The importance of sleep during pregnancy
Sleep, like for all living things, is one of the basic needs of human life. When we cannot get enough sleep or when we don’t have a certain sleeping routine, this affects our daily lives. If we go to work in the morning after a sleepless night, we feel tired all day and we cannot work efficiently, or even if we’re at home, we have difficulties doing our daily work.
When sleep is so important for all of us, it is undoubtedly more important for pregnant women carrying another life in their body. Importantly, the sleep pattern of pregnant women also affects the development of her baby.
However, sleep patterns are also affected by the biological changes of pregnancy. In fact, sleep disorders are observed in 78% of pregnant women. Therefore, measures to ensure regular sleep should be established at the beginning of pregnancy.
Pregnant women need to sleep for at least six hours per day. The possibility of a normal birth in pregnant women whose sleep pattern is disrupted is reduced by up to four or five times, according to research.
The effects of sleep to the unborn baby in pregnant women cannot be underestimated. The biggest indicator of this is the progesterone hormone, which is needed for the continuity of the pregnancy. During pregnancy, the reason for the increasing need of sleep, especially in the first three months, is because there is an increased secretion of progesterone during sleep. This causes excessive sleepiness and a constant feeling of fatigue during the daytime.
One of the most common problems during pregnancy is a disease known as restless legs syndrome, that shows signs like numbness, burning, prickling, tingling, pain or intense desire to move etc., and appears when the leg is fixed in a certain position for a long time as in sleep or in rest.We firstly recommend that you choose an appropriate sleep position and ensure you have a comfortable bed to reduce the effects of this problem.
Establishing good sleep patterns during pregnancy is highly effective, not only physically but also psychologically. A good sleep pattern plays an important role in the preparation for birth, and protects the baby from the psychological stresses and strains of pregnancy.
