Feel Tired-Wired? The Thyroid - Sleep Connection

When stress is either more intense than normal or has gone on too long, relaxation reserves in your nervous system will tend to decline. This can result in a wired feeling in the brain, meaning you are likely to feel jittery or irritable during the day and have trouble calming down at night. This has a major effect on how your brain processes thyroid information, resulting in fluctuating thyroid symptoms. It’s essential to cool off the stimulated nervous system and take efforts to improve sleep quality to avoid ongoing wear-and-tear to the thyroid gland.

This combination of feeling wired and tired (fatigue paired with irritability and jitteriness) will also increase hunger during the day as your brain calls for enough energy to fuel your cells. At night, your brain gets stuck in a setting of hypervigilance with the metabolism set too high. Overtime, this can lead to exhaustion and burnout to the energy systems, including your thyroid.

When this happens, your thyroid hormone levels will be set very slow by your subconscious brain (TRH-related control system) in an effort to conserve energy. Your body will turn to other forms of energy like the stress hormone cortisol, which creates a vicious cycle. The only way out of this cycle is to relax and cool off your nervous system to get more rejuvenating sleep.

Immediate methods of building relaxation reserves back up include stretching, walking, prayer, meditation, relaxing yoga, or any other stress management that fills your bucket to promote an increased feeling of calm and control in your life. Sleep Helper, RelaxaMag and Tri-Cal may be taken before bed and/or throughout the day to reduce jitteriness and enhance calmness.

Supporting your energy systems throughout the day is also important. Coenzyme B vitamins, adaptogenic herbs, and thyroid support nutrients can help a healthy energy production duding the day and support your sleep-wake cycle.

The goal is not to simply knock yourself out at bed. For optimal thyroid function you also want to have calmer energy production throughout the day and replenish relaxed nervous system reserves. If stress in your life is mounting and unavoidable, relaxing lifestyle adjustments are mandatory to help nerves cope. Balance thyroid nourishing nutrients with stress nutrients during the day and sleep nutrients before bed. When your sleep and energy systems are supported, your nerves are calmer and your thyroid is happy.