As you move through the different stages of your life, many things change, including your sleep. There are many reasons your sleep can be affected, whether it’s due to ageing, your environment or for women, your menstrual cycle.
Every month, women will experience changes in their hormone levels and sleep, due to the different phases of their cycle. Despite this, it turns out that women tend to sleep better than men, according to a recent data study conducted by the experts at Oura.
Oura has become well known for its best smart rings that track, monitor and report on your health, wellness, fitness and sleep. Oura’s products, including its Oura Ring Gen 3 can double up as the best sleep trackers, and it’s this information that Oura has created a report from.
Oura measured the sleep habits of 45,000 UK-based Oura users between July 2023 and April 2024 to find out how well its users sleep and what can be improved upon. To find out more, I spoke to Oura experts who explained the differences between men and women’s sleep patterns, and how women can sleep better during their period.
How sleep changes during a woman's cycle
In general, sleep patterns between men and women differ because of various biological and lifestyle factors. After studying its members’ data, Oura found that women sleep 20 minutes longer than men on average, and surpass them in other sleep metrics, like amount of REM sleep.
However, there’s one exception to this, and this is during women’s periods, which can drastically affect their sleep. This is mainly due to the fact that shifts in hormones across women’s menstrual cycles, as hormone levels fluctuate throughout the different phases.
As Oura explains, “During the follicular phase, women tend to sleep well. But after ovulation (during the luteal phase) and during menstruation, women’s sleep often suffers.” The experts looked further and found that menstrual cramps, raised body temperature and sensitivity are key factors that disrupt sleep, and women who experience PMS are twice as likely to experience insomnia.
3 tips to help you sleep better when on your period
Sleeping during your time of the month is uncomfortable to say the least, so the first tip that Oura experts suggest is to make sure your period care products are comfortable. The products you wear should allow you to sleep comfortably, and you shouldn’t have to worry about waking up in the night to change or empty anything.
The next tip is to start winding down about one to two hours before you want to go to sleep. This is one of the key rules for good sleep hygiene, as it allows you to switch off from the day, relax and give your mind and body time to unwind and prepare for sleep.
The final tip from Oura is to avoid drinking water less than two hours before bed. While hydration is key – whether you’re on your period or not – drinking too close to bed can wake you up in the middle of the night to use the toilet which can disrupt your sleep cycle.
About Oura:
Oura is a Finnish health technology company, best known for its collection of smart rings. Its Oura Ring monitors sleep, stress and activity levels, and other health factors, including heart health.