Testosterone is a sex hormone that is most commonly associated with men and when testosterone levels fall you may notice a plethora of symptoms, including insomnia.
It might not seem an obvious coupling, but testosterone levels and sleep problems do go together. There has been a lot of research into low testosterone levels in men and how it can affect sleep. Testosterone production reaches its peak during sleeping hours, so if you are not sleeping well you are losing those precious hours of testosterone production and your testosterone levels will drop. Additionally it has been proven that as testosterone levels decrease levels of the hormone cortisol will increase. Cortisol is responsible for waking us up and giving us the ability to have a short sleep that is shallower, such as when we are napping or as the time gets closer for us to wake up.
At first this sounds like a no-win situation where the low testosterone production leads to insomnia and then insomnia leads to low testosterone production, but there is something you can do about it. There are several ways that you can improve and mitigate the cycles of poor sleeping patterns that are related to low testosterone, and the benefits of better sleep will lead to testosterone levels increasing.
How you can improve your sleep quality, some practical tips:
Consistency is key. Varying your time of going to bed and getting up will do you no favours and you should aim to get at least seven hours a night. The best way to develop this kind of sleeping pattern is to go to bed and get up at the same time every day, including weekends. Establishing a pattern like this will go a long way towards helping to get those healthy, testosterone production boosting, sleeping hours in place.
As far as possible, you should resist the mid-afternoon dip that we commonly experience where all you want to do is close your eyes and have a nap. Sleeping during the day could have a negative effect on the amount of sleep you are able to have at night.
Make sure that your bedroom is cool and well ventilated. This will help you by providing an ideal environment in which you can get some good and restful sleep. The ideal temperature for your bedroom should be between 15 and 20 degrees Celsius.
Make sure that your bedroom is dark and quiet and you don’t have any distractions such as glowing lights from electronics or street lamps that will detract from a perfect sleeping environment.
Don’t drink stimulating drinks such as coffee, tea and alcohol after three o’clock in the afternoon. If you smoke, of course we recommend you try to give up, but as a start make sure that you are smoking less in the hours before bed.
For an hour before you go to bed each night, turn off your electronic devices to limit your exposure to the blue light that they emit. Never look at your mobile phone or any other device if you wake up during the night. This is because the blue light that is emitted mimics daylight, giving a signal to your brain that is time to wake up.
Eat well and if you need to, lose weight. Make sure there is a lot of fresh fruit and vegetables in your diet and have a look at what you are eating in general to ensure better rest. If you are overweight you are much more likely to suffer from insomnia and sleep apnea, so try to shed some excess weight if you’re finding that you aren’t sleeping well.
Don’t play video games right before bed. This is another thing that can stimulate your brain, so you need to limit the time that you spend playing them as much as possible. Even in the hours long before bedtime, they have the effect of reducing the amount of time you are likely to be able to achieve a good, deep and restful sleep.
Always try to spend some time outside every day, even a regular 10-minute walk will yield benefits in respect to how well you sleep. Being active outdoors is not only good for your health it’s also good for your sleep patterns when you are suffering from low testosterone levels.
Suffering from low testosterone production will always have some physical manifestations and sometimes it can be difficult to diagnose low testosterone because the symptoms of tiredness, fatigue and insomnia can be attributed to many other causes. What has been observed is that lowered testosterone seems to have a link to a lower quality of sleep and to fewer of the deep cycles of sleep that are so essential to us.
If you think you might be suffering from low testosterone, head to our Contact Page to book a free no-obligation discovery call where we can discuss your symptoms and figure out whether you might be eligible from Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT).