What are the common causes of Sleep Problems for Seniors and the Elderly?

Several factors may contribute to the inability to sleep well as you get older. Some of the common causes include:

Poor sleep habits:

1. Uneven sleep-wake patterns can affect your circadian rhythm timing and make it difficult to maintain a regular sleep schedule.
2. Alcohol before bedtime can disrupt sleep
3. Daytime sleeping can interfere with night time sleep
4. Everyday stress can cause sleep problem

Medical illness:

1. Heart failure can cause breathing problems that can disrupt sleep.
2. Pain is one of the common cause foe poor sleep in older people.
3. Urinary problems and frequent need to urinate may cause frequent awakenings.
4. Constipation can cause uneasiness which can disrupt the sleep
5. Sinus problems, nasal congestion, allergies can interrupt the sleep.
6. Rapid heartbeat and palpitations can disturb the sleep.
7. Itchy skin conditions often cause sleep problems.
8. Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) causes discomfort that can interfere with sleep.

Medications:

1. Prolonged sleeping medications use may cause daytime drowsiness.
2. Sedative antidepressants and sedative antipsychotics can cause daytime drowsiness. Sleeping during the day disturb nighttime sleep.
3. Smokers have more sleep disturbances than nonsmokers. Smokers also have difficulty falling asleep and decreased sleep duration. Caffeine and nicotine reduces the amount of sleep.
4. Theophylline increase wakefulness and decrease total sleep time.
5. Beta-blocker medications can cause difficulty falling asleep, an increased number of awakenings, and vivid dreams.

Psychological distress or disorders:

1. Psychosis, anxiety and bipolar disorders can result in difficulty falling asleep.
2. Dementia and Alzheimer disease increase the length of stage 1 sleep and reduces stage
3. 3, stage 4 and REM sleep. Dementia is related to more events of sleep disturbance and awakening, daytime napping and nocturnal wandering.
4. Depression disturbs sleep in all stages and this condition is common in older people

Sleep disorders:

1. Sleep apnea can result in daytime sleepiness, heart rhythm problems, high blood pressure
2. Persons with sleep apnea often wake up gasping in the night.
3. Periodic limb movements may awaken the person from sleep due to the leg jerks during sleep. The movements may occur in one leg or both legs.
4. Restless legs syndrome can cause interference to the sleep.

Sleep Disorders and Aging Symptoms

Often the bed partner is first to notice problems with a person’s sleep.

Symptoms of sleep disorders reflect the feeling of not getting enough sleep.

1. Feeling exhausted
2. Taking a long time to sleep
3. Not feeling relaxed
4. Daytime sleepiness
5. Frequent awakening at night
6. Snoring [Preventing Snoring]
7. Difficulty in concentration
8. Morning headaches
9. Wake up for breathing