Sleep Better With These Sweet Dream Suggestions
September 16, 2016

 

There’s nothing worse than incessant tossing and turning just as soon as you’ve decided to check out for the evening and hit the sheets. Some nights may be more restless than others depending on a number of factors, such as stress, anxiety, chronic pain or just the type of following morning that you’re anticipating. While this issue might not be resolved overnight (literally), we do have a few tuck-in tips to help out with possible sleeplessness.

 

Consistency is Key
While some of us may get overly excited about sleeping in on the weekends, it’s important to be aware of how this can affect the rest of the week’s sleeping schedule.  Next time you’re considering wearing your blanket until noon, reconsider this version of self-imposed jet lag, and find a consistent schedule that works generally the same for you seven days a week.
Exercise Accordingly
Not all of us have the luxury of time, so a last minute work out right before bed may be our only option sometimes. However, it’s recommended to avoid the gym within three hours of your bedtime.
Avoid Technology
Aside from setting your phone alarm, try to avoid checking your email or scrolling your newsfeeds right before bed. This can be one of the biggest sleep offenders of all.  Engaging in this kind of activity can make it extremely difficult for our brains to turn off completely, even hours into the night.
Try Aromatherapy
The scent of lavender has been shown to have multiple calming benefits and can aid in providing you with a much deeper sleep as well. Opt for a bedside oil diffuser or even sprinkle a few drops on your pillow just right before bed.
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We at the SHAW Center are proud of the variety of outpatient, minimally invasive treatments that we offer that can change a life, or an outlook, with just a few hours of surgical “adjustment” and minimal recovery time for the patient. But there are certainly circumstances when a greater amount of surgery in called for, and the recovery time for the patient is increased. Preparation for these circumstances, such as a “tummy-tuck,” will need more planning and organization to assure the optimum, least stressful, outcome.
First of all, listen closely to the physician and the staff as they explain the procedure, and don’t be afraid to ask specific questions regarding recovery times. How many days will you be “off your feet?” Some recovery conditions make it imperative that there is minimal movement during the first few days. This means arrangements will have to be made to provide meals and laundry service for you and your family, not to mention making arrangements for car-pooling and other duties.  You can’t be bouncing in and out of bed to find someone’s shirt or shoes. No matter how supportive your spouse might be, taking on all your duties can be daunting.
This leads to the issue of whom you tell about your surgery, as we covered in a prior issue of The SHAW Center Blog. If you have another close, discreet friend or family member upon whom you can rely to help cover you during your recovery, that’s excellent.  You will need at least one trusted advocate to help you make decisions. It is too confusing to have a committee of well-meaning people inundating you with their personal opinions.
This is why many women would prefer not to get outside family too involved. In such cases, it makes perfect sense, and is extremely acceptable, to look into services available in the community that can take up the slack.  Investigate grocery delivery services in your area. There are many temporary maid services that can cover the household chores and on-call nursing services to attend to your specific recovery needs, as there are many mother’s helper or errand-running services, that can also provide valuable assistance. Perhaps the staff will even know of such services, and be willing to recommend the most reliable ones.
This is the time to contact your insurance company to find out exactly what will be covered. You might qualify to have in-home care covered. See if you can have post-operative medications filled ahead of time.
Your first priority is your healthy recovery. This is no time to be thinking of yourself as a Super-Woman. You have to acknowledge that there will be down-time and prepare for it. The belief that “nothing’s gonna’ break my stride,” is what gets many women into overwhelming situations, unprepared for the physical and emotional strain of a major surgery.  Recovery is a relatively small amount of time, compared to the rest of one’s life. As so many women have joyfully noted, the benefits of having the surgery far outweigh the amount of inconvenience and discomfort that come with the recovery time. We here at The SHAW Center want to do everything we can to help you have that joyful feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment of a well-planned surgical recovery.
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