It’s not fun when you’re unable to sleep at night. Particularly when it happens frequently. You toss and turn and probably stare at the clock (or your phone) and stress about just how fatigued you’ll be the next day. When these kinds of sleepless nights routinely happen, medical professionals tend to use the term “insomnia”. Over time, the effects of chronic insomnia will add up, negatively impacting your overall health.
And the health of your hearing, not surprisingly, is part of your overall health. That’s correct, insomnia can have an impact on your ability to hear. Though the relationship between hearing loss and insomnia may not be a cause-and-effect situation, there’s still a connection there.
Can lack of sleep impact your hearing?
What could the connection between hearing loss and sleep be? There’s a substantial amount of research that indicates insomnia, over time, can affect your cardiovascular system. It becomes more difficult for your blood to flow into all of the extremities of your body when you don’t get the regenerative power of a good night’s sleep.
Stress and anxiety also increase with insomnia. Being stressed and anxious are not only states of mind, they’re physiological states, as well.
So, how does hearing loss play into that? There are little hairs inside of your ears known as stereocilia. When sound waves vibrate these tiny hairs, signals are sent to your brain which translates these signals into sound.
These tiny hairs have a difficult time remaining healthy when there are circulatory problems. These hairs can, in some instances, be permanently damaged. And once that happens, your hearing will be irrevocably damaged. This can lead to permanent hearing loss, especially the longer it continues.
Does it also work the other way around?
Is it possible for hearing loss to make you lose sleep? It’s definitely possible. Hearing loss can make the world very quiet, and some individuals like a little bit of sound when they sleep. For individuals in this group, that amount of silence can make it really difficult to get a good night’s sleep. Any kind of hearing loss anxiety (for instance, if you’re worried about losing your hearing) can have a similar impact.
If you have hearing loss, what can you do to get a quality night’s sleep? Wearing your hearing aids during the day can help lessen stress on your brain at night (when you’re not wearing them). It can also be helpful if you implement some other sleep-health tips.
Some tips for a quality night’s sleep
- Keep your bedroom for sleeping (mostly): Your bedroom is for sleeping in, so try to keep it that way. Working in your bedroom isn’t a great idea.
- Find ways to relieve stress: Get away from work and do something soothing before bed.
- Refrain from drinking alcohol before you go to bed: This will simply disrupt your natural sleep cycle.
- Don’t drink caffeine after lunch.: Even if you drink decaf, it still has enough caffeine to give you problems sleeping. Soda also falls into this category.
- Steer clear of screens for at least an hour before going to bed: (Actually, the longer the better.) Screens have a tendency to activate your brain
- Try to avoid drinking liquids a couple of hours before bed: Needing to get up and go to the bathroom can start the “wake up” process in your brain. It’s much better to sleep right through the night.
- Get some exercise regularly: Your body needs to move, and if you aren’t moving, you may end up going to bed with a bit of extra energy. Being active every day can be helpful.
Care for your hearing health
Even if you’ve experienced some insomnia-related symptoms before, and have some hearing loss, your symptoms can still be controlled.
If you’re worried about your hearing, make an appointment with us today.