Overcoming the Battles of Getting Sleep in the Summer

natewidom

2 years ago

By Deion Clifton

Welcome to the dog days of summer! Long gone are the winter blues and spring showers. For a quarter of the year, the summer heat brings us all the joys and wonders of beach trips, picnics, hikes, and more.

Long days and warm weather, while inviting for outdoor activities, can also pose a challenge to our sleep. If you find yourself tossing and turning in the summer nights, you’re not alone. Many people struggle with this. So, why is it so difficult for some of us to get a good night’s sleep in the summer?

Longer Days

Summer is when we experience the most daylight hours, which can throw off your circadian rhythm. Circadian rhythm refers to the internal cycle that tells you when to wake up, eat, and sleep through the production of different hormones.¹ It is regulated primarily by our exposure to certain waves of light, but diet, stress, and activity levels also influence the cycle.

When we see different types of light, our brains respond by increasing or decreasing melatonin production. They key to this process is the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), a small part of the brain that’s responsible for maintaining our sleep/wake patterns, body temperature, metabolism, and hormone release.² In other words, it’s the SCN that keeps our circadian rhythm in check.

The SCN lies in an area of the brain where the retinohypothalamic tract (RHT) extends from the retinas to pass information from the eyes to the brain. The SCN receives this information from the retinal ganglion cells (RGC), processes it, and projects this photic information to the pineal gland. The pineal gland then produces and releases melatonin.³ Greater amounts are released during dark hours, and minimal amounts are released during light hours. Stronger melatonin releases will tire you, as melatonin is a sleep-promoting hormone.

However, this response to melatonin can be disrupted. This is referred to as a phase shift. A phase shift is a disruption that occurs when the body and natural external environment fall out of synchrony.² For example, phase shifts occur when exposed to light during nighttime hours.

Even slightly disrupting your body’s natural rhythm and daily routine can make you feel drowsy or tired throughout the day. This is why it may be challenging to get into the habit of waking up early if you’re not naturally an early riser. The reverse is also true; even after a late night out, your internal clock may wake you up early if that’s what it’s used to doing.

During summer, as the sun rises earlier, you may find yourself waking earlier. As it falls later, you may also find yourself falling asleep later. To overcome this, you can:
1. Sleep in a dark room. By blocking sunlight from your room while you sleep, you can more easily control your wakeup time.
2. Get lots of sunlight (ideally outside, not just through a window) within the first hour or two after your desired wake-up time. This helps regulate your circadian clock.
3. Limit your exposure to light – including cell phone light – before bed.
4. Stick to a consistent bedtime and wake-up time.
These tricks can help you achieve better sleep at any time of year.

Warmer Temperatures

Another likely cause for your summer sleep disruption is the increase in temperature. It’s not news to say that global warming is affecting our atmosphere, but could it also affect our sleep?

A 2022 study found that people in hotter regions experience more sleep loss than those in cooler areas.⁵ Scientists have also found that, while nighttime temperatures have not changed considerably between 1991 and 2020, daytime warming has accelerated, causing larger temperature differences between day and night.⁶ In 2023, our planet experienced the hottest June and the hottest first week of July ever recorded, and the southwestern region of the US set a new overnight temperature record of 97 degrees Fahrenheit last July.

You’ve probably experienced the discomfort of sweating through your sheets on a hot summer night. By design, our bodies are made to sleep better in cooler conditions. Heat is drawn from your body as you sleep, bringing its temperature down about two degrees.⁸ This is thought to signal the body to prepare for sleep. The temperature drop starts up to two hours before falling asleep, working alongside that melatonin release. This temp drop continues into the early morning and finally begins rising as the morning progresses. Rising body temperatures promote waking. Throughout the day, body temp continues to rise slowly until reaching its peak in the early evening. This increase and decrease in temperatures is our body telling us when it’s time to wake up and when it’s time to go to bed.

“Even slightly disrupting your body’s natural rhythm and daily routine can make you feel drowsy or tired throughout the day.”

The rise and fall of body temperature happens just below surface level, within the blood vessels, through processes known as vasodilation and vasoconstriction. When the body needs to cool before bed, the circadian clock sends a signal to increase blood flow and push the heat outward, away from the core to the distal skin (arms, legs, hands, and feet).⁹ To do this, blood vessels will expand to allow blood to flow freely to the extremities. Have you ever experienced hot hands or feet around bedtime? This could be the reason.

Conversely, blood vessels narrow when heating the core. This minimizes the amount of heat that leaves the body. Because the core of the body is the main priority, vasoconstriction occurs in the extremities. This restricts blood flow to the arms, legs, hands, and feet, which may make your hands and feet feel cold.

The ideal temperature conditions to sleep in are anywhere between 65 and 68 degrees Fahrenheit. Yes, hot conditions can make falling and staying asleep challenging, but they can also affect the time you spend in your sleep stages. A core body temperature above normal – around 98 degrees – can decrease the amount of restorative slow-wave sleep you get, decreasing sleep efficiency and increasing the likelihood you wake up in the middle of the night.⁸

Vacations and Social Life

Let’s be honest; most social lives tend to resurface in the summertime. Whether it be hosting barbeques, exploring new areas of the world, or experiencing your local nightlife, many social activities can extend your bedtime for the night. We all have social obligations, and it’s not uncommon to give up a little rest time to fulfill them. In fact, according to health.com, 70 percent of people will extend their bedtime by at least an hour to meet these obligations.¹⁰

Travel can be especially disruptive to your sleep schedule. Long trips, especially across time zones, can disrupt your circadian rhythm, causing drowsiness, insomnia, short-term cognitive impairment, and other symptoms we know as jetlag. These symptoms don’t usually disappear until your internal clock is back in balance. Often, traveling also means staying in an unfamiliar place, sleeping in an unfamiliar bed, and doing things outside of your daily routine. This, too, can impact your ability to sleep depending on your sensitivity to the changes.

Here are a few ways you can get your circadian rhythm back in the groove after a long flight:

Plan ahead! If you’re able, adjust your sleep schedule a few days before traveling to match your destination’s time zone.
Expose yourself to natural light upon arrival and avoid consuming caffeine, alcohol, or anything else that can disrupt sleep.
Drink plenty of water throughout your flight and after arrival to combat dehydration, a common contributor to jetlag.

Sweet Dreams Start Now

Not everybody struggles with sleeping during the summer. Heck, some people even sleep better! But for those of us who do struggle, it’s important to find out why so we can resolve the issue as quickly as possible. Because who wants to keep losing sleep during (arguably) the best time of the year? Whether the issue is longer days, warmer temps, or travel, the answer could be right under your nose. Sticking to a consistent bedtime schedule, bumping that thermostat down two notches, or adjusting your schedule before traveling can contribute toward sound summer sleep and put an end to those sluggish dog days.

References:

Longer Days

Warmer Temperatures

Vacations and Social Life

Sweet Dreams Start Now

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