The Conundrum

Prescription drugs. Can’t sleep with them – can’t live without them. Sleep aids aside, that’s the conclusion I’ve arrived at after minutes of intense research into the question of why we no longer sleep through the night.

The “we” I am referring to is the mature population of our country. The sixty and over crowd. “We” have a very serious choice to make. You see, there is this thing called “sleep architecture” which involves changes in our sleep patterns. Although we still need the same seven to eight hours every night, the nights sleep we get now-a-days doesn’t look the same as it used to.

We now have “sleep latency” which is a fancy way of saying it takes us forever to fall asleep. Back in our care free youthful years, it was lights out the minute our heads hit the pillow. Not anymore. Now it’s “latency.” So, when you find yourself tossing and turning and sighing for hours on end, be comforted by the fact that science is not only on it, but so aware of our demise that they’ve taken the time to assign a scientific label to it. “Latency.”

Next is the decline of REM sleep. REM stands for rapid eye movement, which simply refers to the active dream stage of sleep. Apparently, it’s during REM that our sleep is the deepest and we gain the greatest overall mind and body rest. It’s imperative for good health, and 99% of us sixty and over folks are on a smashing REM decline. But wait! It gets worse.

“Fragmentation.” Yes; all those times we wake up during the night. We get out of bed for a drink of water, to use the toilet, check the time, read a book, and even day dream, because, let’s face it, we no longer night dream. All the things we do in the middle of the night when we’re supposed to be sleeping add up to one thing: “Fragmentation.” Our precious sleep is now broken into a million pieces like a bleak vase thrown against a brick wall. Shattered.

So, what do the powers that be have to say about all this? Well, they have concluded, and point a confident finger at, prescription drugs. That’s right. If we just stop taking that blood pressure medication and those high cholesterol drugs, and that silly antidepressant or those thyroid meds, not to mention those pain killers and all the antibiotics, or that heart stuff and those anti-inflammatories, etc., we would sleep like kids again. You heard me. Just give up all prescription medications and we are guaranteed to sleep ourselves right to death.

Later,

Mary Ann