Although Omicron symptoms may be lighter, the variant is rewriting textbooks as it works its way past our best vaccines. Its symptoms are different too, including night sweats disturbing our sleep, according to Deseret News. However, this short term inconvenience fades in the face of longer-lasting side-effects. Today we discuss sleeping better in the post-pandemic era.
How COVID-19 Is Still Disturbing Our Sleep
TIME posted an article on September 15, 2022 that caught our attention. In it, their writer Tara Law reviews a recent survey by Harris Poll for Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. Almost a fifth of their respondents say that are not sleeping better in the post-pandemic era, despite things generally getting back to normal.
- 18% say they get less sleep now than before the pandemic.
- 19% say they struggle to sleep because of various stressors.
These stressors relate to, but are not necessarily limited to COVID-19, politics, or other factors. This finding coincides with 29% more referrals to Ohio State’s medical center for insomnia treatments in 2021, compared to 2018.
Tips for Sleeping Better in the Post-Pandemic Era
Mayo Clinic defines insomnia as a common sleep disorder that makes it hard to fall asleep, hard to stay asleep, or causes you to wake up too early and not be able to get back to sleep. They confirm it can “sap energy levels and moods and also health, work performance and quality of life”.
TIME’s Tara Law suggests remote working and studying during the pandemic allowed more freedom to decide when to sleep. Breaking traditional patterns disrupted the healthy habits we learned way back when we were kids.
We should sleep in a cool room, and have plenty of sunshine during the day, she says. And avoid bright lights in the evening, and falling asleep over television. We find it particularly interesting she’s heard bad sleepers have poorer immune responses to vaccines. Now that’s food for thought!
More Information
COVID-Somnia and How It Matters to Us
