One of the biggest complaints I hear from my clients is trouble sleeping. Whether its difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep, or both, nightmares, night terrors, bed wetting, not getting restful sleep, or waking up exhausted despite getting adequate sleep.
Sleep is an interesting thing. We spend almost half our lives doing it and yet it is often the first thing we compromise when prioritizing our day. Most folks don’t get enough sleep and sleep isn’t something you can make up later, once it's gone, it's gone. Then there are all the magical things that happen to us when we sleep, including allowing our body to heal more efficiently, processing and healing emotions, and the illustrious dream state. For the sake of this post, I am going to focus on sleep hygiene, how to assess your own, and action-item steps you can take to get better sleep. So why is sleep important?
Did you know just 1 hr of sleep deprivation is enough to increase the risk of heart attacks by 20% - This has been studied on daylight savings time. During the fall, when we fall back and gain an extra hour of sleep - heart attack instances in the united states drop by 20% and in the spring time when we spring forward and lose that illustrious hour, instances of heart attacks INCREASE by 20% that day. Read that again, losing one hour of sleep for 1 night increases heart attacks by 20%. That's one day of getting 1 hour less sleep than normal. Now imagine the effects of chronic under-sleeping. We should be getting 8 hours of sleep every night, and after a week of only sleeping 6 hours a night for 2 weeks research has shown individuals have the same brain function of someone with a blood alcohol level of .1% Think about that for a minute.
Still not convinced? Studies have shown that insufficient sleep is related to an increased risk of heart disease, obesity, and diabetes. Sleep matters!
Okay, so what can you do about it?
1) Create a sleep routine Go to sleep and wake up at the same time every night and day- including weekends. This is one of the most important things that can help transform your sleep quality. Other aspects of a sleep routine might include a nightly ritual of things like drinking calming tea, smelling lavender, reading, journaling, taking a shower or bath, meditating, etc.
2) Sleep in a cool, dark, and quiet place Turn the thermostat down (below 68), pull those curtains (blackout ones are best), and limit noise pollution (white noise machines are great for this)
3) Limit screen time 30 minutes prior to sleep Limiting screen time right before you sleep allows your brain to begin to wind down. When we use our phones, watch tv, etc, our brains are being stimulated with various stimuli, which you guessed it, stimulate our brains. If you need to use a screen before bed, block that blue light with blue light glasses or with filters on your phone. Blue light interferes with your circadian rhythm and increases your alertness, opposite goals when we are trying to get some rest.
4) Your bed is for Sleeping ONLY By using your bed for sleeping only, you teach your body to associate your bed with sleep. Meaning over time as this association develops your ability to fall asleep quickly in bed will. Increase. If you have been lying down for a while and find yourself tossing and turning, After 30 minutes get up and do a quiet/boring activity like reading, coloring, doing the dishes, folding laundry, meditating, etc. - this helps your body to associate lying down in bed to going to sleep. The less you are in bed when you are not sleeping the better.
5) Tire out your body Move your body moving during the day with at least 45 minutes of moderate exercise. Humans were built to move, by physically working our bodies, we can more easily relax at the end of the day. Fueling your body with proper nutrition and hydration are a must too!
6) Listen to your intuition. You know yourself the best. Have a sleep routine that is already working, great! Do what works for you! (As long as you are getting enough sleep)
There are entire books written on sleep, sleep disorders, sleep hygiene, dreams, etc. Some people devote their lives to studying sleep and its effects, I am not one of those people, nor am I a sleep expert. Please consult a medical doctor if you have any concerns regarding your sleep. Remember, take everything you read with a grain of salt, and use the information to make your own decision. At the end of the day you know yourself the best and there is no one size fits all shoes.
Links of all that inspired this post. Enjoy :)
A must read! - Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker, PhD, available on audible too
Matthew Walker on Joe Rogan's podcast - snippet on sleep - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qDCQP67RM8
Joe Rogan + Matthew Walker full episode - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwaWilO_Pig
How Much Sleep Do You Actually Need? - ASAP SCIENCE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVQlcxiQlzI
How to Fall Asleep in 2 Minutes - ASAP SCIENCE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EiYm20F9WXU&t=12s
Sleep is your super power- Matt Walker, Ted Talks Daily https://overcast.fm/+RAljhs?fbclid=IwAR0cV3fTwg0PYEtpYvn0SBVkWOKnKJhgzeL5anQS0DxhDf-sQkyn1R7tlAw
How to Trick your Brain into Falling Asleep - Jim Donovan, Tedx https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5dE25ANU0k&t=1s
Early Birds Versus Night Owls - ASAP Science https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPJ0729NVjw
All in the Mind - Adventures in Sleep podcast https://overcast.fm/+CYGiQJuk
Maslow’s Human Needs - Ted Radio Hour https://overcast.fm/+HuQItkpFI
The Minimalists - How Do I Improve my Sleep? https://overcast.fm/+FwkJ29Q8k
Sleep Duration and All-Cause Mortality: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Prospective Studies- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2864873/
Sleep a good investment in health and safety - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19042703