{"id":6604,"date":"2026-08-15T12:53:40","date_gmt":"2026-08-15T12:53:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comfortkeepers.ca\/ottawa\/?p=6604"},"modified":"2026-08-17T12:54:03","modified_gmt":"2026-08-17T12:54:03","slug":"what-causes-insomnia-in-elderly-adults-a-guide-for-ottawa-families","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comfortkeepers.ca\/ottawa\/blog\/what-causes-insomnia-in-elderly-adults-a-guide-for-ottawa-families\/","title":{"rendered":"What Causes Insomnia in Elderly Adults? A Guide for Ottawa Families"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Insomnia<\/p>\n

You call your mother at nine in the morning, and she sounds exhausted. She tells you that she woke up again at 3 a.m. and sat in the kitchen with the lights on. In the afternoon, she falls asleep in her armchair. At ten at night, she\u2019s wide awake again.<\/span><\/p>\n

If this sounds familiar, you\u2019re not imagining a problem. At <\/span>Comfort Keepers\u00ae<\/sup> In-Home Senior Care Ottawa and Kanata<\/span><\/i><\/a>, we\u2019ve noticed that sleep changes as we age, but a parent who can\u2019t fall asleep, can\u2019t stay asleep, or wakes up long before dawn isn\u2019t simply \u201cgetting older.\u201d There\u2019s usually a reason behind it, and most causes of insomnia in older adults are treatable once you know what you\u2019re dealing with.<\/span><\/p>\n

How Many Hours of Sleep Does an Older Adult Really Need?<\/b><\/h2>\n

There is a widespread belief that older adults need much less sleep than younger adults. That is only partly true. Most adults over 65 still need about seven to eight hours a night. What changes is the structure of sleep: older adults spend less time in deep sleep, wake up more frequently during the night, and tend to feel sleepy earlier in the evening. So a parent who goes to bed at 8:30 p.m. and wakes up at 5:00 a.m. may be perfectly healthy. A parent who lies awake for two hours every night, or who wakes up four or five times and cannot get back to sleep, is dealing with a different problem.<\/span><\/p>\n

The extent of the problem is greater than most families realize. Statistics Canada\u2019s Canadian Health Measures Survey found that between 18.6% and 25.8% of Canadians aged 65 and older reported symptoms of nighttime insomnia, and among the adult population as a whole, most Canadians with insomnia symptoms had been living with them for more than a year.<\/span><\/p>\n

This last detail is important. Insomnia in elderly adults rarely announces itself. It settles in quietly and becomes the new normal, often long before anyone in the family thinks to ask about it.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Most Common Causes of Insomnia in Elderly Adults<\/b><\/h2>\n

In most cases there is no single culprit. The causes tend to stack: a sore hip, a diuretic taken at the wrong hour, and a dark February afternoon can add up to a broken night that none of them would have caused alone. These are the ones we see most often in Ottawa homes.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pain and physical discomfort.<\/b><\/h3>\n

Arthritis, back pain, and joint stiffness are among the most common reasons older adults wake up during the night. Pain that is manageable while moving about during the day becomes much louder when the house is quiet.<\/span><\/p>\n

Medications.\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

This is the cause that families most often overlook. Diuretics taken too late in the day, some blood pressure medications, corticosteroids, and certain antidepressants can all disrupt sleep. The same is true for over-the-counter products. If your parent takes several prescriptions, the timing of those doses is worth reviewing with a pharmacist.<\/span><\/p>\n

The need to use the bathroom at night.<\/b><\/h3>\n

Frequent nighttime urination disrupts sleep and, just as importantly, increases the risk of falling in a dark hallway. Many older adults respond by drinking less in the evening, which can lead to dehydration rather than better sleep.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sleep apnea.<\/b><\/h3>\n

Loud snoring, gasping, or long pauses in breathing are not just noisy habits. <\/span>Sleep apnea is common among older adults<\/span><\/a> and often goes undiagnosed, leaving people exhausted no matter how many hours they spend in bed.<\/span><\/p>\n

Anxiety, grief, and low mood.<\/b><\/h3>\n

An older adult who has lost a spouse, stopped driving, or seen their social circle shrink often does their hardest thinking at night. <\/span>Depression in older adults<\/span><\/a> regularly shows up as waking early in the morning rather than as sadness.<\/span><\/p>\n

Too little daylight and too little activity.<\/b><\/a><\/h3>\n

The body\u2019s internal clock depends on light and movement. An Ottawa winter offers only a handful of daylight hours, and for an older adult who rarely leaves the house between December and March, that clock drifts badly. A day spent mostly in a chair sends the body very few signals about when the night is supposed to begin.<\/span><\/p>\n

Caffeine and alcohol.<\/b><\/h3>\n

A glass of wine after dinner may bring on sleep quickly, then cause waking a few hours later. Afternoon coffee or tea lingers longer in an older body than it did decades ago.<\/span><\/p>\n

When Changes in Sleep Are a Warning Sign<\/b><\/h2>\n

Most causes of insomnia in elderly adults are simply a nuisance. Sometimes, however, the change in sleep is a signal that warrants prompt attention:<\/span><\/p>\n