youthful levels enables the body to respond to stressors more effectively. 

If you are not sleeping and suspect it may be an imbalance in your hormones, you may want to procure a saliva hormone level test. Because each woman’s hormonal make-up is unique, salivary hormone level testing can be an effective tool for helping maintain a healthful and youthful hormone balance. The concept of one-size-fits-all doses of hormones for all women is out-dated. In using salivary hormone level testing, our physicians can determine precisely what you need and prescribe the dose that is adequate for you.

Register Now  for a FREE 10 minute consultation with a BioHRT Physician

Learn about more symptoms..