Imagine being extremely sick but unable to fall asleep? That sounds like a nightmare in itself, right? You are dead tired and all you wish for is a good night of sleep to feel better, but you just don’t seem to be able to fall asleep. Rather than that, all you do is tossing in your bed until sunrise, which does nothing to improve your condition. Which is why it is of the utmost important for you to find ways to fall asleep fast and properly despite being sick, so that you make sure to avoid dealing with insomnia during winter when you might catch a cold.
If you are struggling to fall asleep because of heartburn, you should learn about the best adjustable beds available for combating acid reflux. If acid reflux isn’t your problem, keep reading to learn about other other illnesses that can affect your sleep.
As soon as your immune system weakens a little bit, your whole body feels itchy and almost bothersome. This is true whether you’re a child or an adult. Especially when you lay down in order to sleep, your head feels fuzzy, your nose becomes stuffy, your throat muscles get swollen and you feel unbearably hot and uncomfortable. That in itself exceedingly hinders the quality of your sleep, hence why it is crucial for you to find ways to fall asleep fast despite the illness. Particularly since sleep is one of the most important things your immune system requires to strengthen itself and more generally your entire body.
Moreover, if you have noticed, usually, when you’re sick, it’s not just falling asleep that becomes hard to achieve, but it is also staying asleep throughout the whole night despite being ill. You definitely have experienced waking up several times a night to blow your nose or drink some water because of how sick you feel, which effectively throws your sleep off balance.
So because falling asleep and staying so despite you being sick is so important for your immune system, we have found some ways for you to achieve that which hopefully will properly shut down all of your worries about not getting the sleep you need whenever you catch a nasty cold in winter.
Make your room more humid
Image courtesy: www.pinterest.com
As we have evoked earlier, you definitely don’t want to wake up in the middle of the night with a dry mouth and throat, desperately looking for a glass of water to hydrate yourself, right?
Not only that, but you also for sure don’t want to get even more infections due to your sinuses that get too dry because of the winter air.
Well, in order to prevent and avoid that, you need to make sure to sleep in a humid room. You can for instance get yourself a humidifier that will enable you to breathe better without necessarily making your sinuses dry. Look for essential oils and other products like distilled water 5l that is good for your throat, the humid air will help you sleep.
If you don’t really feel like investing some money in an entire humidifier, you could always try to increase the humidity in your room by putting some bowls of water everywhere in your house. You could also try hanging one or more wet towels in your bedroom so that once the water turns into vapor, the moisture contained in the air adds up.
Who would say no to a hot bath anyway?
Image courtesy: www.pinterest.com
You know how uncomfortable you feel when you are sick? Your whole body is aching and it feels like you have pulled all of your muscles, right? So when you get into bed and try to sleep, you have such a hard time doing so as everything hurts.
If you want to feel better, then take a hot bath. A steamy bath will soothe down your muscles and make them less sore. It will as well make you more drowsy, and less cold, which will tremendously help with your sleep. Funnily enough, not only will you feel relaxed after the bath, but you also will feel tired and sleepy, which is exactly what you want.
And of course, before getting out of the bathroom, make sure to clear out your nostrils well so that you have no problem breathing while asleep.
Chicken soup makes miracles
Image courtesy: www.pinterest.com
Another grandma recipe.
You probably have always been fed chicken soup back when you were a kid and you caught a cold. It is no wonder that that seems to have its own benefits on your body’s condition as it has been discovered that chicken soup contained many anti-inflammatory drugs. Anti-inflammatories reduce infections and improve your immune system, helping it to get rid of the illness faster.
So now, if you want to sleep better and you are anxious because you caught a cold, no worries! Having chicken soup before bed is all you need to do! Either make it yourself or order it from a nearby restaurant (check out this Chinese Restaurant for reference).
No more sore throat
Grandma recipe, yet highly effective.
If your throat feels too sore, try gargling some solution of diluted salt in warm water the way you would with a mouthwash. Do it 4 to 5 times in a row and each time you will do it, you will feel your throat getting slightly better, which will help you fall asleep faster and easier.
You can also try gargling a solution of diluted apple cider vinegar in water but make sure to spit it out! Remember, this is especially important during a cold winter where you’re really vulnerable for developing a sore throat.
Don’t lay down completely
Image courtesy: www.pinterest.com
No, this isn’t a joke, not laying down your whole body is actually a good way for you to sleep more comfortably despite being sick. It is because that way, as your muscles get a bit more contracted, especially the muscles in your throat, it becomes much easier for you to breathe. All you have to do is elevating your head while the rest of your body lays down. You can do that either by putting some extra pillows under your head, or, if that is too uncomfortable for you, you can get yourself and adjustable bed and adjust it to the position that suits you the most.
If you are interested in adjustable beds, we have talked plenty about them on our website. You can for instance check our article called the pros and cons of adjustable beds in order to see if those fit your expectations and taste or not.
Medicine was invented to help you feel better
Image courtesy: www.pinterest.com
If you really can’t stand the pain that comes with a cold, then don’t hesitate to take some medicine. It will not make the sickness go faster, that is true, but it will definitely make it more bearable. You can go to an Online pharmacy to have medications delivered to you if you are too unwell to go yourself, this will make it easier to relax. However, we recommend that you don’t order prescription-only medicines (POM) from these online pharmacies, even if they allow you to do so.
If it is your stuffy nose and your headache that you can’t stand, then try taking anything containing paracetamol, as that will for sure relieve the pain and make you sleepier.
If it is your throat that is bothering you, then look for some syrup that will soothe it and make it less painful.
Of course, if you are not sure what to take, call your doctor and ask for their advice, they are here for that.
Doing so, you will be able to guarantee yourself the sleep you want and you need to feel better.