Sleep is an important part of a healthy routine; it can help you manage your pelvic pain. Not getting enough sleep or poor-quality sleep can put your body under more stress and make your pelvic pain feel worse.

How does sleep impact pain?

• Your body’s internal day and night clock, known as its circadian rhythm, relies on routine to keep stress levels low.
• Teenagers typically need between eight and 10 hours of sleep every night.
• Interrupted sleep, napping during the day or even oversleeping can cause more stress and inflammation.
• On the other hand, if you’re in a lot of pain, it can be hard to get to sleep and stay asleep – even when you’re feeling tired or exhausted.
• This creates a cycle where your pain affects your sleep and then poor sleep makes your pain worse.

Period cycles and sleep

In the days leading up to periods starting (three to six days before), it can be harder to get to sleep and stay asleep. You might find that your sleep is interrupted at other times of your cycle, too.

Keeping a three-month sleep diary is a good first step to seeing whether any trouble sleeping could be linked to your period.

This could include tracking:

• What time you went to bed
• What time you woke up
• Whether you woke up throughout the night
• Whether you were in pain, or any other symptoms you noticed.

Managing sleep and pelvic pain

Morning routine

Sleeping well starts in the morning. You can set up your body clock by:

• Waking up at a regular time each morning and getting some daylight (either through a window or by heading outside)
• Getting moving in the morning with some gentle exercise or stretching
• Waking your brain up by reading or doing a word game in a spot with natural light, if possible.

Throughout the day

You can help prepare for a good night’s sleep by:

• ‘Checking in’ on how you are feeling a few times during the day. If you’re feeling stressed or anxious, try to find a quiet spot to do something that relaxes and comforts you, such as:
  • Listening to music
  • Trying a butterfly hug
  • Belly breathing.
• Trying to avoid taking naps during the day.
• Spending some time outside or in natural light, which helps keep your body’s day and night clock working properly.
• Eating regularly, aiming for three meals a day, plus snacks.

Evening routine

Regular sleep at night can help reduce your pelvic pain, but it also provides you with energy for other activities during the day.

A predictable nighttime routine of calming activities in the same order every evening can help you sleep.

In the one to two hours before bed, try:

• Limiting your screen time
• Doing activities that calm the nervous system, like colouring, reading or listening to music or stories.

If your pain is making it harder to sleep, you could try:

• Having a bath or shower in the evening
• Gentle backwards and forwards movements or rocking before getting into bed
• Stretches that focus on opening the hips and pelvis
• Different sleeping positions in bed to help support your pelvis:
  • Side-sleeping: place a pillow between the knees to align the pelvis comfortably
  • Back-sleeping: place a pillow under the knees to reduce pelvic pressure
• Deep pressure through heavy blankets or a weighted blanket
• A heat pack on the pelvic region for 15 to 20 minutes
• Calm, slow breathing with longer breaths out (in for four counts, out for six counts).

A calming environment can also be helpful:

• A quiet space or low-level background sound can improve your sleep
• A dark room is best, so close your curtains or try wearing an eye mask.

Support options

Your local doctor (GP) should be your first stop. They can consider referring you to a specialist like a psychologist, occupational therapist, a pain or sleep specialist or a sleep disorder clinic.

Sleep information for young people with chronic pain

• NSW Agency for Clinical Innovation: Sleep, managing pain and fear related thoughts
• Young Pain Health: Sleep and pain

General sleep information for young people and families

• Murdoch Children’s Research Institute: Sleep for teens
• Raising Children Network: Bedtime routines

Disclaimer

This information is intended to support, not replace, advice from your doctor or healthcare professionals. It is general information only and may not apply to your individual circumstances. You should always check with your healthcare provider before making decisions about your care or starting, stopping or changing any treatment.

The authors of this consumer health information have made a considerable effort to ensure the information is accurate, up-to-date and easy to understand. The Royal Children’s Hospital (RCH) Melbourne accepts no responsibility for any inaccuracies, information perceived as misleading, or the success of any treatment regimen detailed in these handouts. Medical knowledge can change over time and the information contained in the handouts is updated regularly. Therefore you should always check you are referring to the most recent version of the handout. The onus is on you, the user, to ensure that you have downloaded the most up-to-date version of a consumer health information handout.

Developed by The Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne Kids and Teens Pelvic Pain Clinical Network multidisciplinary team, supported by RCH services.

The Kids and Teens Pelvic Pain Clinical Network is supported by the Victorian Government.