Living with the effects of hormone therapy
Hormonal treatments for prostate cancer can lower the levels of sex hormones in the body. Sex hormones are oestrogen and progesterone in women and testosterone in men.
Low levels of sex hormones can cause hot flushes or anxiety, making sleep difficult. Coping with other symptoms can feel harder if you are not sleeping well.
Everyone needs different amounts of sleep. On average, adults need around 7 to 9 hours of sleep a night.
Insomnia is when you have difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep at night.
An occasional night without sleep will make you tired the following day. It won't affect your health, but it can make concentrating and decision making more difficult. Coping with other symptoms may feel harder if you are not sleeping well.
Understanding why you are finding it difficult to sleep will help you to find possible solutions.
difficulty falling asleep
difficulty staying asleep
waking up often or too early in the morning
feeling tired when you wake up (poor quality sleep)
Go to bed and get up at the same time each day and reduce naps.
Do some light exercise each day to tire yourself.
Make sure the room is not too hot or too cold.
Relax before bedtime, by taking a bath or listening to music.
Avoid alcohol, caffeine and smoking for about 6 hours before going to bed.
Don't go to bed hungry. Sometimes a light snack before going to bed can help.
Reduce screen time on mobile phones, tablets and TV at least 2 hours before going to bed.
Calming apps such as 'Calm' or 'Sleepio' may help before sleeping.
Meditate, practice mindfulness or try deep breathing at bedtime.
Minimise noise and light in the bedroom.
Try putting a few drops of lavender oil on your pillow or use a lavender cushion.
Talk to your GP, specialist doctor or nurse if you have tried these tips and they haven’t helped.
You might have difficulty sleeping because of other symptoms caused by the cancer or treatment. For example, your sleep might be affected because you need to go to the toilet more often during the night. Or by experiencing hot flushes. Let your doctor know. They might be able to prescribe medicine or offer you advice.
Read more about living with problems caused by prostate cancer and its treatment
There are treatments and therapies that might help improve your sleep.
Relaxation techniques such as mindfulness, meditation and breathing exercises can help. They can help you feel calmer and cope with worries and anxieties. This in turn could help you to relax and sleep.
You can read about meditation in our complementary therapies section.
Read about meditation and cancer
Your doctor might suggest taking tablets to help you sleep. You usually only take these for a short amount of time. This is because sleeping tablets can have side effects.
Some people are not keen on taking sleeping tablets. But a short course may help you to get back into a healthy sleeping pattern again.
There are many types of medication available. They include:
benzodiazepines such as lorazepam or temazepam
non benzodiazepine hypnotics such as zopiclone or zaleplon
melatonin (if you are over 55)
Find out more about sleeping tablets
Many people want to try alternative therapies including acupuncture and aromatherapy. There is limited evidence about how well they work.
Find out more about complementary and alternative therapies
Counselling can help if your thoughts and emotions are affecting your sleep. There are different types of counselling including cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). This type of counselling helps you change how you respond to situations or emotions.
Find out more about counselling
Talking to people who have had similar experiences can help. Cancer Chat is our fully moderated forum where you can talk to others affected by cancer, share experiences, and get support. Cancer Chat is free to join and available 24 hours a day.
Last reviewed: 05 Sept 2025
Next review due: 05 Sept 2028
Hormone therapy is a possible treatment for prostate cancer. You might have it with radiotherapy for prostate cancer that hasn't spread to distant body parts.
Hormone therapy for prostate cancer can affect the levels of your hormones. This can cause different side effects including hot flushes, swollen breasts, sleep disturbances and weight changes.
Get practical and emotional support to help you cope with a diagnosis of prostate cancer, and life during and after treatment.
Hormone therapy for prostate cancer can change the levels of sex hormones in your body. This can cause hot flushes.
You may have a choice of treatments such as surgery or radiotherapy. Or your doctor might suggest that they monitor your cancer instead of treatment straight away.
Prostate cancer is cancer that starts in the prostate gland. The prostate gland is found at the base of the bladder and is about the size of a walnut.
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