Many of you asked your questions regarding sleep disorders on ouest-france.fr, Monday March 21, 2022. War in Ukraine, anxiety, duration of deep sleep… Here is a selection of ten questions and the answers of three specialists .
Anxiety, stress, lunar cycle, coffee consumption, waking up in the middle of the night… For two hours, Monday March 21, 2022, you asked us your questions regarding sleep disorders.
To answer you, we called on several specialists: Dr Marie-Françoise Vecchierini, neuropsychiatrist and former president of the French Society for Sleep Research and Medicine (SFRMS), Dr Arnaud Prigent, pulmonologist and doctor at sleep center at the Saint-Laurent clinic in Rennes (Ille-et-Vilaine) and finally Dr. Marc Rey, neurologist, president of theNational Institute of Sleep and Vigilance and former director of the Timone sleep center in Marseille (Bouches-du-Rhône).
Find all the questions / answers of the live here.
Covid-19, war in Ukraine
“Since the Covid-19 crisis and theinvasion de l’Ukraine, I can’t fall asleep before 2 or 3 in the morning. If I wake up during the night, I don’t go back to sleep.asks Katherine.
Indeed, news regarding this war is a source of anxiety. It is important to limit your time in front of television screens, especially in the evening. It is necessary to maintain a usual lifestyle and especially to keep regular sleep schedules.
It seems essential to stay away from traumatic information, to manage your anxiety for example with relaxation and sometimes to be able to talk regarding it to other adults, so as not to be left alone in front of haunting images, explains Dr Marie-Françoise Vecchierini, neuropsychiatrist.
Deep sleep
“How much deep sleep are we supposed to get in one night? I never spend an hour and a half, is that normal? »asks Christina.
Generally, it is accepted that sleep is distributed as follows: 50% light sleep, 25% deep sleep and 25% paradoxical sleep. The main thing is to feel rested following a night’s sleep. “Doing deep sleep cannot be an end in itself”. The determination of deep sleep by connected devices is far from perfect and you have to know how to criticize this data if you feel rested in the morning.
Many elements can play on the duration of deep sleep: stress, anxiety, medication, environment, depression, sleep apnea syndrome, periodic movements… This is therefore the cause that must be sought. This research will only be carried out if you feel unrested in the morning, answers Dr. Arnaud Prigent, pulmonologist.
Put your bed to the north?
“Is there a way to put his bed, like head north? »asks Thomas.
I have no scientific element to answer this question, answers Dr. Arnaud Prigent, pulmonologist.
Take a nap
“What do you think of the siesta? »asks Dominique.
The siesta is a physiological need at midday in adults and must remain short (<20 minutes) and end before 3 p.m., answers Dr. Marc Rey, neurologist. Naturally in children and babies naps are essential and their hours and durations vary according to age.
Read also: TESTIMONIALS. Sleep Disorders: “I never sleep more than two hours at a time”
Drink coffee in the followingnoon
“Is coffee following 4 p.m. really bad for sleep? »asks Jessica.
Everyone’s sensitivity to caffeine is different, but coffee following 4 p.m. delays falling asleep at night, says Dr Arnaud Prigent.
What effect on age?
“Do sleep disorders have an impact on longevity? »asks Mamadou.
Sleep is essential to life, answers Dr Arnaud Prigent. Poor sleep has consequences on our physical and mental health. We cannot answer this question in a general way because each sleep pathology has its specificities. Each sleep pathology is also associated with different comorbidities, which themselves affect longevity.
If we take the example of sleep apnea syndrome, we know that this pathology is associated with a greater occurrence of cardiovascular pathologies. A recent study conducted on French data (with an imperfect methodology) tends to demonstrate that patients with untreated sleep apnea syndrome have a significantly shorter lifespan than patients with sleep apnea syndrome. sleep apnea well treated.
The impact of the moon
“If there is a real influence of the full moon on the quality of sleep, are we more subject to it as we get older? »asks Francois.
There is an influence of the Moon on sleep but which is still the subject of debate, as you get older sleep is lighter which can give you the impression of greater sensitivity.
How much melatonin?
“Is there a test (blood or other) to measure melatonin? If so, what is the dosage? »asks Eve.
Melatonin can be measured in blood, saliva or urine, however there are very few laboratories that do these measurements. Above all, melatonin at a rate over 24 hours and a single dosage at a given time is often insufficient.
When you want to look for a relationship between sleep disorder (it must be specified which disorder) and melatonin metabolism, you have to do a 24-hour assay or several samples, including one in the middle of the night, which risks waking the patient and this must be done under very strict lighting conditions since light inhibits the secretion of melatonin. Moreover, there is not always a relationship between test results and insomnia; so this is not used to measure melatonin in insomnia, explains Dr. Marie-Françoise Vecchierini, neuropsychiatrist.
stop thinking
“Cerebral hyperactivity in the evening is the cause of my difficulty falling asleep, what can I do to calm this “cogitation”? »Bruno asks.
Methods of relaxation, sophrology can help, answers Dr Arnaud Prigent, pulmonologist and doctor at the sleep center of the Saint-Laurent clinic in Rennes (Ille-et-Vilaine). This is a technique to learn from professionals.
You can also try self-hypnosis. The main thing to understand is that you have to divert your mind to allow you to fall asleep. Falling asleep is rarely voluntary. Rather, we place ourselves in conditions conducive to falling asleep. If ideas are heady, writing them down sometimes allows them to be evacuated.
Sleep apnea device reminder
“I have sleep apnea, diagnosed in 2014, and I am fitted with a CPAP machine. There was a nationwide recall in 2021 of Philips devices regarding potentially carcinogenic CPAP device insulation foam. In Nantes, there are 3,000 devices to be replaced, but when? Do you have any information regarding this? »says Juliet.
Here is Dr. Prigent’s response: “I invite you to consult the note” information for patients: our answers to your questions “published on the website of the National Agency for the Safety of Medicines and Health Products (ANSM) by clicking right here ».
