Which came first, the sleep deprivation or the pain?
It seems obvious to most of us how pain effects sleep. No one can get a good nights sleep when their back hurts or they are constantly rolling over on a sore shoulder or their mind keeps focusing on an injured knee.
Most often we hear it from clients with low back pain. We get frequent questions on how to get to sleep, the best position for sleep, and how to get out of bed in the morning with a stiff sore back.
What if we reverse the roles and see what effect sleep (or lack of sleep) has on pain itself.
Perhaps, sleep deprivation can be the cause of pain in the first place. A recent study was conducted on individuals experiencing “non-restorative sleep”, meaning they slept too few hours or woke frequently throughout the night. This could be true insomnia or the inability of the body to get into deep sleep states.
What did they find? Sleep deprivation was the strongest predictor of new onset widespread pain. This was especially true in test subjects over the age of 50. These individuals were more likely to experience pain symptoms in multiple joints and muscles.
I believe that learning how poor sleep habits effect our pain can better help us manage and prevent pain symptoms from interfering with our lives.
What exactly is sleep deprivation doing to our bodies?
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