WEBVTT 00:00:00.620 --> 00:00:03.660 Hello everyone and welcome back to the Senior 00:00:03.660 --> 00:00:07.919 Safety Advice Podcast. Continuing with this month's 00:00:07.919 --> 00:00:10.960 theme of Heart Health and Emotional Resilience 00:00:10.960 --> 00:00:14.179 Month, I'm going to be talking today about the 00:00:14.179 --> 00:00:20.039 role of sleep in a healthy heart. I want to say 00:00:20.039 --> 00:00:25.100 this, that sleep is not a luxury. It's not something 00:00:25.100 --> 00:00:28.300 extra. It's not something that you earn after 00:00:28.300 --> 00:00:32.299 a long day. Sleep is actually maintenance for 00:00:32.299 --> 00:00:35.240 your body. It's how the heart rests. It's how 00:00:35.240 --> 00:00:38.679 the body repairs. It's how stress gets a chance 00:00:38.679 --> 00:00:43.240 to stand down for a little bit. When sleep suffers, 00:00:43.500 --> 00:00:47.759 the heart feels it. People often tell me, and 00:00:47.759 --> 00:00:50.780 I myself experience terrible times sleeping, 00:00:51.380 --> 00:00:54.960 you know, I don't sleep like I used to or I wake 00:00:54.960 --> 00:00:57.520 up a lot is what I hear from a lot of people. 00:00:57.579 --> 00:01:01.320 I feel tired even after sleeping. It takes me 00:01:01.320 --> 00:01:05.099 two hours to get to sleep. And they think that 00:01:05.099 --> 00:01:09.019 that's just part of aging or a lot of women look 00:01:09.019 --> 00:01:12.379 at it as part of menopause. But here's the thing. 00:01:12.670 --> 00:01:16.829 Poor sleep puts extra strain on your heart, and 00:01:16.829 --> 00:01:19.170 when you don't sleep well, your blood pressure 00:01:19.170 --> 00:01:22.349 tends to rise, stress hormones stay high, and 00:01:22.349 --> 00:01:26.150 inflammation in your body can increase. The heart 00:01:26.150 --> 00:01:30.010 isn't able to get a break, and over time, that 00:01:30.010 --> 00:01:33.689 matters. I've worked with many seniors who were 00:01:33.689 --> 00:01:36.569 doing everything right, eating better, taking 00:01:36.569 --> 00:01:40.189 their medication, trying to move more, but their 00:01:40.189 --> 00:01:43.989 sleep was off. My mom -in -law was like that. 00:01:44.450 --> 00:01:47.849 You know, she ate better than most anyone I know. 00:01:47.849 --> 00:01:52.069 She lived to 102. She was religious with her 00:01:52.069 --> 00:01:56.269 medication and she walked every single day at 00:01:56.269 --> 00:02:01.890 least one mile. So, but yet her sleep tend to 00:02:01.890 --> 00:02:04.450 be off. She would wake up multiple times during 00:02:04.450 --> 00:02:07.010 the night or just sometimes have trouble getting 00:02:07.010 --> 00:02:12.139 to sleep. And until sleep improves, Heart health 00:02:12.139 --> 00:02:19.639 doesn't fully improve either. Sleep is when the 00:02:19.639 --> 00:02:23.099 heart tends to slow down, has a chance to slow 00:02:23.099 --> 00:02:27.000 down. It can beat more steadily. It can recover 00:02:27.000 --> 00:02:30.099 from the stress of the day. Without that recovery, 00:02:30.319 --> 00:02:33.659 the heart stays in work mode. And nobody can 00:02:33.659 --> 00:02:36.139 stay in work mode forever. We're not robots. 00:02:36.780 --> 00:02:39.740 So another thing that I want to mention besides 00:02:39.740 --> 00:02:42.379 the length of time that you sleep is the quality 00:02:42.379 --> 00:02:45.719 of your sleep. It's not necessarily just about 00:02:45.719 --> 00:02:49.159 hours. Someone can be in bed for eight hours 00:02:49.159 --> 00:02:52.430 and still not get restorative sleep. There's 00:02:52.430 --> 00:02:55.210 frequent waking up or there's, you know, hours 00:02:55.210 --> 00:02:57.770 before you can even get to sleep. There's restless 00:02:57.770 --> 00:03:01.169 tossing. There's just this light sleep. That 00:03:01.169 --> 00:03:04.110 fragmented sleep keeps the nervous system alert. 00:03:04.629 --> 00:03:07.229 And an alert nervous system keeps your blood 00:03:07.229 --> 00:03:10.710 pressure higher. I mean, sometimes your numbers 00:03:10.710 --> 00:03:14.169 can improve just by sleeping more soundly, not 00:03:14.169 --> 00:03:18.909 necessarily longer, just better. Now, let's talk 00:03:18.909 --> 00:03:24.259 about routines. The heart loves rhythm. Like 00:03:24.259 --> 00:03:28.319 most of us as we get older, routines are some 00:03:28.319 --> 00:03:32.939 of the best ways that we can live our lives. 00:03:33.520 --> 00:03:36.639 Going to bed at roughly the same time, waking 00:03:36.639 --> 00:03:41.120 up around the same time, that predictability 00:03:41.120 --> 00:03:44.740 helps to regulate hormones. When sleep timing 00:03:44.740 --> 00:03:47.300 is all over the place, the heart has to adapt 00:03:47.300 --> 00:03:49.639 constantly. Now, of course, there are going to 00:03:49.639 --> 00:03:54.199 be times when you can't get to bed at the same 00:03:54.199 --> 00:03:56.960 time, you know, you're going out to dinner or 00:03:56.960 --> 00:04:02.409 during the holidays. That adaptation of Not being 00:04:02.409 --> 00:04:07.009 able to get to a specific, you know, stick to 00:04:07.009 --> 00:04:11.530 a specific routine adds strain to your body and 00:04:11.530 --> 00:04:15.250 your heart. Small routines make a very big difference. 00:04:15.909 --> 00:04:18.370 Dimming the lights earlier in your environment 00:04:18.370 --> 00:04:22.180 can help you to get to sleep. turning off stimulating 00:04:22.180 --> 00:04:25.860 screens, you know, like your phone, your television, 00:04:26.220 --> 00:04:29.660 your computer, doing the same calming activity 00:04:29.660 --> 00:04:33.879 every night. Now that tells the body, okay, it's 00:04:33.879 --> 00:04:37.000 safe to rest now. Another thing that affects 00:04:37.000 --> 00:04:40.339 sleep and heart health is stress before bed. 00:04:40.860 --> 00:04:44.920 Watching upsetting news, replaying worries, trying 00:04:44.920 --> 00:04:48.240 to solve problems at midnight, that keeps the 00:04:48.240 --> 00:04:51.500 heart on alert. I've seen people sleep better 00:04:51.500 --> 00:04:54.420 just by changing what they do in the last hour 00:04:54.420 --> 00:04:58.379 before bed. Something quiet, something familiar, 00:04:59.000 --> 00:05:02.399 something comforting. That calm protects the 00:05:02.399 --> 00:05:07.120 heart. Breathing also is something that is very 00:05:07.120 --> 00:05:11.209 important as well. Slow breathing before sleep 00:05:11.209 --> 00:05:15.290 helps to lower the heart rate. It helps the blood 00:05:15.290 --> 00:05:19.069 pressure to settle. Even a few short breaths 00:05:19.069 --> 00:05:23.250 can change how the body enters sleep. Another 00:05:23.250 --> 00:05:26.589 thing that families don't always realize is that 00:05:26.589 --> 00:05:31.269 poor sleep increases sensitivity to pain. When 00:05:31.269 --> 00:05:36.360 pain increases, Stress increases and that cycle 00:05:36.360 --> 00:05:40.079 affects the heart. I've seen people break that 00:05:40.079 --> 00:05:44.279 cycle by improving sleep comfort. Better pillows, 00:05:44.720 --> 00:05:47.920 supportive mattresses, reducing nighttime discomfort. 00:05:48.720 --> 00:05:52.740 Comfort supports rest and rest supports the heart. 00:05:54.019 --> 00:05:57.759 All right, now let's talk about sleep interruptions. 00:05:58.199 --> 00:06:00.699 Getting up often to use the bathroom, that's 00:06:00.699 --> 00:06:04.439 very common with older adults. pain waking someone 00:06:04.439 --> 00:06:08.980 up, anxiety waking someone up, those interruptions 00:06:08.980 --> 00:06:13.360 fragment sleep. Sometimes small changes really 00:06:13.360 --> 00:06:17.420 help. Reducing fluids right before bed, improving 00:06:17.420 --> 00:06:20.959 nighttime lighting to reduce stress, addressing 00:06:20.959 --> 00:06:25.680 pain earlier in the evening. Each small fix improves 00:06:25.680 --> 00:06:28.819 sleep quality, and those improvements all help 00:06:28.819 --> 00:06:32.740 to protect the heart. Another important point 00:06:32.740 --> 00:06:36.019 is that sleep affects how the body handles your 00:06:36.019 --> 00:06:40.279 sugar and fat. Poor sleep increases cravings. 00:06:40.339 --> 00:06:43.519 It affects metabolism. That indirectly affects 00:06:43.519 --> 00:06:46.360 your heart health as well. I've seen people make 00:06:46.360 --> 00:06:48.620 better food choices when they're well rested 00:06:48.620 --> 00:06:53.399 because tired brains crave quick energy. Sleep 00:06:53.399 --> 00:06:56.720 supports better decisions. And here's something 00:06:56.720 --> 00:07:01.500 I really want to say. out loud to you. Struggling 00:07:01.500 --> 00:07:05.199 with sleep is not a personal failure. It's common, 00:07:05.300 --> 00:07:08.079 especially with aging. But it's also something 00:07:08.079 --> 00:07:11.259 worth talking about with your doctor. Sleep issues 00:07:11.259 --> 00:07:13.459 are not just part of getting older when they 00:07:13.459 --> 00:07:16.459 affect health. Getting help is not complaining, 00:07:16.600 --> 00:07:20.360 it's caring for your heart. Caregivers need this 00:07:20.360 --> 00:07:25.319 reminder as well. I see so many caregivers sacrificing 00:07:25.319 --> 00:07:29.279 their sleep. staying alert all night, listening 00:07:29.279 --> 00:07:33.259 for sounds. That constant vigilance strains the 00:07:33.259 --> 00:07:37.699 heart. Even small stretches of rest matter. Sharing 00:07:37.699 --> 00:07:41.339 nighttime responsibility with others, using monitoring 00:07:41.339 --> 00:07:44.319 tools, and creating safer sleep environments. 00:07:45.160 --> 00:07:47.899 Those supports protect caregiver heart health 00:07:47.899 --> 00:07:51.759 as well. And here's the big takeaway I want to 00:07:51.759 --> 00:07:55.819 leave you with. Sleep is active healing. It's 00:07:55.819 --> 00:07:59.459 not wasted time. It's essential time. So if you 00:07:59.459 --> 00:08:03.300 need that nap in the afternoon, take it. Protecting 00:08:03.300 --> 00:08:06.839 sleep protects the heart. So if your sleep has 00:08:06.839 --> 00:08:10.680 been off lately, start small. Pick one routine. 00:08:10.970 --> 00:08:16.230 one calming habit and one small change. Those 00:08:16.230 --> 00:08:19.209 gentle steps really add up because when the body 00:08:19.209 --> 00:08:22.910 rests, the heart heals. I can tell you that for 00:08:22.910 --> 00:08:28.470 me, introducing a white noise in the background 00:08:28.470 --> 00:08:32.509 that plays for at least four hours, that white 00:08:32.509 --> 00:08:36.549 noise has really helped me to sleep soundly and 00:08:36.549 --> 00:08:39.789 longer, much better. So maybe that'll help you 00:08:39.789 --> 00:08:42.990 too. Well, that's all that I have for you today. 00:08:43.269 --> 00:08:46.590 Thank you again for being here with me. If today's 00:08:46.590 --> 00:08:49.370 episode gave you some useful insights or some 00:08:49.370 --> 00:08:51.450 new ideas, then please share it with someone 00:08:51.450 --> 00:08:55.129 who might find it helpful as well. You can discover 00:08:55.129 --> 00:08:58.090 even more expert tips and helpful guides for 00:08:58.090 --> 00:09:00.490 seniors and caregivers at seniorsafetyadvice 00:09:00.490 --> 00:09:03.070 .com. And if you're searching for an Aging in 00:09:03.070 --> 00:09:05.669 Place specialist, then please visit our website 00:09:05.669 --> 00:09:09.740 at aginginplacedirectory .com. Come back tomorrow 00:09:09.740 --> 00:09:12.899 for even more useful tips, insights, and ideas 00:09:12.899 --> 00:09:16.120 right here on the Senior Safety Advice Podcast. 00:09:16.419 --> 00:09:19.200 And hey, if you haven't subscribed to our YouTube 00:09:19.200 --> 00:09:21.940 channel or the podcast yet, then please go ahead 00:09:21.940 --> 00:09:24.799 and do that right now because that really helps 00:09:24.799 --> 00:09:27.799 us to reach more people who could use this kind 00:09:27.799 --> 00:09:30.840 of support and information. So until next time, 00:09:31.100 --> 00:09:33.440 take care of yourself and the ones that you love.