How To Determine Poor Sleep Quality - Sleep Foundation

Sleep quality is different from sleep quantity. Sleep quantity measures how much sleep you get each night, while sleep quality measures how well ... Opensinanewwindow Share: Home /SleepHygiene /HowToDeterminePoorSleepQuality HowToDeterminePoorSleepQuality UpdatedMarch11,2022 Writtenby EricSuni,StaffWriter MedicallyReviewedby Dr.AnisRehman,Endocrinologist FactChecked Ourteamofwriters,editors,andmedicalexpertsrigorouslyevaluateseacharticletoensuretheinformationisaccurateandexclusivelycitesreputablesources.LearnMore Weregularlyassesshowthecontentinthisarticlealignswithcurrentscientificliteratureandexpertrecommendationsinordertoprovidethemostup-to-dateresearch. Doyouoftenfeeltiredandgroggyinthemorning,evenonnightswhenyou’vegottenenoughsleep?It’safrustratingexperience,buttheremaybeasimpleexplanation:youhavepoorsleepquality.Poorsleepqualitycanimpairyourfocus,worsenyourmood,andisevenlinkedtoanincreasedriskofAlzheimer’sdisease. Figuringoutthatyou’renotgettingenoughsleepiseasy.Figuringoutwhythatsleepisn’trestfulistrickier,butcertainlyachievable.Readontolearnthesignsoflackofsleep,whatcouldbecausingyourpoorsleepquality,andhowtoimproveit. SignsYourSleepQualityNeedsToImprove Ifyouthinkyou’regettingpoorsleep,considerwhetheryoupossessanyofthesetell-talesigns: Youtakemorethan30minutestofallasleepafteryougetintobed. Youregularlywakeupmorethanoncepernight. Youlieawakeformorethan20minuteswhenyouwakeupinthemiddleofthenight. Youspendlessthan85percentofyourtimeinbedasleep. Youfeeltiredandhavedifficultyconcentratingduringtheday.Youmaybedrinkingmorecaffeinetostayalert. Yourskinisbreakingoutandyoureyesarepuffy,red,ordevelopingdarkcirclesorbags. Youfeelhungrymoreoften,especiallyforjunkfood,andgainingweight. Youfeelmorestressedout,emotionallyexhausted,andangrierthanusual. You’vebeendiagnosedwithinsomnia. WhatIsSleepQuality? Sleepqualityisdifferentfromsleepquantity.Sleepquantitymeasureshowmuchsleepyougeteachnight,whilesleepqualitymeasureshowwellyousleep. Measuringsleepquantityissimple,asit’squicktodetermineifyou’regettingtherecommendedamountofsleeppernight(usuallydefinedas7-9hoursforadults).Measuringsleepqualityisalittlemoreofanartthanascience.Generally,goodsleepqualityisdefinedbythefollowingcharacteristics: Youfallasleepsoonaftergettingintobed,within30minutesorless. Youtypicallysleepstraightthroughthenight,wakingupnomorethanoncepernight. You’reabletosleeptherecommendedamountofhoursforyouragegroup. Youfallbackasleepwithin20minutesifyoudowakeup. Youfeelrested,restored,andenergizeduponwakingupinthemorning.     ReasonsforPoorSleepQuality Anynumberofthingscouldbecontributingtoyourpoorsleepquality.Somepotentialcausesincludepoorsleephygiene,stress,sleepapnea,oranotherchronichealthconditionorsleepdisorder. PoorSleepHabits Poorsleephabits,likehavinganirregularsleepscheduleorconsumingtoomuchcaffeineoralcohol,caninterferewithyoursleepquality.Inastudyofnursingstudents,smokinganddailycoffeeconsumptionweretwoofthelargestfactorsassociatedwithpoorsleepquality.Alcoholalsodisturbsyoursleep,eventhoughit’sconsideredasedative. StressandAnxiety Poormentalhealth,whetherfromincreasedstressoradepressionoranxietydisorder,alsocontributestopoorsleepquality.Problematically,sleepdeprivationandtheresultinginsomniaworsentheseconditions,creatingaviciouscycle. ChronicHealthConditions Certainchronichealthconditionsareassociatedwithpoorsleeppatternsandlesssleepoverall.Theseincludechroniclungdiseases,asthma,acidreflux,renaldisease,cancer,fibromyalgia,andchronicpain.Unfortunately,aswithstressandanxiety,poorsleepqualitycanexacerbatethesymptomsanddiscomfortfeltwiththeseconditions. SleepApnea Apersonwithsleepapneaexperiencestemporarylapsesinbreathingduringtheirsleep,resultingingasping,choking,andsnoringsounds.Eveniftheydon’tconsciouslywakeup,theirbrainhastokickstartbreathingagain,disruptingsleepquality.Sleepinessandlackofenergyaretwoofthemostcommoncomplaintsofindividualswithsleepapnea. UndiagnosedSleepDisorder Becausetheyoccurinyoursleep,somesleepdisordersgoundiagnoseduntilapersonseekscareforothersymptomslikepoorsleepquality,orasleeppartneralertsthemtothesymptoms.Forexample,individualswithperiodiclimbmovementdisorder(PLMD)experienceinvoluntaryjerkingmovementsintheirlegswhiletheysleep,resultinginreducedsleepquality,andfatigueandpoorconcentrationduringtheday.Individualswithnarcolepsylikewiseoftensufferfrompoorsleepquality,andexperiencedaytimefatigue. HowToImproveYourSleepQuality Fortunately,improvingyoursleepqualitymaybeassimpleasimprovingyoursleephygiene.Justlikedentalhygieneinvolvesregularlybrushingandflossingtomaintainyourteeth,sleephygieneisallaboutpracticinggoodhabitsthathelpyougetgoodsleepconsistently. Trytheseideastoimproveyoursleep. Stopwatchingtelevisionandusingyourphoneorcomputerforatleast30minutesbeforebedtime.Electronicdevicesemitbrightbluelightthatyourbrainperceivesassunlight,trickingitintodelayingsleepandkeepingyouawakelongerthanyou’dlike. Transformyourbedroomintoadark,quiet,andcooloasis.Setyourthermostattosomewhereinthelow-tomid-60degreesFahrenheit,anduseblackoutcurtainsorawhitenoisemachinetofurtherrelaxyoursenses. Gotobedandwakeupatthesametimeeveryday.Followingaconsistentsleepscheduletrainsyourbraintorecognizewhenit’stimetosleepandwhenit’stimetowake. Makesureyoursleepscheduleallowsforenoughtimetosleep.Adultsneed7-9hoursofsleeppernight. Createarelaxingbedtimeroutine.Selectactivitiesthatrelaxandcalmyou,liketakingawarmbath,listeningtoanaudiobook,orjournaling.Performingtheseactivitiesinthesameordereverynightcreatesapatternforyourbraintorecognizethemasthepreludetosleep. Limityourcaffeineandalcoholintake.Bothofthesesubstancescanstayinyoursystemforsometimeanddisruptyoursleepquality.Avoiddrinkingalcoholwithinthreehoursofbedtime,andcaffeinewithinfivehours. Getsomesunlightinthemorning.Just15-30minutesoutsideinthesuncanhelpwakeyouupandresetyourcircadianrhythm. Ifyoustillhavetroublesleepingafterimplementingthesesuggestions,talktoyourdoctor.Theymayrecommendotherlifestylechanges,therapies,ormedicationsthatcanimproveyoursleepquality. Wasthisarticlehelpful? YesNo AboutOurEditorialTeam EricSuni StaffWriter EricSunihasoveradecadeofexperienceasasciencewriterandwaspreviouslyaninformationspecialistfortheNationalCancerInstitute. Dr.AnisRehman Endocrinologist MD Dr.Rehman,M.D.,isaboard-certifiedphysicianinInternalMedicineaswellasEndocrinology,Diabetes,andMetabolism. Share: References +18 Sources 1. Medic,G.,Wille,M.,&Hemels,M.E.(2017).Short-andlong-termhealthconsequencesofsleepdisruption.Natureandscienceofsleep,9,151–161. https://doi.org/10.2147/NSS.S134864 2. Yilmaz,D.,Tanrikulu,F.,&Dikmen,Y.(2017).ResearchonSleepQualityandtheFactorsAffectingtheSleepQualityoftheNursingStudents.Currenthealthsciencesjournal,43(1),20–24. https://doi.org/10.12865/CHSJ.43.01.03 3. Ju,Y.E.,McLeland,J.S.,Toedebusch,C.D.,Xiong,C.,Fagan,A.M.,Duntley,S.P.,Morris,J.C.,&Holtzman,D.M.(2013).SleepqualityandpreclinicalAlzheimerdisease.JAMAneurology,70(5),587–593. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaneurol.2013.2334 4. Reed,D.L.,&Sacco,W.P.(2016).MeasuringSleepEfficiency:WhatShouldtheDenominatorBe?.Journalofclinicalsleepmedicine:JCSM:officialpublicationoftheAmericanAcademyofSleepMedicine,12(2),263–266. https://doi.org/10.5664/jcsm.5498 5. 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