{"id":832,"date":"2014-11-10T08:56:35","date_gmt":"2014-11-10T08:56:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/amerisleep.com\/blog\/?p=832"},"modified":"2023-08-22T10:44:10","modified_gmt":"2023-08-22T17:44:10","slug":"ease-sleep-discomfort","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/amerisleep.com\/blog\/ease-sleep-discomfort\/","title":{"rendered":"Ease Discomfort and Sleep Better: A Guide for Short-Term vs. Long-Term Sleep Solutions"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you suffer from chronic pain, you know the discomfort doesn\u2019t take a break at night just because you\u2019re ready for bed.<\/p>\n

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Chronic pain<\/a> can make it harder to fall asleep, stay asleep, and get the rest that you need to be productive during the day. Though pain or discomfort doesn\u2019t usually cause sleeplessness right away, over time, it can become a vicious cycle. Experiencing pain-related sleep problems one night can make you more likely to experience them again the next night, and so on.<\/p>\n

Before you know it, you\u2019re uncomfortable and <\/em>sleep deprived\u2014which is never a good combination. Fortunately, this is one cycle that you can <\/em>break. Here we’ll discuss the short-term and long-term solutions that can help ease discomfort and help you sleep better for the future.<\/p>\n

Why pain is bad for sleep.<\/h2>\n
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Photo by Flickr user interiorphotos<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Roughly 15% of Americans suffer from chronic pain; among older adults, estimates run as high as 50%. Among them, a full two-thirds say that their pain causes sleep problems, reports the National Sleep Foundation.<\/p>\n

Sleep-related discomfort often comes in the form of lower back pain, headaches, or facial pain caused by TMJ syndrome. Musculoskeletal issues like fibromyalgia or arthritis are other common culprits, as is abdominal pain caused by premenstrual syndrome.<\/p>\n

Pain often has the tendency to cause fragmented sleep through microarousals, or disruptions in deep sleep states throughout the night. Many medications that are used to treat pain, like morphine or codeine, are also known to disrupt the snooze cycle.<\/p>\n

Feeling pain in a certain part of your body can also affect your sleep position. Arthritis and orthopedic pain, for instance, can make it difficult to get comfortable in bed, resulting in trouble staying asleep.<\/p>\n

Add it all up, and its no wonder that pain sufferers end up feeling extraordinarily crummy and exhausted the next morning. And over time, that can lead to tons of negative side effects, from obesity<\/a> to depression to a weakened immune system<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Worst of all? The chronic sleep deprivation can make your pain even more intense. In a\n