Go around in bed without sleeping, watch the night hours pass and not rest, arrive the day and spend it tired for not having fallen asleep ... These symptoms of insomnia are more likely if you are pregnant. That is why we are going to talk about insomnia during pregnancy and its causes.
And first, we must be clear, when do we talk about insomnia? Is "sleeping badly" the same as having insomnia? Literally 'insomnia' means "lack of sleep at bedtime" (from Latin, 'insomnium'), but in practice this term is used with many meanings, which can lead to confusion.
Therefore, if you do not know if you have insomnia or any other sleep disorder, which we will try to reveal in these lines, it is best that you go to the specialist to make an evaluation and diagnosis. Although, hopefully, most likely you are simply going through a complicated stage of "sleeping badly" and we can help you get it remedied by tips to rest better during pregnancy.
What is almost certain is that if you are pregnant, you suffer from a sleep disorder. According to studies, more than 85% of pregnant women suffer changes in their sleep pattern at some time during pregnancy. The sleep disorder that shows a higher prevalence is the symptoms of insomnia: sleep latency, nighttime awakenings and poor repair sleep.
The restless legs syndrome, snoring, excessive daytime sleepiness ... are other reasons that pregnant women say for this "bad sleep." But let's see first what is meant by insomnia.
I have insomnia?
Due to its complex nature, it is difficult to establish a unitary and definitive definition of "insomnia," which encompasses all its characteristics. In addition, there are several types of insomnia. But it is possible that if what you present is a subjective complaint of sleeping poorly and there are not several of the symptoms listed below, do not have insomnia properly.
According to International Classification of Sleep Disorders published in 2014, insomnia is defined as a persistent difficulty in the onset of sleep, its duration, consolidation or quality that occurs despite the existence of adequate circumstances and opportunity for it and that is accompanied by a significant level of discomfort or deterioration of the social, labor, educational, academic, behavioral or other important areas of human functioning.
In the Clinical Practice Guide for the Management of Patients with Insomnia in Primary Care it is pointed out that "insomnia" should not be confused with the deprivation or lack of voluntary or imposed sleep, nor with the "complaint of bad sleep" in which there is no impact on functioning the next day. In this document, insomnia is defined as:
a hyper-alert state or surveillance disorder that lasts 24 hours a day, so it is characteristic the difficulty to sleep also during the day.
And, although during pregnancy the body undergoes many transformations, our head goes around a lot and you will have difficulty sleeping at some time (and for more than one night), this does not mean that you have insomnia if they are not fulfilled other symptoms The nocturnal characteristics of insomnia are the following:
- Difficulty falling asleep
- Difficulties in maintaining sleep (frequent awakenings or problems falling asleep again after waking up)
- Wake up end early, unable to go back to sleep
- Non-restorative sleep
- The sleep problem occurs at least three nights a week
During the day, insomnia features include:
- Fatigue
- Symptoms of anxiety and depression
- Dysphoria (disorder of emotions or unpleasant or annoying emotion)
- Mild attention and concentration deficits
- In addition, although they are less frequent or determining symptoms, there are memory deficits, deficits in executive functions, excessive sleepiness.
Another characteristic associated with insomnia are personality traits that tend to worry. As we can see, insomnia is associated with other disorders that affect the quality of life, work capacity ...
If you think you meet these characteristics, you are probably suffering from insomnia. And you wonder what can you take and what not to avoid insomnia in pregnancy, which we will explain in a new article. For now, let's see the reasons that lead you to sleep badly during pregnancy.
Remember: the first thing is for a specialist to confirm your insomnia and advise you in your particular case, since true insomnia requires a personalized approach.Causes of insomnia in pregnancy
It takes time to fall asleep, wake up often during the night and difficulties in falling asleep again, waking up early ... This is what many pregnant women suffer (more than 85%), especially in the third trimester (although not exclusively), have its causes
The most common causes of insomnia during pregnancy These include increased urinary frequency, backaches, gastroesophageal reflux, restless legs syndrome, nausea and vomiting (during the first trimester of pregnancy) and fetal movements (during the third).
The problem of nausea and vomiting It is much more frequent in the first trimester than in other stages of pregnancy and affects some women even at night, making sleep difficult. To control nausea remember not to lie down just after meals, eat small amounts and low-fat foods, take gingerbread cookies (natural remedy against nausea) and those foods that do not cause you repulsion ...
Gastroesophageal reflux affects more than 53% of pregnant women at night, making sleep difficult. Pregnancy hormones and little stomach space cause longer and heavier digestions. Reflux is characterized by a feeling of burning in the chest or throat called 'acidity', and sometimes you can feel the taste of the stomach fluid in the back of the mouth, because this liquid "rises." Some ways to reduce this discomfort is to avoid large, spicy, greasy or acidic foods; not eat right before bedtime; wear baggy clothes; sleep with the trunk elevated slightly ...
During pregnancy you urinate more frequently throughout the day and, of course, this also happens at night. The reasons are mainly the increase in the volume of fluids in the body of the pregnant woman and the increase in the volume of the uterus, which increasingly presses the bladder. About 70% of pregnant women indicate that this is a reason for insomnia. Even so, do not deprive yourself of drinking water during pregnancy because you need to be well hydrated (and urinate purifies toxins from the body), but try not to drink so much at night, before bedtime and go to the bathroom just when you sleep .
Backaches and other muscle discomfort related to the increase in uterine volume (the body has to find a new balance due to the increase in the abdomen and the curvature of the spine) also influence sleeping difficulties. During pregnancy, especially in the third trimester, pains increase, posture is not found, punctures, cramps in feet and legs are suffered ... About 50% of pregnant women argue these causes of insomnia.
Fetal movements They also make sleep difficult in 41% of cases. What you thought was an incredible and exciting start at about 18 or 20 weeks of pregnancy may not be as fun if the baby's movements in the belly start to hurt your ribs and this prevents you from sleeping a few nights in a row. Luckily, the baby also seems to relax during the night hours (as long as the mother also succeeds, which as we see is not easy).
Restless legs syndrome, an unpleasant sensation that the legs cannot stand when they are at rest. The pregnant woman feels a tingling sensation, burning… and the only way to remedy it is to move her legs, sometimes it is done uncontrollably because it relieves. In extreme cases it can also affect the arms. It is estimated that restless legs syndrome affects 30% of pregnant women and hormonal changes may be behind it (together with possible low iron levels, changes in the structure of the pelvis ...). What can be done to avoid this discomfort is to get enough physical activity during the day, so that there is a better rest.
Another reason reported by pregnant women for bad rest in the third trimester is snoring. Eye if there is a problem of sleep apnea or underlying hypertension or diabetes, you should consult your doctor. What happens is that changes in the mucosa of the respiratory tract due to excessive secretion and increased blood flow predispose both to hoarseness and obstruction of the upper airways.
In addition, a higher prevalence of insomnia symptoms has been found among multiparous women and women who do not exercise. The increase in heart rate may also have to do with keeping the woman in a constant state of alertness and with less sleep. Finally, there are studies that indicate that the increase in estrogen and progesterone decreases deep sleep.
Definitely, that it costs you to sleep well in pregnancy is normal and if lack of sleep affects your quality of life and during the day your body and your mind suffers, you may suffer insomnia. In any case, we will soon tell you what you can take against insomnia while pregnant and what remedies exist, without risks, to sleep as well as possible. An important advance: Do not self-medicate or take anything they tell you that is useful for resting.
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In Babies and more | If you are pregnant, changing the time is just one more reason why you sleep poorly, not finding the position to sleep during pregnancy (and despair about it), Sleep during pregnancy, trimester to trimester
