We all know how sluggish we feel when we don’t get enough sleep and the link to AF but the reasons for cognitive decline have not been well understood. I follow Matthew Walker on sleep - neurologist and psychiatrist who has been studying sleep and it’s importance to mental health and well-being for over 20 years. In his latest book he talks about how, when in REM sleep the brain cleans itself but until very recently the mechanics were not known so I was very interested to read a link originally posted on Healthy Eating Forum
As a long term suffered from insomnia (of the sleep duration type), and having seen “top” sleep “specialists” to no avail, I only wish that someone would find something useful for us sufferers.
I would so love to be able to sleep for longer than four hours per night and not always that much....Usually if i'm going into AF it wakes me up in the night and that's the end of that.....I know lack of sleep is linked to obesity too and i'm obese....I'm on a healthy eating regime all the time and have been for many years but since my COPD has worsened i can't walk far so weight goes on whatever i try...I just wish i could sleep better and i really feel it would help.
A quick glance at the studies referred to seems to show the importance of sleep but so far as I can see no explanation of the mechanism that achieves this. There was in fact such an explanation in a study reported in the March 2016 issue of Scientific American, under the title Brain Drain that described a previously unknown circulation of lymph which is only takes place during sleep. Unfortunately this is only available on payment. I can't prove a definite link, but since I made a point of getting more sleep my memory has improved.
The way I read the article it was about the mechanism of how the link between lack of REM sleep/lack of & dementia which was around fluid dynamics & how it shows under the latest brain imaging techniques. Prior to this imaging what happened was a mystery.
I wondered if this also was a factor in waking in the night to pee - I notice I always wake from dream state. As I no longer have AF in the night I don’t believe it’s connected to heart.
I have always had quite vivid dreams and find after clear dreams I feel so much fresher. What is irritating though is as one gets older (when out) loos are never far from your mind and this now occurs randomly in my dreams, after a lot of searching in vain I wake up!
If you can find time and suitable space for learning to meditate properly and so long as medical symptoms are not excessively intrusive then your sleep patterns will improve. I appreciate it is not easy to do but look out for a teacher with a good reputation. It is worth persevering as I myself have discovered as a long term af patient.
The use of meditation is to escape from the intrusive thoughts that are troubling you ,not to think about what has happened to you or about what you will do when the session is finished. In this way one should eventually gain some perspective on life but is only one tool amongst many others like exercise, yoga and being in a calm 'green' environment. I do not use meditation solely as an aid to sleep but coupled with one of the other aids at the right time aids my well being.
You could try a Buddhist based environment too but I am averse to the chanting but not all groups use it.
Sleep eludes me most of the time. It's sad but I can understand MJ's milk use that led to his death. I would never do that but understand how he felt when you cant get sleep for months..
I have tried everything. Correct nutrition, perfect bed, pillow, jammies, climate, exercise (timed not near bedtime), visualization/relaxation/de-stress techniques, life changes, Melatonin, Benadryl, Ambien, Ambien ER, Xanax. I hate the meds but hate 3-4 hours of sleep worse, feeling like I a zombie, can't think, no energy, functioning below par. I can fall asleep from exhaustion but wake up after a few hours and can't fall back to sleep. Ugh...
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Amiodarone 
A possible helpful hint for those of you that think AF might be triggered by sleep apnoea
Hi..... I would just like to say that after having a scary few months of PAF and a week in hospital I am now well on the way to recovery. 
