Long-term causes of bad sleep

We talked to people aged 65 and over about their sleep. Many were not surprised that it was poor now and had expected their sleep to get worse as they got older. They may have seen a gradual decline in their sleep. Some also said it had been bad at other times in their lives, for various reasons, and that was still having an impact on them now. These reasons could include:

  • Bereavement
  • Being a carer
  • Having had children
  • Menopause
  • Having worked shifts
  • Past and present worries and stress
  • A prior health problem

Bereavement

One very common reason for having poor sleep now was the death of a loved one. People talked about how they found their sleep had gotten worse once their partner had died, and remained poor, even though it may have been several years since the death of their partner.

Being a carer

Others had been a carer for a loved one who was terminally ill. They found that caring duties and the worry they felt for their loved one disrupted their sleep. Judy looked after her brother for two years before he went to live in a care home but her sleep was still bad because she felt guilty and worried about him.

Joyce finds that since her husband died, 5 years ago, her sleep has been quite fragmented, and…

Age at interview 79

Gender Female

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Even though her sleep had improved a bit since her husband had died, Dessie still found herself…

Age at interview 73

Gender Female

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Robert describes how the stop and start sleep pattern he had when he was caring for his…

Age at interview 77

Gender Male

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Judy cared for her brother, who had dementia, until her sleep was so disturbed the doctor…

Age at interview 71

Gender Female

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Having children

Other women mentioned that disturbance in their sleep had started when their children were young and it had never been the same since.

The menopause

A few women thought that one of the possible reasons for their poor sleep was the onset of the menopause, and the symptoms that are associated with it.

Mary also wasnt sure whether it was the menopause that was the start of her sleeping problems,…

Age at interview 72

Gender Female

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Although Juliet did have her sleep disturbed at night by pain, she also felt that hot flushes…

Age at interview 69

Gender Female

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Working shifts

A few people had worked in shifts in the past which they thought might have had an influence. Christopher said that because he had worked shifts he had ‘never had a regular pattern of sleep all my life’.

Worries

People also talked about how their sleep was affected by worry. Some of these were more recent worries, but several older people also talked about how worries in earlier life were still affecting how they sleep. This varied from worries about family and work, to health and financial issues.

Some older people often woke up in the night thinking about distressing past events and how they might have handled things differently. Others felt that the stress and worry of jobs theyd had before retirement continued to affect their sleep. This could carry on for years after retirement.

Val slept very badly when she was running a care company because of the worry and concerns for…

Age at interview 65

Gender Female

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Prior health conditions

For many others though, health problems that had started in earlier life were an additional reason for poor sleep in later life. Significant health issues, such as heart problems, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis and prostate problems can disturb sleep at the time they are diagnosed. But they can continue to disturb sleep after diagnosis throughout treatment and even when they had recovered.

Sometimes the an injury can cause sleep problems for years afterwards.

John noticed a change in his sleep pattern at the time of his heart surgery 15 years ago, and…

Age at interview 67

Gender Male

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An injury to his shoulder several years before continued to cause Peter pain and on some…

Age at interview 66

Gender Male

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Mary realised she had never slept very well, and that this may be because of having bad asthma as…

Age at interview 72

Gender Female

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How does old age affect sleep?

People aged 65 and over talked to us about how getting older affects their sleep. They told us about some of the reasons they might...