Question
Hi, I'm looking for help. I find it very difficult to sleep all year but especially in summer because my feet get unbearably warm. The rest of my body is usually ok it's just my feet. I always sleep with my feet outside the covers and sometimes even use a cold water bottle but I still lie awake and agitated for a lot of the night. This has been going on for several years. I've asked my doctor about this and all she suggested was a mild sleeping tablet to get me to sleep, but is there anything that would actually help the cause of the lack of sleep?  

Answer
Hello Leigh

Anytime a part of your body is warm, especially when you lie down, that means THAT part of the body is having some trama so the body is rushing blood to it to make repairs.

I would bet that your feet are having poor blood circulation. When you walk on them, your feet tissue is squashed, so blood has a problem getting thru. Lie down, the blood vessels are open larger, so the blood rushes in to do the things it would normally do all day.

You need to get your feet moving more. This means aerobics and stretching. Weightlifting too!

Stand in your kitchen, at the counter top. Put your hands on the top of the counter top for balance. Squat down slowly, go up slowly. Do 10 times.

Stand up, step back a bit, put your hands on the edge of your counter top. Put one knee forward a bit, the other foot back a bit, firmly on the floor. Push forward with your foot set back, push back from the counter top with your hands. FEEL the back of your calf stretch. Do 10 times back and forth. Then switch feet. Do these two exercises every day.

Go to a store like Home Depot and buy three things; a concrete construction block. Two 5-gallon pails with lids.

Put some water in each pail, put the lids back on.
Pick up the pails, bend your knees a bit, bend your elbows a bit, bend over a bit. Now HOLD the pails for 60 seconds. This will tighten up the muscles in your body and make you stronger. Including the onces in your ankles and feet. Do this every OTHER day. Once a week, add a little more water to the pails.

Set the concrete block by your bed. Wearing shoes, step up and down on the concrete block, 5-15 minutes, before you go to bed, and 5-15 minutes when you wake up. This will get the circulation going so your feet will be a LOT better!

And these exercises will make you fall asleep faster, sleep longer.

PS When you lie down, stretch your legs by bending the top of your feet down, then up. Tighten up your entire body by tightening up your stomach, then your shoulders. Do these things three times each. Your body will then be more relaxed, so the blood will flow better and you will feel much better.

Finally, give it time and patience. It will take a couple of weeks to see a change, but the change will come.

Have a great day!