Questions about carbs, low carbs and the quality of sleep

Hi Everyone,

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I'll try to say this as briefly as possible. I've found that success for me in health and weight loss wise is to do CICO without making any food "off limits." That said, I find that the way I can stay in a calorie deficit and feel good both emotionally and physically is to measure carbs and limit them to one small serving/portion (and here in the US we have major portion distortion) per meal. I'm not striving for keto, nor do I count carb (nothing against keto, it's just not for me)....but functionally, I am on a lower carb diet.

Pros for me for this method are:

1. I've lost 80 pounds
2. I feel I can maintain this lifestyle
3. I physically feel good and emotionally don't feel deprived

Cons (possible--not 100% proven)

1. I have difficulty maintaining sleep. No problems falling asleep---but very common to wake up in
   the 3 am window and not go back to sleep.

2. I get up easily 3 or more times per night to urinate.

*** Also note that as a women who is almost 49, sleep difficulties are common

I just recently went on vacation and gave myself permission to not be restrictive in my diet. Due to having ulcerative colitis, I'm not drawn to fatty foods, but I do like my starch and ate more breads, crackers, rice and potatoes that usual. Here's the thing. I slept like a dream. No getting up to use the bathroom. No waking at 1, 3 and 5 and having trouble sleeping. My head hit the pillow and I slept for a solid 8 hours and it felt amazing! Initially, I thought it was just the benefits from vacation...being relaxed etc. Here's the thing..............about 4 days in on the vacation I didn't like how I was feeling physically from eating more (being bloated, eating too much processed food) and I chose to eat cleaner again (i.e. more veggies, less processed food and managing portions of carbs). When I switched back to cleaner eating....I felt better during the day (more energetic, not bloated)................but the good sleep went away). Eating cleaner resulted in having to pee 3 times a night and being awake waking up and not being able to sleep for 2-3 hours at 3 am.

I guess what I'm asking is this. Do carbs help you sleep...specifically maintain sleep? Do you pee less when eating carbs? How do you find the balance between sustaining good sleep (as that can and does sabotage my eating) and eating healthy? Has anyone experienced this before and if so what helped?

*** Please note that I do many things to promote good sleep i.e. no caffeine, normal sleep routine, no screen time before bead, dark bedroom, lower temp, no tv in bedroom etc.

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Thanks!

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