Last night I looked up from my laptop and it was 11pm.
I'd fallen down a genealogy rabbit hole with a family member — chasing a particular puzzle in our family history — and completely lost track of time. Before I knew it, I was jumping into bed way too late, knowing full well I'd be writing this newsletter feeling tired and a little foggy this morning.
And honestly? This hasn't been a one-off week. We've had a family bereavement, some travel, a few work deadlines stacking up. Life happened. And the result? My sleep has quietly slipped — not dramatically, just enough to notice that slight heaviness, a little less motivation to exercise, and definitely more reaching for sweet snacks than usual.
Sound familiar?
Even as a Lifestyle Medicine doctor, I'm not immune to this pattern. We all know what we should be doing. The real skill is knowing how to get back on track when life derails us — without the guilt spiral on top.
Why Sleep Quantity Is Non-Negotiable
I was reading a post by a sleep physician last week that really stuck with me: in our current lives, it's often not sleep quality that's the primary problem — it's sleep quantity. We're simply not getting enough hours.
The research on this is striking. Studies involving millions of participants consistently show that sleeping less than 6-7 hours per night significantly increases the risk of central obesity, elevated blood glucose, high blood pressure, and metabolic syndrome. Seven to eight hours per night is where metabolic health looks its best. And it's not just your waistline — chronic sleep restriction below 7 hours causes attention lapses, slowed working memory, and reduced cognitive sharpness that accumulates across days. Even your immune system takes a hit, with measurably lower natural killer cell activity (cells that destroy virus-infected and tumour cells) in people who regularly under-sleep.
For women in perimenopause, when our metabolic and cognitive resilience is already being tested by hormonal changes, consistently short sleep is quietly adding fuel to the fire.
The important point? No amount of tweaking sleep hygiene, adjusting your HRT, or optimising your evening routine will fix tired if you're simply not in bed long enough. You can't supplement or hormone-patch your way out of a sleep quantity deficit.
One Thing. This Week.
At Life Reno Medic, we don't try to fix everything at once. We ask: what's the most important thing right now, and what's one step we can take?
For me this week, it's simple — I'm setting a firm bedtime and protecting it. The strategy I've found most reliable is setting a wind-down alarm one hour before bed. During that hour: prep for tomorrow (clothes out, diary checked, anything nagging cleared off the mental list), then close the laptop and do something genuinely quiet. Read a book. Have a herbal tea. Let the admin brain settle before sleep.
It sounds almost too simple. But it works.
Your challenge this week: ask yourself honestly — is it quantity or quality that's your main issue right now? Then pick just one thing to tackle. One change, consistently applied, beats ten strategies half-attempted every time.
You've got this.
Stay happy and healthy,
Erika
Dr Erika Life Reno Medic — helping professional women thrive through perimenopause and beyond
Sleep is one of the foundational pillars of the Reclaim programme — and enrolments are now open. If you're ready to stop managing symptoms one at a time and start feeling like yourself again, I'd love to have you join us in April:
Ready to take the next step in your menopause journey? 📅 Book a consultation 🌐 liferenomedic.com
