Sleep and Bipolar

A group discussion about the challenges of sleep for those living with bipolar.

January Meeting: Sleep & Bipolar

One of the key issues for people living with bipolar is sleep. Sometimes it’s the struggle to fall asleep or sometimes it’s the consequences of not sleeping that can make life difficult. At our recent all-ages meeting, we held a group discussion to share our challenges as well as what has worked for us. 

Challenges

• There are many factors that contribute to problems with sleep. We may struggle with sleep due to sensory issues, such as light, sound, or temperature. Even slight changes in any of these can be enough to disrupt sleep. Many also experience restless legs that cause tingling sensations in the legs that worsen at night.

  
  

• Changes in our environment can trigger sleep issues as well, with some of us more sensitive to change than others. Change in seasons, change in routines, or even change of beds can all impact our ability to sleep. 

  
  

• What we put in our bodies also plays a large role. Caffeine, medication, and diet all interact with our bodily systems in ways that can prevent sleep. Things like diet and caffeine can often be adjusted to improve sleep, but side effects from medications can be harder to manage. 

  
  

• Sleep is also affected by the things we do. Watching tv or spending time on our phones scrolling before bed can stimulate our nervous system and make it more difficult to fall asleep. Waking up to take care of others, such as children or pets, or traveling long distances can interfere with quality sleep. Jet lag in particular can severely disrupt sleep and sometimes for extended periods of time. 

  
  

• And overall, life can be stressful, especially life with bipolar. Our moods can be easily affected by things going on in our lives or the world around us. Stress and anxiety can make it difficult to fall asleep, while depression can sometimes make it difficult to stay awake. Sometimes sleep can even feel scary for those who experience night terrors or nightmares. And unfortunately, just the stress of not sleeping can worsen the problem, especially when sleep is a crucial trigger for episodes. 

What Can Help

• Things that can affect and calm our nervous systems can be very effective in improving sleep, like taking a hot bath or drinking hot milk or tea, and wellbeing apps often offer meditation or relaxation exercises, such as Calm or Sleepio. 

  
  

• Tools that can help with sensory issues include eye masks or blackout curtains for light sensitivity and white noise machines for sound. Those struggling with restless legs could try gentle stretching or lying on a cold floor. 

  
  

• Other suggested practices were using sleep tracking to help you identify things affecting your sleep, sunlight lamps to help issues with Seasonal Affective Disorder or difficulty waking up, taking medication early to avoid morning drowsiness, creating strict sleep routines, using night time settings on our screens, and of course, exercise. Some people also found short term sleep medication and melatonin gummies beneficial for more intense bouts of insomnia, but usage should be monitored.

Group discussions like we held last meeting are great opportunities for us to to share our knowledge and experience with challenges we can all relate to. While sleep problems may seem overwhelming, many of these tips and tools have become important parts of our lives because they've had a positive impact on our sleep and can hopefully benefit others as well.

You can find more resources regarding sleep and bipolar on our website under Information Topics.