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Ask HN: Does anyone here struggle with body heat in regards to falling asleep?

3 points by dottjt ↗ HN
Here's my problem: My body gets really hot when I try to sleep and it prevents me from falling asleep. I don't sweat, but I just feel really hot, and it prevents me from falling asleep. It doesn't matter how cold the room is or if I don't use blankets, my body just has an elevated temperature.

I've tried just about everything. On a personal level, I've tried adjusting my routine, exercising at different times etc. Recently I got a bunch of blood tests done (thinking it might be issue with my thyroid) but everything came back clean, and we basically exhausted the idea that there's anything wrong with me.

I've also tried active/passive cooling, but the issue is that my body either adjusts and warms the material up, or it just doesn't seem to make a difference i.e. Air conditioning, so I'm guessing the solution is finding a way to lower my body temperature from the source i.e. internally.

It's not that I can't sleep, in the sense that I'm anxious or have too many thoughts running through my head. Once I do fall asleep, I sleep fine. It's that my body temperature is so elevated, that it interferes with my ability to fall sleep.

I would say that I'm a healthy guy. I exercise daily (around lunch time, so not late). I don't drink caffeine, smoke etc. I go to bed at 9pm everyday. I practice mindfulness etc. I feel like I have everything in my life under control, except my body temperature at night.

The only thing that's (kind of) helped was taking the supplement Glycine. Except it seems to be inconsistent, and I'm not exactly sure how it works. I don't think it necessarily lowers my body temperature, so much that it doesn't bother me as much? It's hard to explain.

Also, my body temperature is large in my shoulders/neck, although extends to my back. I assume this is related to the amount of muscle in this area.

9 comments

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phatskat
So, full disclosure: this is something I’m familiar with from an ad on one of my favorite podcasts. I have not investigated this product or its claims. There’s a product called the Pod Cover by 8 Sleep, and allegedly it helps regulate your body temperature in a “smart” way. I will be looking into it for my partner, as she tends run very hot in bed even with the AC cranked up. I prefer sleeping cool, but I don’t have any issues with that personally with sufficient AC.
dottjt
Yeah I've looked into it, but it's several thousand dollars. Not sure I could justify dropping that much money for the time being.
dougmwne
Do you actually run a fever at night? How many degrees? Have you talked with a doctor about a sleep study?

There’s also this product if it’s just a matter of having the bed feel cooler: https://bedjet.com/

dottjt
Not a fever. Like I say, it just affects falling asleep. Once I do fall asleep (or when it's later in the night) my body temperature isn't an issue at all.
Quinzel
Have you tried having a cool (not cold) shower before bed? If you haven’t, it may be worth a try.

Also though, the way you describe it being in your shoulders/neck and extending to your back makes me wonder if it might be related to bad posture causing tension in that area? It’s just a thought I had - it may be way off topic, but it sounds like you’ve exhausted other explanations.

dottjt
Yep, like I say I've tried all kinds of active cooling measures, but inevitably my body just comes back to heat.

I think I pay attention to my posture. I have a standing desk I remind myself to stand up straight.

I'm thinking maybe the issue is that my muscles around with shoulders/neck are complex, in that when I do weights I think they're often impacted, so maybe what I need is a masseuse.

darkclouds
I personally can only ever work out in the morning, anything later keeps me awake, like you describe.

Iron based Reactive Oxygen Species (FeROS) generates the most amount of heat in the body.

Beta Alanine helps creates Super Oxide Dismutase (SOD) typically couple with a metal like Cu, Zn, Mn, Ni, Fe. Iron and Manganese share many pathways, and its thought MnSOD minimises the effect of FeROS.

Leucine in gram amounts can stimulate alot of protein synthesis which means you could just hang out in shorts and t-shirt during the middle of winter and not feel the cold.

You know your diet, so I would look there first, perhaps cut back on calories and workout first thing in the morning.

JMO

dottjt
Thank you, this is very helpful.

I wouldn't say it keeps me awake. Like I say, it's just the body heat that's the issue, once I do fall asleep, I stay asleep. And later in the night, my body isn't hot, either.

My issue with working out in the morning is that I feel exhausted and I'm unable to really be focused for the rest of the day. Another issue I have, which I don't know is common or is actually a problem, is that after around 12pm I kind of crash mentally and from an energy perspective.

In terms of supplements, are you suggesting that I play around with Beta Alanine and Leucine? I do already have Beta Alanine on hand and would usually take it pre-workout, but haven't in a while.

darkclouds
So I've been messing with beta alanine (BA) and it causes a mild form of pruritus' no where near as extreme as nicotinic acid on an empty stomach.

I've been messing with manganese chloride recently and this dampens down the pruritus experience. But up until this morning I was under the impression from some studies that BA increases SOD. Today however I found some studies which claim it increases something called TAC and glutathione and not SOD.

So back to looking into SOD in more detail and this seems to be a metalloenzyme, which seem to start with zinc and one of 4 amino acids, cysteine, histidine, aspartic acid and glutamic acid.

This is the problem with studies from different parts of the world, they make assertions which might be inaccurate because of when the scientist(s) was/were taught, and what that country/uni was teaching at the time or last "updated".

There are so many theories in biology, its hard to know what to believe, and thats before I get into the false assertations made using links to other studies, where I've actually clicked the link to check the assertation and the study has made no such assertion, if not the opposite!

Maybe if you could identify the cause of the crash that might give you a clue. I've always found turning the AC on to chill the room would wake me up, thats the adrenaline kicking in from the cold.

Its difficult to say for some things like this. Maybe start with a zinc supplement and see what cravings arise from there. Stepping up the zinc after a week 5 or 10mg and go from there. If you get no cravings, try supplementing with cysteine, histidine or aspartic acid and see what happens.

Thats all I do, and then see what studies exist to support my experiences.