We all need an adequate amount of sleep for our overall health, but for people with breast cancer, sleep is even more crucial.
“Studies show about one-third of individuals treated for cancer experience anxiety that impacts their quality of life,” says Katherine Walsh, PhD, LICSW. “Worrying about health, the emotional impact of your cancer on your family, financial costs of treatment, and whether your life will be shortened are all very common concerns among individuals with cancer.”
A study published in Behavioral Sleep Medicine in 2021 assessed the sleep patterns of 460 women with breast cancer and found that almost 80 percent of the participants experienced insomnia symptoms.
Do you find yourself lying in bed tossing and turning most days of the week for at least three months? Does it take more than 30 minutes to fall asleep? Do you wake up in the middle of the night for at least 30 minutes? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you likely have insomnia.
But even if you don’t answer yes to these questions, you should still consult with an expert if you are feeling dissatisfied with your sleep. He or she can help figure out what is going on with you.
Another sign that sleep may be affecting you?
An increase in irritability, fatigue, a depressed mood, and anxiety during the day are all signs that it’s time to get help.
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Having trouble fighting insomnia? Oxana Palesh, PhD, MPH, a professor in the department of psychiatry and director of the Palesh Cancer Survivorship Laboratory in the Massey Cancer Center at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, offers these tips:
“I have yet to meet someone who can will themselves to sleep,” says Palesh, “so you want to get acquainted with your body, learn to recognize when you’re feeling sleepy, and that’s when you go to bed. Don’t use the clock to tell you when to go to bed when struggling with insomnia.”
Set your alarm for the same time daily to help retrain your body to have a routine rhythm.
“If you go to bed and can’t sleep within half an hour, get out of bed so you don’t form the association in your brain with bed and sleeplessness,” says Palesh. “Try again in a half an hour.”
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Light can stimulate your brain and interrupt your body’s release of melatonin. Exposure to blue light, which comes from fluorescent and LED lights and back-lit electronic screens on TVs, mobile phones, and computers, can also make it difficult for you to fall asleep and stay asleep. Avoid blue light for a couple of hours before bed. Walsh and Palesh both recommend swapping TV and digital devices for relaxing practices like reading or listening to calming music before bed. Meanwhile, starting your day with lots of light and exercise can stimulate your brain when you wake up to help reinforce your sleep cycle, according to Palesh.
“We want to associate bed with sleep and sex only,” Palesh says. So while you read or practice relaxation exercises before bed, make sure not to do these things in your bed — no matter how relaxing they might be.
Avoid eating or drinking alcohol for two or three hours before going to bed. Also, avoid caffeine in the afternoons and evenings.
Not getting enough sleep can be difficult, but with these tips, adequate exercise and eating healthy throughout the day, you can successfully break your insomnia cycle.
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