Time change disrupting your sleep? Try cognitive reshuffling
Twice a year, we adjust the clock and it often appears to wreak havoc on our sleep schedules and body clocks. Why does changing our clocks by one hour mess up our body clock?
“Our body’s rhythms are finely tuned to our environment to ensure that sleep/wake timing, eating and many metabolic processes occur in a coordinated manner,” explains Dr. Daniel Shade, System Medical Director with AHN Sleep Medicine. “When we are ‘out of sync’ we can begin to develop medical and psychiatric issues, as well as have drops in alertness and increased sleepiness, which may lead to accidents.”
He says the “leader” for this synchronization is our natural circadian rhythm, which is primarily influenced by sunlight exposure. Our internal biological clock naturally runs a bit longer than 24 hours, so daily exposure to natural sunlight is essential to reset it and keep us aligned with a 24-hour day.
“Artificial light does not work as well,” says Shade. “Night shift workers, who are out of alignment with normal time, have a markedly increased risk of accidents and health issues.
“Jet lag is another common example of a circadian misalignment. When we change our clocks for Daylight Saving Time, we artificially move our social schedule, dictated by the clock, one hour ahead of the actual sun’s position, causing a mismatch with natural daylight.”
Just from this one-hour change, data shows that heart attacks, mood disorders and accidents increase the Monday following the move to DST. Moving back to standard time lessens the metabolic impact, but may still lead to sleep deprivation until we readjust, which may take a few days. This misalignment can certainly lead to many problems.
Many health experts believe that from a health perspective, it would be better to leave the clocks at standard time all year, as recommended by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Most studies also show that the perceived financial benefit of DST has not been shown to be valid. The fall time change (standard time) is not as bad as DST for sleep problems because celestial noon is now our “social” noon on the clock, not an artificial noon.
“Sunlight exposure is at the correct intensity that our bodies recognize and can work better to synchronize our body functions,” Shade adds. “It still may take a few days to adjust, so be careful driving and doing any other activities which require focus and alertness.”
If the time changes still have your body clock out of whack and leave you lying in bed at night trying to fall asleep, one technique gaining rave reviews is something called cognitive reshuffling.
“That’s a technique used to combat insomnia by making you more relaxed so you can fall asleep,” says Shade. “This exercise involves selecting a word and then creatively generating or visualizing other words that are associated with or begin with the individual letters within that chosen word. Keep going until you drift off. This technique essentially distracts you from disturbing or stressful thoughts – sort of like counting sheep.”
Why does this approach work? That’s because excessive worrying, anxiety and those “Type A” personality traits can all lead to insomnia. Lying in bed worrying about all of the items on your schedule or “to do” list the next day will only prolong sleeplessness. Watching television or scrolling on a smartphone triggers more mind stimulation and exposure to blue light, which can also contribute to insomnia.
Breaking the loop with relaxation methods like cognitive reshuffling may help you become more relaxed, but it should also be coupled with good sleep hygiene.
“This includes going to sleep in a dark, quiet room with no distractions such as phone, computers or TV,” Shade advises. “Sleep in a comfortable bed with the room set at a comfortable temperature. Don’t exercise or eat right before bedtime. Avoid excessive alcohol which is known to disrupt sleep continuity and natural rhythms.”
For those with continuing insomnia, AHN offers cognitive behavioral therapy which uses many of these techniques and teaches sleep hygiene.
“It has been proven to be more long-lasting than medications, although commonly we combine both modalities,” says Shade. “As always, if you are having a sleep issue, discuss it with your primary care physician or see a sleep medicine specialist who specializes in sleep disorders.”
Here are a few “cognitive reshuffling” methods to try:
Words/Letters
Pick a random word (like cat) then think of more random words that start with the letters in the first word. (For example, think of words with “C” first, then “A” then “T”.) This is a low-impact, low-stress activity for your brain that can help you drift off to sleep.
Letters
Start with a random letter, then think of as many words as you can that go with that letter. For instance, “A” may have you thinking of “apple, alphabet, anthem, etc.” Then move on to the next letter in the alphabet or any other random letter.
Categories
Rather than thinking of random words starting with a certain letter, think of as many words as you can in one category. For instance, “cities” might have you naming Pittsburgh, Chicago, New York, Rome, etc., until you move on to another category.
Sleep strategies like cognitive reshuffling take practice, and it may not work for everyone. Start slowly and try it for a short period of time over several nights to see if these techniques might work for you.
Finally, Shade stresses that we do need to prioritize sleep as part of our healthy routine.
“Get seven to nine hours of sleep consistently and make it quality sleep,” he says. “Sleep is at least as important as diet and exercise in maintaining health and function.”