PMS-Induced Insomnia Is Real (and It Sucks) — But There's a Solution
Twice a month, Yahoo Health’s Hormone Whisperer Alisa Vitti, HHC, is answering the most common questions about hormones and how they relate to weight, sex, acne, bad moods, low energy, and everything in between. Read her introductory column to learn more about Alisa’s approach to stopping hormonal chaos and getting into hormonal flow.
THE QUESTION: Help! I have terrible insomnia right before my period.
ALISA’S ANSWER: This is such a frustrating symptom to have during PMS, because on top of feeling bloated, cranky, and tired, you can’t sleep! At the height of my polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) symptoms, I literally could not fall asleep. It was demoralizing because I was always so tired! Plus, it seems like this gets worse in your mid-30s when you’re tired and stressed from your busy life of career and family, and you could use every extra bit of rest you can get. So what gives? Why can’t you sleep? And is there anything besides melatonin and Ambien?
The FLO Science
During your luteal phase, the days leading up your period, you have a big surge and then decline in the concentration of estrogen and progesterone. That shouldn’t really cause you any symptoms. The real issue comes when you have too much estrogen and not enough progesterone to keep this all balanced — and is when PMS and insomnia get funky.
This also becomes a bigger problem after age 35. Every woman begins the slow 10-to-15-year journey of perimenopause around that age. During this time, production of progesterone decreases slowly. When this hormone is low, you have less ability to balance out your estrogen levels. This is the source of the insomnia: Elevated estrogen negatively impacts melatonin and serotonin production. The combination of both is what we need to fall asleep and stay asleep.
Are your hormones conspiring against your ability to get shut-eye? (Photo: Flickr/Judit Klein)
Adding to this issue is stress. If you have been chronically stressed and are eating a nutrient-poor diet, maxing out on caffeine to stay awake, relying on alcohol to unwind, and even exercising too hard, then it’s very likely you’re also dealing with both a magnesium deficiency and unbalanced adrenals. This can result in elevated cortisol levels at night that keep you awake.
What’s a girl to do to get some shut-eye? Melatonin can be a good quick fix once in a while, but it does affect your hormonal system. I’ve found that bio-identical progesterone can also be a good short-term solution, but there is some evidence using this over long periods of time can have negative mental health effects.
The FLO Fix
To truly treat the underlying causes of your premenstrual insomnia, you’ve got to improve that ratio of estrogen and progesterone — while also not adding fuel to the fire with poor dietary habits. Here are five ways to attack the root causes of your sleepless nights:
Break the coffee habit. Caffeine-heavy coffee could be hurting your sleep, making you unable to catch those Zzs at night. Try giving it up the week before your period.
Boost your magnesium levels. If you rely on caffeine to stay energized, it’s possible magnesium deficiency is the reason you’re feeling so zapped.
Feed your gut bacteria. Right after you ovulate, you have much more estrogen circulating in your body. What you eat can help your body metabolize this, and fermented foods and probiotics are a great place to start. Your microbiome determines how well you’ll break down estrogen, and therefore promote melatonin and serotonin production.
Turn back the hormonal clock. When we don’t eat in a pro-hormonal way, we can actually age more quickly and sleep more poorly. Adding vitamin B6 can help boost your progesterone levels — without having to take bio-identical hormones!
Outsmart your stress. I’ve found that a gentle, but effective, adaptogen herb called ashwagandha will help your adrenals respond better to stress and help you unwind more easily at night.
For the supplements I like best, click here.
I also have a bedtime ritual helps me fall asleep faster during my PMS week:
At 9 p.m., I take oat straw and passionflower tincture in some water.
At 9:30 p.m., I shut off all electronics (and before that, I make sure to use a blue light filter app on all my devices, like f.lux, which makes screens give off less blue light during the nighttime).
Also at 9:30 p.m., I do a relaxing activity like a 10-minute yin yoga sequence to unwind physical tension.
At 9:45 p.m., I take a warm bath or shower.
At 10 p.m., I get in bed and while laying in the darkened room, I think about three things I’m grateful for.
Related: Why Don’t I Feel Recharged After I Sleep?
Good things come in threes: I want to hear from you in the comments!
First, do you struggle with insomnia? What suggestions are you going to try?
Second, what are your top health questions for me, your trusty Hormone Whisperer? Your question could be featured in my column!
Third, everyone you know is hormonal: Spread a little good ovary karma and share this article with your friends on social media, and be sure to follow me on Facebook, Twitter,Pinterest, and Instagram.
Need more Hormone Help? If you’re ready to get to the root of your issues, it’s time you started dealing with your hormones. Get out of symptom chaos so you can get back into hormonal FLO. Sign up here for a free download of my 4-Day Hormone Detox from my book WomanCode.
ABOUT ALISA: Alisa Vitti, HHC, is an integrative nutritionist, best-selling author of WomanCode, creator of the WomanCode System, and the founder of FLOLiving.com, a virtual health center that supports women’s hormonal and reproductive health. A graduate of Johns Hopkins University and the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, Alisa has been featured on The Dr. Oz Show, has a web series on Lifetime, and has been a regular contributor for CBS, Fox, Shape, Women’s Health, MindBodyGreen, and the Huffington Post. She’s also presented at TEDx, Talks@Google, Summit Series Outside, Hay House, WIE Symposium, and SHE Summit.
