Is Tossing and Turning Creating Sleep Restlessness?

Excessive tossing and turning all night long are one of the leading reasons why people experience interrupted sleep and reduced sleep quality. Other causes include constant movements made by their partners, lack of substantial support, uncomfortable room temperature, and a sagging mattress that denies comfortable support to their back.

In this article, we will explore the sleep interruptions caused by tossing turning, understanding their implications for your health, and exploring a solution to ensure quality sleep.

Tossing & Turning

Constant tossing and turning all night in bed are not the cause, but in fact, it is a reaction to a stressor nagging at your brain, or perhaps another pain-creating ailment in your body. People often toss and turn when they suffer from constipation, heartburn, or even menstrual pain. It’s sleep restlessness.

Many others find themselves tossing and turning in a bid to relieve the stress and anxiety created by thoughts that continuously fill up their mind. It is important to exhaust all these reasons and find a cure for the problem that is making you toss and turn in bed.

Health Implications

Sleep interruptions, regardless of what has caused them, can have severely adverse effects on your physical, mental, and emotional health. The body passes through multiple stages of sleep at night, and even if one of these stages is interrupted, it can prevent you from enjoying a deep and restorative slumber that begins during the last few steps.

Sleep interruptions can affect your mood, reducing your attention span, focus, and concentration, alongside making it hard for you to remember things. The long-term repercussions tend to be even more debilitating.

Finding a Solution

If you are suffering from regular sleep interruptions, you need to make specific lifestyle changes that will help you enjoy improved sleep quality and duration without facing any disruptions. It is essential to attempt to schedule your sleep cycle by trying to obtain at least 8 to 9 hours of sleep each night. If you reduce your sleep by an hour each night, you will find yourself falling asleep as soon as you get into bed, which will help you sleep deeply without interruptions.

If you find yourself constantly waking up at night, you can try to create a bedtime habit that promotes relaxation and mindfulness, such as stretching, reading, listening to sleep-inducing music, or even meditating. Adding a hot cup of chamomile tea to your nightly bedtime rituals will also help you feel relaxed and drowsy.

For more detailed information about creating a bedtime habit, refer to our extensive research on 4 Steps to Lead a Healthy Lifestyle page.