Night pain affects about one in three adults. It’s the number one cause of disturbed sleep and puts a real damper on your after-work activities. Fortunately, there are several ways to suppress night pain, which will help you get those 40 winks you desperately need. While you can easily implement some of these relief methods at home, for others, you should consult your doctor.

1. Revise your medications.

An inadequate pain medication routine can exacerbate night pain. For instance, a British study showed that a combination of two drugs, indomethacin (Indocin®) and diazepam (Valium®), was more effective at controlling night pain and improving morning stiffness for people suffering from rheumatoid arthritis. Double-dosing is another option. Talk to your doctor about these options and possible side effects, such as addiction.

2. Exercise.

Several studies show that exercise takes the edge off pain caused by conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, and lupus. Stretching, strengthening and low-impact aerobic exercises increase pain tolerance, and strengthen and relax muscles and joint tissues to alleviate aches. If you do exercises late in the day to relieve night pain complete them at least three hours before bedtime.

3. Warm up.

According to the American Pain Society (APS), several recent studies indicate that heat can effectively reduce acute low back wrist and neck pain. However, for the best relief of night pain, you should use continuous, low-level, or long-term heat such as a heat wrap, which can be worn during the day, or when you’re exercising or sleeping.

4. Take a melatonin supplement.

Doctors commonly prescribe a melatonin supplement to treat depression, but it’s also a popular natural sleep aid. It improves sleep quality and mental alertness and offsets the long-term and short-term side effects of sleeplessness. Melatonin may also directly relieve some causes of night pain. In recent studies, melatonin has been beneficial in treating cluster headaches and migraines.

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