Sleep your way to hormone balance
Recently, I was chatting animatedly with a colleague about important pillars of health like sleep, nutrition, stress management, exercise and energy - the kinds of things you don’t get to shoot the breeze about with family and friends.
Instead of thinking of them as pillars, she cleverly reframed them in the context of juggling balls—some glass, some rubber.
The glass balls represent what you can’t afford to drop because they’ll shatter, whereas rubber balls bounce.
One person’s glass ball is another person’s rubber.
For me, sleep is undoubtedly a glass ball. If I don’t get enough, I can’t think or function properly.
A single night of interrupted sleep—or worse, several in a row—leaves me crabby, drained, unfocused, and craving foods I generally don’t care much for like pasta and bread.
So to prevent sleep deprivation from becoming the undoing of me, I’ve made sleep my numéro uno priority, knowing that without it, I’m as good as useless!
And I believe this to be true of most people out there - okay - maybe only the kinds of people who come to me looking for help. I’d estimate that 95% of my female clients with hormone imbalances have problems with their energy and sleep.
Curious to know why one impacts the other? How much sleep you actually need, and exactly how to go about getting a better night’s sleep?
It’s all here in this blogpost for you to explore 👇
Sleep deprivation, hormones and health
As Professor Matthew Walker, a leading expert in sleep science, explains ‘There is no tissue within the body and no process within the brain that isn’t improved by sleep—or impaired by lack of it.’
Why is sleep so crucial for our health, and just how does sleep deprivation affect our hormones and general health? Here’s a brief summary of what I found:
1. Menstrual Cycle and Reproductive Health
Studies show that sleep deprivation disrupts reproductive hormones like oestrogen and progesterone. This can lead to irregular periods, fertility issues, and even early menopause.
2. Metabolic Hormones and Weight Management:
A lack of sleep disrupts hormones that control hunger—ghrelin (which increases appetite) and leptin (which signals fullness). This can lead to overeating and weight gain, especially during times of great hormonal shifts like postpartum, perimenopause and menopause.
3. Stress and Inflammation:
Sleep deprivation raises cortisol levels, leading to chronic stress and inflammation. High cortisol levels are also linked to insulin resistance and inflammation, which can worsen the symptoms of hormone conditions like polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
4. Immune Health:
Lack of sleep weakens the immune system, leading to a 70% drop in natural killer cells which are responsible for defending us against cancer. The World Health Organisation has even labelled night shift work a probable carcinogen.
5. Cardiovascular Health:
Even short-term sleep disruptions can have serious effects. After just one week of poor sleep, blood sugar levels can become so dysregulated that they mirror pre-diabetic conditions.
Studies show that during daylight savings, there’s a 24% increase in heart attacks, yet when the clocks go back and we gain an extra hour in bed there’s a 21% decrease. These shifts highlight how sensitive the body is to changes in sleep patterns.
The Powerful Health Benefits of Sleep
Sleep is more than just rest—it’s an essential part of maintaining good health. When we sleep, our bodies undergo vital processes that repair tissues, regulate hormones, and clear toxins from the brain. Good sleep doesn’t just make us feel refreshed; it impacts nearly every system in the body, helping us to function at our best both physically and mentally.
The physiological benefits of sleep on health include:
Improved memory and recall
Longer life expectancy
Better emotional and mental health
Protection against cognitive decline
Immune and cancer-protective
Preserves sexual health
Cardiovascular and metabolic health
How much sleep should you be getting?
For most people, finding the ideal amount of sleep takes a little bit of trial and error - but there are some general recommendations based on age.
Infants (4-11 months): 12 to 15 hours
Toddlers (1-2 years): 11 to 14 hours
Pre-schoolers (3-5 years): 10 to 13 hours
School-aged children (6-13 years): 9 to 11 hours
Teenagers (14-17): 8 to 10 hours
Adults: 6 to 8 hours - 7 hours has been proposed as the ideal number of hours.
If you’re not regularly getting at least 7 hours of sleep, keep reading 👇🏻!
The top 5 reasons for sleep deprivation
If you’re not getting enough hours of shut eye, it might be worth examining exactly what’s at the root of it:
1. Stress and Anxiety
Ongoing stress makes it hard to relax, often leading to trouble falling or staying asleep. Chronic stress is one of the leading causes of long-term sleep issues.
2. Poor Sleep Habits
Irregular sleep schedules, screen time before bed, and consuming caffeine or alcohol too late can all disrupt your natural sleep cycle.
3. Medical Conditions
Disorders like sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome, asthma, reflux and chronic pain can prevent deep, restful sleep.
4. Hormonal Changes
Hormonal fluctuations during periods, pregnancy, or (peri)menopause often cause sleep disturbances, including insomnia, night sweats, or disrupted sleep cycles.
5. Diet and Lifestyle Factors
Late-night meals, caffeine, alcohol, highly refined carbohydrate diet, poor blood sugar balance and lack of physical activity can all interfere with quality sleep.
How to get a better night’s sleep!
While these are very general recommendations, you may be able to identify one or two things you can double down on - even if you’ve tried all the things!
Stick to the same bedtime and wake-up time each day, even on weekends.
Expose your eyes to natural light within 30 minutes of waking to set your body’s internal clocks.
Try to go to bed before 11pm for better-quality sleep.
Avoid daytime naps unless you’re sick or extremely sleep-deprived.
Finish eating and drinking at least a couple of hours before bedtime.
Take a hot bath before bed to raise your body temperature, relax your muscles, and prepare for sleep.
Add 1-2 cups of Epsom salts, ½-1 cup of baking soda (which helps alkalise the body), and 10 drops of lavender oil to your bath to reduce cortisol levels and or take magnesium glycinate as a supplement.
Avoid screens (or at the very least wear blue-light blocking glasses) in the late evening - to preserve your melatonin.
Use lamps instead of bright overhead lights indoors.
Create an ideal environment in your bedroom for a better night’s sleep - check that the temperature is optimal (around 17/18 degrees C)
Use a light-blocking sleep mask if your room is not sufficiently dark
Tap into your sleep chronotype
According to Dr Michael Breus, aka the Sleep Doctor, there are four ‘sleep chronontypes’. Basically, each of us falls into one of four categories that describes our body’s natural disposition to be awake or asleep at certain times.
Knowing your sleep chronotype can help you to understand what your body naturally wants, so that you can manage your time and your sleep routines hand-in-hand with your nature, rather than battling against yourself.
The four chronotypes are:
The Dolphin: characterised by fragmented sleep patterns, easily disturbed sleep and sometimes insomnia. Most alert and awake between 10am and 2pm.
The Lion: characterised by early nights and early mornings, often feeling most alert and productive in the early morning hours and falling asleep by 9 or 10pm.
The Bear: generally most productive before noon, with energy levels declining into the afternoon and evening. Sleep-wake cycle tends to be aligned with the sun.
The Wolf: typical ‘not morning people’, characterised by feeling most alert and energetic in the afternoon/evening and struggling with early mornings.
Check out his book ‘The Power Of When ‘ to learn more about sleep chronotypes - I’m a bear in case you didn’t guess!
Struggling with your hormone health and sleep?
I don’t claim to have all the answers, but if you’re struggling with your hormone health, and your sleep has gone to the dogs, firstly I want you to know you’re not alone. It’s something I see all the time in my work - and part of the reason I take my sleep so seriously. If you’re interested in exploring 1:1 holistic programmes for your hormones and health, check out my services page. If something resonates with you, book a free call with me so I can run through the finer details with you, and help you decide whether it could be the right decision for you.
