If you're struggling with long-term insomnia or sleep problems in your 40s or 50s, you may be wondering how much your hormonal changes are contributing to the problems you're already experiencing.

There is a lot of information about how hormones might affect your sleep problems and insomnia, particularly as we move through our 40s and 50s. You might hear about melatonin and sleep, cortisol and nighttime wakings, or the impact of perimenopause, menopause and reproductive hormonal changes on sleep for women and men. These biological changes can certainly influence your sleep problems, but they don't necessarily explain the whole picture.

This is particularly important if you've already struggled with chronic insomnia or sleep problems before some of these hormonal changes started showing up.

In this video, I'll explain how I approach hormonal changes with my sleep coaching clients.

We'll look at three main groups: sleep-related hormones such as melatonin, stress-related hormones such as cortisol, and reproductive hormonal changes for both women and men.

More importantly, I'll explain why I look at the relationship between hormones and sleep problems in both directions. Hormonal changes can influence your sleep, but your existing sleep deprivation, behaviours, emotional responses and the activity of your mind will also influence what happens physically.

If you suspect hormonal changes are contributing to your insomnia, getting the appropriate medical assessment is an important starting point. But alongside that, there are still practical things you can work on to improve your sleep.

Developing personalised Sleep Skills for Life can help you work proactively with your body and mind rather than simply waiting to see how hormonal changes might affect your sleep.

If you're looking for insomnia help, sleep coaching, or support to overcome sleep problems, feel free to get in touch or arrange a sleep assessment through my website.

Beatrix

It's always best to watch the entire video, but here are some chapters for you:

00:00 00:00 Introduction to how 3 groups of hormonal changes affect your long-term insomnia and sleep problems in 40s and 50s

02:22 The first group of hormonal changes: sleep related hormones and particularly melatonin and sleep problems

04:40 The second group of hormonal changes: stress related hormones and particularly cortisol and sleep problems

06:11 The third group of hormonal changes: reproductive hormones for both women and men and particularly and sleep problems

08:27 Preparing your sleep ahead of the hormonal changes