A lack of sleep can be painful

It’s no mystery that fibromyalgia sufferers deal with a lot of pain in their everyday lives. However, new research shows that the pain experienced during sleep might be caused by a group of culprits that does not include fibromyalgia as a main suspect. Instead, if you’re suffering from pain on a regular basis, sleep disorders, such as excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS), sleep apnea, insomnia or narcolepsy, might be to blame.

In a study conducted by researchers at the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, 27 healthy adults were separated into two control groups. One group was allowed to sleep an average of nine hours each night, while the other averaged two hours fewer. To assess the subjects’ tolerances for pain, researchers measured how long each subject was able to hold a finger against a source of heat. After conducting the study for four consecutive nights, researchers found that the individuals who had significantly more sleep on average were able to withstand pain more than the other group by nearly 25 percent.

Although loss of sleep is linked to the pain experienced by individuals with fibromyalgia, it can also be an indicator of an untreated sleep disorder. In fact, interrupted sleep is a prominent complaint among people suffering from acute and chronic pain. Of those suffering from chronic pain, nearly 23 percent have been diagnosed with a sleep disorder.

Some symptoms of sleep disorders include:

· Loud snoring and trouble breathing while sleeping

· Swelling of the legs (in extreme cases of sleep apnea)

· An unstoppable urge to move your legs – Restless Leg Syndrome

If you suspect that the pain you are experiencing could be caused by a sleep disorder, please give our team at FusionSleep a call at (678) 990- 962 so that we can help find a solution for you.