More than 100 million people in the U.S. experience allergies each year. While you’re likely familiar with the sneezing, red eyes and hives most often associated with allergies, you may not have considered how the condition can affect your sleep.
Let’s take a look at the connection between allergies and poor sleep and a few tips to get a better night’s rest.
How Do Allergies Impact Sleep?
A few ways allergies can impact your quality of sleep include:
- Trouble breathing. Lying down can make it difficult for mucus to drain, leading to increased congestion and disrupted breathing.
- Itching. Itching eyes, throat and skin can leave you feeling too uncomfortable to fall or stay asleep.
- Coughing. Similar to how mucus cannot drain from your nose when lying down, it can get stuck in your sinuses or throat, leading to excess coughing.
- Stress. Falling asleep when you’re stressed often seems impossible. The combination of physical discomfort and worries about falling asleep can keep you tossing and turning all night.
A full eight hours of sleep can leave you feeling rested and ready to take on the world. Losing sleep, on the other hand, can cause crankiness, trouble remembering information, confusion or difficulty concentrating, delayed response time and mood disruptions. Chronic insomnia can increase your risk of depression, anxiety, high blood pressure, stroke, heart attack and more. When something begins disrupting your sleep, it is crucial to your overall health to manage the underlying cause.
Tips for Better Sleep
Allergies don’t need to keep you up at night. A combination of allergy management and sleep tips can help you get the best rest possible:
- Try allergy medication. Allergy medication provides temporary symptom relief. You can choose from decongestants, antihistamines, nasal sprays and mast cell inhibitors to manage nighttime allergies.
- Clean your home. Dust mites, pet dander, mold and pollen can settle into your home, increasing your risk of an allergic reaction. Clean your bedding, vacuum and mop regularly to prevent allergen buildup. During allergy season, sleep with the windows closed to keep out pollen.
- Immunotherapy. Allergy immunotherapy is a long-term treatment for seasonal, indoor and insect sting allergies. With immunotherapy, your symptoms will likely improve in the first year, with continued improvement over the next three to five years.
- Relax. Finding ways to relax is crucial to a good night’s sleep. Try taking a warm bath, meditating or attending a class at 90 Degrees Yoga to minimize stress before bed.
- Drink herbal tea. Swap your afternoon coffee for herbal tea. Try drinking chamomile tea for an extra sleep boost.
By managing your allergy symptoms and implementing a few nighttime relaxation tips, you can start on the path towards better sleep. Contact Spartanburg | Greer ENT & Allergy today to speak to one of our specialists about allergy management.
