How Sleep Offers Relief for Age-Related Pain by Dr. Breus

As we age, we’re more likely to experience physical pain.

Research has shown that non-refreshing sleep—sleep that results in waking to feel tired—is the single most likely predictor of the development of widespread pain in adults over age 50.  Rates of chronic pain rise sharply among older adults, and people over the age of 60 are twice as likely than their younger counterparts to experience pain in some form. 

Aging also may make us feel pain more strongly: research shows that as we get older, our tolerance for pain decreases.

It’s important to know that pain and sleep affect each other in both directions. 

The presence of physical pain interferes with sleep, making it harder to fall asleep and to stay asleep. At the same time, poor quality and insufficient sleep contribute to pain in several ways, decreasing pain tolerance, increasing pain intensity, and in some cases raising the risk for the development of chronic pain conditions that become more common with age. Lack of sleep also contributes to a greater loss of bone density and an increased risk for osteoporosis.