It’s not fun when you can’t sleep at night. Especially when it occurs regularly. You lie awake tossing and turning, looking at the time again and again, and worrying about how tired you will be tomorrow. When these kinds of sleepless nights persistently happen, medical professionals tend to use the label “insomnia”. Over time, the effects of persistent insomnia will compound, negatively impacting your general health.
And, perhaps not surprisingly, “your overall health” includes your hearing health. That’s correct, insomnia can have an affect on your ability to hear. This isn’t necessarily a cause-and-effect relationship, but that doesn’t mean there’s no link between hearing loss and insomnia.
Can your hearing be affected by lack of sleep?
How could loss of sleep possibly impact your hearing? There’s a considerable amount of research that indicates insomnia, over a long enough period, can impact your cardiovascular system. Without the nightly recuperative power of sleep, it’s more difficult for your blood to get everywhere it needs to be.
Anxiety and stress also increase with insomnia. Feeling stressed and anxious will impact you in physiological ways as well as mentally.
So how is that relevant to hearing loss? Your ears work because they’re filled with fragile little hairs called stereocilia. When sound waves vibrate these tiny hairs, signals are sent to your brain which translates these signals into sound.
When your circulatory system is not working correctly, these hairs have a hard time thriving. In some cases, poor circulation can damage these hairs, permanently. Damage of this kind is permanent. Permanent hearing loss can be the outcome, and the longer the circulation problems persist, the worse the damage will be.
Does it also work the other way around?
Is it possible for hearing loss to cause you to lose sleep? Yes, it can! Hearing loss can make the environment very quiet, and some people like a little bit of noise when they sleep. For people in this group, that amount of quiet can make it very difficult to get a good night’s sleep. Any kind of hearing loss anxiety (for instance, if you’re stressed about losing your hearing) can have a similar effect.
So how do you get a quality night’s sleep when you have hearing loss? Stress on your brain can be decreased by wearing your hearing aids every day because you won’t be wearing them at night. Following other sleep-health tips can also be helpful.
Some recommendations for a good night’s sleep
- Stop drinking caffeine after midday: Even decaf coffee has enough caffeine in it to keep you awake at night if you drink at night. This includes soda also.
- For at least 60 minutes, avoid looking at screens: (Even longer if possible!) Screens have a tendency to stimulate your brain
- Try to avoid drinking 2 hours before you go to bed: Each time you need to get up and go to the bathroom, you start the wake up process. So, sleeping through the night is better.
- Try not to use your bedroom for other activities other than sleeping: Your bedroom is for sleeping in, so try to maintain that habit. Working in your bedroom isn’t a very good plan.
- Get some exercise regularly: You may go to bed with some excess energy if you don’t get enough exercise. Being active every day can be helpful.
- Before you go to bed, avoid drinking alcohol: Your natural sleep cycle will be interrupted by drinking alcohol before bed.
- Find ways to reduce stress: Get away from work and do something soothing before bed.
Pay attention to the health of your hearing
Even if you’ve experienced some insomnia-related symptoms before, and have some hearing loss, your symptoms can still be controlled.
Schedule an appointment for a hearing test today!
