The Ice Bucket Challenge successfully raised awareness, but find out just how ALS impacts a person’s sleep (photo credit:BigStockPhoto.com)
If you have spent any time on Facebook in recent weeks it is likely you have heard about the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge but odds are that unless you have had a family member or friend with ALS, you know very little about the disease. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease is a debilitating neurological disease that essentially strips the connections between brain and body. As the disease progresses this causes severe and significant symptoms that result in weakness and fatigue. One of the best ways to manage some of these effects, if not the symptoms themselves, is with sufficient high quality sleep. Unfortunately, many people with ALS struggle to get the sleep they need let alone sleep that is high in quality.
What Makes Sleep So Hard with ALS?
One of the best ways to describe the primary sleep challenge with ALS is explain that a normal person turns over about 30 times while they are sleeping. This is just as true for those with ALS. However, simple motor functions like turning over in bed require so much more energy for those with the disease that it is more like turning over and doing 10 pushups and 10 situps before going back to sleep. Now imagine that you had to do that 30 times a night. It quickly becomes very obvious why it can be so challenging for someone with ALS to get the sleep they need to combat the ever-present fatigue that is so prevalent.
Another reason those with ALS can struggle so much with sleep is because the disease can cause pain and cramping in the muscles. This, along with involuntary movement in the hands, feet, and limbs, can make sleep even more challenging. Another complication of the disease, respiratory weakness, can impact the ability to fall asleep and stay asleep.
When you take all of this together, it is amazing that people with ALS are able to get any sleep at all at a time when getting a good night sleep is one of the most important things they need. This is why people with the disease turn to sleep aids, both over the counter and prescription, to help them increase the amount of sleep they get each night. Unfortunately, these kinds of medication can create their own problems as they weaken respiratory responses which can already be weakened in ALS patients. Many people with the disease cannot use sleep aid medication for fear of causing respiratory distress.
One of the ways that sleep centers can help support sleep in those with ALS is by providing a sleep environment with ventilation support to help combat the effects of respiratory weakness in patients. why not try these out
For more information on ALS visit the ALS Association (ALSA) website.
To see Lauri Leadley take the Ice Bucket Challenge and explain how Valley Sleep Center can help those with ALS, click here.
To donate to the ALS Association and learn more about the Ice Bucket Challenge, visit the ALSA’s Ice Bucket Challenge page.
Related articles
- Lauri Leadley Takes the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge (valleysleepcenter.com)
- Everything You Need to Know to Help Children Get a Good Night Sleep (valleysleepcenter.com)
- The Answer to How Much Sleep You Need May Be in Your Genes (valleysleepcenter.com)
