How NOT to wake up at 2 am to pee! - Welcome to Conscious Nutrition by Heather Fleming.

Hope you are nourishing while being kind to yourself and others during these challenging times that are I have major hope is creating a new history and sense of well-being for all.

Sleeping through the night can be a controversial topic due to individual’s bladder strength, prostate health, too many expert’s offering conflicting advice with hydration and STRESS!

One of the best positive feedbacks I received was from a woman who hasn’t slept through the night for over 30 years, because of babies, work and didn’t believe that was an option for her. We set the goal to sleep through the night three times within one month. We tried some of my tricks, and lo’ and behold she called me weeping for joy that she slept through the night for the first time in ages. She felt like a new person along with her nervous system and hormones were balanced so this became a new result that she didn’t even know she signed up for.

Just before you wake up, the body secretes higher levels of growth hormone, cortisol, glucagon and adrenaline. These hormones prepare your body for the day. Your body has the ability to store food as energy in your liver as glycogen and fat. As you sleep, your body needs to release this stored energy. So if you are waking up in the middle of the night you are breaking the cycle of using fat for energy from your liver and fat stores.

If your blood sugar is slightly high and if your liver and lungs are not detoxifying well while you sleep, your kidneys are forced to work overtime to filter and absorb the excess sugar. If your kidneys can’t keep up, the excess sugar is excreted into your urine, dragging along fluids from your tissues. This triggers more frequent urination, which may also leave you feeling dehydrated, craving more sugar and low energy throughout the day.

To carry out its essential overnight repairs and cell rejuvenation, your body uses energy in the form of glycogen which is stored in the liver. During the night, these glycogen stores get depleted at a rate of 10g per hour, of which 65% is used by the brain. We need to make sure the liver is utilizing these glycogen stores and if this energy supply runs out, the liver sends stress signals to the brain via cortisol, which NONE of us need more of this, alerting you to wake up or have interrupted REM sleep.

If you think you are frequently waking during the night due to low glycogen levels, think of it this way, your body is feeling malnourished and here are some of my tricks!

1. Add in 90% of your hydration before 9 pm: wait until your clear your bladder before you go to bed.

2. Drink 24 oz of water upon waking: Add a pinch of sea salt, minerals or Chlorophyll (like I used in the video below) to help your body replenish and absorb water versus excess urine stripping your body of minerals.

3. Eat first BEFORE caffeine in the morning: Caffeine can elevate stress hormones. Try eating, juicing, smoothie or light snack first before you have coffee or tea.

4. Try a shake before bed: Yes, throw out some “rules” to heal. Your body NEEDS support and this may help shift your liver to utilize your stored glycogen and body fat for repair while you rest. Check out my bed head and shake video ideas here!