Believe Big Podcast

47-Jacqueline Genova - Tips for Improving Your Sleep Quality

• Ivelisse Page with Jacqueline Genova • Season 1 • Episode 47

Share episode

We all need a good night sleep every night and a solid circadian rhythm.  But how do we optimize our sleep, especially if one happens to be a cancer patient?

Sleep disturbances for a cancer patient (and even the average person sometimes) can be numerous, including:

  • racing thoughts
  • emotional trauma
  • anxiety, maybe even depression
  • side-effects of medication
  • physical stress
  • even bad technology habits and EMF waves

Join me today as I chat with Jacqueline Genova of Well N Strong.  Jacqueline will talk about the various sleep disturbances that affect people and she'll share tips and resources to help improve sleep quality and sleep habits.  Today's episode holds helpful information for cancer patients, caregivers or anyone looking to improve their quality of sleep for better health!

Connect with Jacqueline at Well N Strong:
https://wellnstrong.com/

Suggested Resource Links:


Your donations power our podcast's mission to support cancer patients with hope, insights, and resources. Every contribution fuels our ability to uplift and empower. Join us in making a lasting impact. Donate now! 🌟

Ivelisse Page:

Hi, I'm Ivelisse Page and thanks for listening to the Believe Big podcast, the show where we take a deep dive into your healing with health experts, integrative practitioners, biblical faith leaders, and cancer thrivers from around the globe. Welcome to today's episode on the Believe Big podcast. My name is Ivelisse Page and it's an honor to spend this time with you. On today's episode, we are going to be talking with Jacqueline Genova from Well N Strong about one of the most important, and yet overlooked aspects of our health, sleep. A good night's rest can have a profound impact on our physical and mental wellbeing. Jacqueline is a certified holistic nutritionist and wellness writer who is passionate about healing through integrative medicine. She resorted to holistic healing approaches to resolve some of her own health problems and to help her mom battle cancer. She is a graduate of Babson College where she researched and wrote a thesis that advocated integrative medicine as an alternative to conventional cancer treatment. She developed a passion to share what she learned with others that led to her founding of Well N Strong. She believes in a holistic approach to wellness that addresses the root causes of illness and not the suppression of symptoms. Welcome, Jacqueline to the show.

Jacqueline Genova:

Ivelisse, thank you so much. I am so excited to be here and chat with you. I know we had first connected, I wanna say, back in October through the Healing Strong Podcast, but thank you so much for inviting me. I am a huge fan of yours, of Believe Big and of this podcast, so looking forward to chatting.

Ivelisse Page:

we're so grateful for you. I know as an incredible writer and what you do at Well N Strong, I know you have many wonderful health tips, and so can you share your favorite with us?

Jacqueline Genova:

Absolutely. This is my favorite question. I look forward to all of your interviewee's answers whenever I hear your new episodes each week. But I would say mine is do not underestimate the power of your mind or the words you speak. So, we're living in this time right now where we are just tapping into the incredible science of the power of our thoughts in influencing our very own biology. There's been studies that have shown our thoughts are able to change not only our brain, but also our cells, and even our gene expression, which is incredibly fascinating. And one thing I really love about this is the more I read studies like these, the more I'm able to draw connections and see the real life applications of what scripture has already said about this that life and death are in the power of the tongue. So with that, I would just say to focus on speaking good things over yourself, over your healing journey. I personally am a huge fan of biblical affirmations. I'm always on my mom to say them every morning, but just speaking the Word over yourself because there's truly so much power in that.

Ivelisse Page:

Yes, a hundred percent. And it says that His Word is active. So it's not something that was written so long ago and it doesn't apply to today. You can read the same verse and it can have a different meaning to you because God's spirit will speak to you. And tell you what you need to hear that day. And so I love that tip. And that's one thing that I did every day during my cancer journey, and I know it played a huge role in allowing my body to be in rest and repair mode versus that fight and flight, because of fear. So thank you for sharing that tip. So what are some common sleep challenges faced by cancer patients that you have heard of?

Jacqueline Genova:

That's a great question, Ivelisse, so studies have shown that nearly half of all cancer patients have sleep related problems during treatment. I think there's a twofold answer to that. First you have the mental, emotional side where we can probably assume there's a good chance that the cancer patient may be experiencing increase of feelings of anxiety or depression that will be related to their diagnosis. Racing thoughts, emotional trauma, those can all be major barriers to a good night's rest. And then secondly, there's the physical aspect, right? Where a patient may be experiencing disrupted sleep due to the side effects of treatments, certainly medications they may be taking. Physical stress obviously is a huge one. and other factors.

Ivelisse Page:

Yeah, so what have you found in your research when you do your writings as far as some things that can help patients who are struggling with sleep?

Jacqueline Genova:

We could have a whole separate episode on this. Hugely passionate about this topic, and it's funny, the irony is, last night I didn't actually get the best night of sleep, but probably around two o'clock I was like, all right, I'm chatting with Ivelisse tomorrow. I have all these tips. What can I start to implement now? And what I did helped, so I'm speaking firsthand experience here but I'd say my most important one for sleep hygiene is to get exposure to sunlight first thing in the morning. So right when you get up, and that is because our circadian rhythms are tied to darkness and light. The problem is that most people are out of sync. So one way to get back on track is to spend 10 to 20 minutes in bright sunlight again, first thing when you wake up in the morning. At a high level, that bright light tells the body to suppress melatonin production and increase cortisol production, which is the hormone that helps us get up. In addition to also increasing our serotonin, and we won't get too granular, but eventually the pineal gland metabolizes serotonin into melatonin, and that's what helps us naturally fall asleep at night. My second tip is to avoid artificial blue light and bright lights in the evening. I'm sure you're very familiar with this. We all struggle with it, myself included. I think that's why I had a bit of a difficulty falling asleep last night. But it's really critical if you want to optimize your sleep cycle. They've done studies on this that have shown very clearly that you know when you expose your eyes to light at night not only is there a delay in melatonin onset, but there's less melatonin secreted during the night and there is more sleep inertia the next morning. So sleep inertia is what I experienced this morning where your alarm clock goes off, time to get up and you're like, okay, I don't wanna get up. So scrolling through your phone, being on that computer, those are some of the worst things to do right before bed but recognizing that most people will still probably do this, I think to help mitigate artificial light, you can use blue light blocking glasses. Those have been very helpful for me. I think I recall you chatting about, I forget which company that had the different light bulbs as well that people use before bed, like the amber lights, the red lights. They've also been shown to promote good sleep. But ideally if you could just shut off the screens an hour before bed, I think that's people's best bets. And in that same vein, turn off WIFI at night.

Ivelisse Page:

How does one do that? I know, like for me, I have Xfinity and I can go on that app and turn it off but some people have a, shut off, like a switch at their modem. What are some ways for people who aren't familiar or know that they can actually turn off their WIFI, have you found simple ways that they could do that?

Jacqueline Genova:

That's a great question. I was actually trying to figure out how to set a timer with my own company, but unfortunately, because I live in an apartment that's limited with what they can do. So I basically just unplug my WIFI, every night right before I go to sleep. And certainly some people listening might be saying, what does WIFI have to do with my sleep? But it has a massive impact, as studies have shown that EMF exposure has very negative effects on our bodies when it comes to DNA repair. And because most of our DNA repair occurs while we sleep, shut off all sources. So, I mean, if you could set up a timer with your provider to just cut everything off at 10:00, 10:30, whenever you go to sleep, that's definitely most ideal. Certainly some people also rely on their phones for their alarms, like myself. So making sure your phone is on airplane mode before you go to sleep is helpful. I'm also a huge fan of radiation protecting technology like Safe Sleeve. I have a Safe Sleeve phone protector.

Ivelisse Page:

And I've heard someone, one of our doctors said that they actually, you know the timers use it Christmas time for your lights that you can use in your home? They connected their modem to that. They plug it right into there and then they set the time so it's shut off. And that way you don't have to go manually turn it on and off each time.

Jacqueline Genova:

It's funny you mentioned that I actually have one for my porch lights and I had tried to apply it to my WIFI, but again, nature of living in an apartment. But that's definitely another great alternative.

Ivelisse Page:

That's great. And then you also mentioned about light. What about for people who are not in like sunny Florida or California or Arizona, when it's cloudy. Believe Big home office is in Baltimore and it's cloudy this time of year. So what kind of light or what are some other options that you can do to get that sunlight in the morning that you need?

Jacqueline Genova:

I have quite a few friends in Seattle, Washington where every day is raining. I will say though that Red light is huge. There's also a light Amazon sells. I can't recall the name. I think it's like mood light or sad sad light for people with Seasonal Effective Disorder. So folks can use those when you wake up again, stand in front of that red light. I have a one from Mito that I really like 10 to 15 minutes every day, first thing in the morning. I also think it's important to recognize that you don't necessarily need to have sunlight to get that exposure that you need. So just again, being outside, there are so many different factors of light exposure that just penetrate ourselves outside of even just looking at the sun. And again, there's a whole other scientific explanation for that. But being outside, whether or not, it's very sunny that day or cloudy can, can still serve its purpose in terms of helping to optimize your circadian rhythm.

Ivelisse Page:

Yeah, I agree. We just recently got a puppy and he gets us up at 5 45 every morning, and that's my one plus, when I go outside and have my coat on or my shawl on and I just face the sun and it's a reminder, one, face the sun, God, and just say, Lord, thank you for today, even though I'm tired of taking this puppy out right now.

Jacqueline Genova:

Absolutely.

Ivelisse Page:

I am grateful for a new day. And then you're right, that light just really helps to wake you up. I also have the Mito, red light therapy light and love, love theirs. I used to have a Joovv light. That was great. But, we're gonna actually do a podcast on red light therapy cuz it has so many benefits. So I heard, and this is a another topic that we're gonna be discussing in the future, but I heard that alcohol, even one glass a day plays a large negative role in the quality of sleep. What have you discovered about that?

Jacqueline Genova:

Yeah, it's funny, I listened to a podcast yesterday on this and they basically said there is no safe level of alcohol when it comes to getting a good night's sleep. So I know there's been conflicting research on red wine, for example, can have some positive health effects with the antioxidants and polyphenols and, that's all well and good, but again, when it comes to sleeping and optimizing your sleep cycle, no alcohol is the best alcohol and I firmly stand by that. Certainly, for people who do choose to imbibe I think make sure that your last drink is at least three to four hours before you put your head on the pillow. I think that's definitely a good practice. But overall, I would say avoidance is the best.

Ivelisse Page:

Yeah. Dr. Amen. out in California has done a lot of research on it, and he's a brain specialist. And you see the MRIs of someone who has been drinking and then stopped drinking, and then someone who's never drank. And it is amazing, the health of the brain and how it's impacted by alcohol, let alone in the United States, it's so filled with chemicals and pesticides from the grapes and the wine how it's produced. So outside of the toxins that could be in it, you know the negative effects on our brain and our sleep should be something that everyone should consider. Can sleep disturbances affect cancer treatment outcomes?

Jacqueline Genova:

Absolutely. And the simple answer to that is that, sleep is one of the most powerful regulators of our immune system. I recall reading one study that took a group of healthy adults, limited them to four hours of sleep for one night, and found that their natural killer cell activity dropped by 70%. And that is very scary. For those of you who are listening who aren't familiar with natural killer cells, they play a pivotal function in cancer immune surveillance. So you could think of these cells, as the body's first line of defense in being able to recognize and eradicate malignant cells. Certainly with any type of cancer treatment, you want your immune system to be in tip top shape, especially if you're pursuing the conventional route, which comes with you know, severe side effects of immunosuppression. So really wanna be prioritizing high quality sleep. Research shows that the immune system needs actually nine and a half hours of sleep in total darkness to recharge completely.

Ivelisse Page:

Wow.

Jacqueline Genova:

That is well above what most folks, cancer and non-cancer patients are getting each night. So something to think about.

Ivelisse Page:

Wow, that's incredible. You hear that about teenagers too. They say, oh, at least we get seven to eight hours of sleep. Yep. But they need so much more, and that's amazing, we do as well. I interrupted your tips on what are some other hygiene tools that people can use to improve their quality of sleep? And you mentioned light and then turning off your WIFI. Did you have any others you wanted to share before I moved on?

Jacqueline Genova:

Sure. In terms of actual like natural remedies, so things like supplements and herbs, I am all about that. I think one very important supplement that people should consider including is magnesium. Studies have shown that magnesium helps with sleep because it calms the mind by supporting the production of a neurotransmitter called GABA. You can certainly increase your magnesium through nutrition, so focus on eating things like green, leafy vegetables, nuts and seeds, pure dark chocolate and avocados are my two favorite magnesium rich food sources. I have those every single day, as does my mom. You can also opt for magnesium supplements, so in general, magnesium glycinate and magnesium citrate are best absorbed by the body. I know there's so many different forms out there, so those are probably the most common ones taken for sleep. But certainly with that, always check with your doctor before introducing any new supplements. I know cancer patients are on quite a few of those already. Magnesium and then aromatherapy. I am a huge fan of essential oils, Ivelisse. I probably have about 10 right now, just sitting on my desk that I use almost on a daily basis, but they're wonderful.

Ivelisse Page:

Yeah, I agree. There's so many benefits to them. And the magnesium, I hear that most Americans are deficient in it, and we don't even realize that. I'm one that takes magnesium every night before bed. And that has really helped not only my sleep, but also my hormone levels. As I'm entering in that age where, you know, balancing all those wonderful hormones, so that was a huge role.

Jacqueline Genova:

Yeah. And one thing too I love, and that's the beauty with natural medicine, is a lot of these, quote unquote, like treatments or prescriptions, not necessarily prescriptions, but remedies rather have twofold purposes, so they boost your immune system. But also for a cancer patient, they have anti-cancer effects. And again, examples of those are even essential oils. So they promote solid sleep, but they've also been shown to have anti-cancer properties, in terms of like helping the immune system identify cancer cells in the body. Frankincense and geranium have actually been shown to stop or suppress tumor progression, which is fascinating, and turmeric as well. So again, those are some that I, I include in my mom's treatment protocol. And melatonin is another example of something that has the twofold purpose. Obviously you've heard of the connection with melatonin and cancer. So there's patients that take up to 20 milligrams a night of melatonin just again to help prevent metastasis and helps to promote good sleep. So a lot of great benefits.

Ivelisse Page:

Yes. And I'm one of those, and even though I'm 14 years out from my cancer, when I've been working with my integrative practitioner, that's one of the things that she also mentioned for balancing my hormones and making sure I'm sleeping well. And at first I was like, wow, 20 milligrams! But under a medical guidance, I always just say, check with your practitioner. Just because I share something or Jacqueline shares something. Always check with your practitioners to make sure that it's best for you as an individual, as they can look at your blood work and see exactly the amount you need and what's best for you. But I'm glad that you mentioned that as well for sleep.

Jacqueline Genova:

Do you use homeopathy? Cause I recall in one episode you chatting about it. I am a huge fan. I actually was introduced to it about a little less than a year ago, and it's become a new passion of mine.

Ivelisse Page:

Yes, I've been using homeopathic remedies since my kids were babies. My oldest now is almost 30 years old, and I was introduced to it when I was pregnant with him. And it is amazing all the things that homeopathic remedies do. I love the products from Uriel Pharmacy. That's where I get all of mine. And I use a lot of their body oils. And of course, so many other aspects of my cancer journey, was used with homeopathic remedies as well. Really an important role. It can also help with sleep and so many other things too, yes, definitely a big win on that side.

Jacqueline Genova:

Coffea cruda, Ignatia are my two favorites.

Ivelisse Page:

Which one? Same'em again.

Jacqueline Genova:

Coffea cruda, I think that's how you pronounce it in like a 60 potency and then ignatia to help with anxiety. I also love Uriel and Boron and Helios are my top three sources for homeopathy.

Ivelisse Page:

Yes. And what's so great about it is you could take the whole bottle and it wouldn't harm you. You can find'em in, grocery stores like Sprouts or Wegmans, wherever you are in pharmacies now, they have the little blue vials. If anyone's interested, we'll put in the link to our homeopathic episode that I did with Mark McKibben a few weeks back.

Jacqueline Genova:

When I have friends come over, I have a whole cabinet just dedicated to all of my remedies. It's like a mini pharmacy, and they're like, what is this? But it takes a while to explain. And then once I do, they become interested. But for those who haven't heard or checked it out, I highly recommend exploring it. It's an incredible field.

Ivelisse Page:

Yeah. Wonderful. So you mentioned earlier, as part of your best health tip, and it's a side that I think a lot of people don't really focus in on. So whether it's cancer or whether it's a sleep disturbance because of your cancer or even a healthy person struggling with sleep, we always focus in many times on the physical side, which is a factor of course. Your external environment and what you're eating, what you're drinking, we know that plays a role, but one aspect that really isn't mentioned a lot is the role that mental health plays in sleep disturbances for patients. What can you share about that?

Jacqueline Genova:

Absolutely. Mental health is huge. Obviously we've seen this just from the past three years with COVID, but I think the irony with this question is that sleep problems themselves can contribute to the onset or worsening of different mental health problems. It's a vicious cycle, if not addressed properly. So it's definitely critical for cancer patients to address their emotional health just as much as their physical health. One of my favorite therapies is the EFT technique. I'm sure you're familiar with this, but for the folks who are listening who are not, it stands for the emotional freedom technique. And it's essentially just the practice of tapping on different accu pressure points to help manage your emotions and troubling thoughts. So I found that to be helpful. I share that with folks. It's a very simple practice. You could put it into your bedtime routine, but just again, focusing on things that calm your mind. I'm a huge fan of Epsom salt baths, reading, journaling before bed, getting your body into that parasympathetic state. Very simple practices and you will feel the difference within at least a week or so. It's just a matter of being consistent.

Ivelisse Page:

Yeah. And even as you're saying journaling, it, makes me think of gratitude and how important it is to speak out loud those things that we're grateful for. Even in a cancer diagnosis, right before bed just say, I am grateful for today. I'm grateful that you brought an amazing practitioners into my life. Just thinking of all the things that you're grateful for is such another great aid, in that mental health aspect. And the studies that have been done on that are tremendous in not only your health, but also in your ability to sleep. So I love that you shared. How can family, friends, and medical professionals help support patients who are having issues with sleep?

Jacqueline Genova:

Having a solid support group is critical not only managing sleep, but just the cancer journey as a whole. And I think support groups can provide resources to cope with the stress and the challenges that patients often experience. With regards to sleep specifically, I think just the comfort of knowing you have a support group that is looking out for you, that is praying for you, and truly walking with you can definitely help to ease anxiety before bed. There is an organization, and I know you interviewed her, Susie, called Healing Strong, highly recommend. It's essentially just a bunch of support groups, faith-based support groups for cancer patients, cancer thrivers actually, that enable people to, to connect with each other. And there's some incredible spillover effects, again, that can improve sleep quality from that emotional aspect, just in knowing that you're not walking alone, there are other people with you. So highly encourage people to check out Healing Strong as well.

Ivelisse Page:

Yeah, they're an amazing organization and yes, we will put a link to them as well if someone would like to check out that kind of a support. That's one of the things that really surprised me in my journey was when I'd walk in for my appointments. I had a really huge, strong support system with my church, with my neighbors, with my family, but I was shocked to see that not everyone has that support, and it broke my heart to see people sitting there alone and feeling alone. And that's one of the things that we always try and do at Believe Big is to let people know that we are there for them physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, that they don't have to walk this cancer journey alone. And all those who are listening can be that support to someone else. And we really love the partnership with Healing Strong and letting people know all over the country that you can gather together and be encouraged. So it's a great organization for sure.

Jacqueline Genova:

You just touched on a great point. The beauty too, in recognizing that is healing is not just physical, right? It's focusing on spiritual and emotional healing as well. And just like you said, that's one thing I love about Believe Big and Healing Strong as well, is that it combines all of those and again, so very powerful.

Ivelisse Page:

What resources are available for patients seeking help with sleep problems?

Jacqueline Genova:

Sure. There's this blog called Well N Strong, that's my plug.

Ivelisse Page:

Yes.

Jacqueline Genova:

There is some great content on tips to optimize your sleep cycle. I know we touched on a few briefly, but for your audience, definitely give that a look. My site is wellnstrong.com I've written a few articles. I have some other integrative experts write content on sleep related items. I create a lot of content on my Instagram and other social channels, which are all linked on my website. I also do strongly encourage cancer patients to find a naturopathic oncologist with whom they could partner, so NDs can work with them in prescribing some of the supplements we had discussed, be it melatonin, herbs like Valerian root, or even in some cases, homeopathy, all of which can be very effective. Patients can search for naturopathic oncologists ONCANP, which stands for the Oncology Association of Naturopathic Physicians. And the beauty is that almost everything can be done via Zoom. My mom works with an incredible naturopathic oncologist who's based out of Boulder, so not too far from you. And it's been wonderful. So an another great resource to check out.

Ivelisse Page:

Yes, and also on our website, believebig.org, if you click on resources, they'll say find an integrative practitioner. And we list, of course, those who also specialize in mistletoe therapy, but we have MDs and NDs, DOs and nurse practitioners that are a part of that list. So that's another resource for individuals who need help with that. Jacqueline, is there anything that you would like to add about sleep that we didn't touch on that you think would be helpful for those who are listening?

Jacqueline Genova:

I would just say, and I touched on this before, but having a solid routine is very powerful. So even if again, it's just writing five things down before you go to sleep that you're grateful for, meditating on a scripture verse, oftentimes the thoughts you have before bed will truly also dictate the quality of your sleep. So focus on good things, good thoughts. Stick to a routine, know that you're not alone and take everything a day at a time.

Ivelisse Page:

That's great advice. So thank you so much for joining us today on the podcast and all that you do for individuals to have a better life and to thrive. So we really appreciate you.

Jacqueline Genova:

Thank you, Ivelisse. I appreciate it.

Ivelisse Page:

If you enjoyed this episode and you'd like to help support our podcast, please subscribe and share it with others. Be sure to visit believebig.org to access the show notes and discover our bonus content. Thanks again and keep Believing Big!