Written by: Lisa Beth Lent, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Need a nap right about now? Instead of grabbing that afternoon coffee to get through the rest of your day, read this first. If you could use better sleep, this article may reveal some contributing factors that are blocking you from getting it. Making a few crucial adjustments to your lifestyle may be all you need to get some long overdue rest.
When you think of the word, sleep what are the first thoughts that come to mind? How we feel about this important function illuminates our overall disposition to health and well-being! Sleep struggles are common, more than 100 million Americans aren’t getting enough sleep. Sleep issues can affect your relationships, weight, thinking, work performance, health, and safety. Sleep is most often disturbed by the need to use the bathroom and physical pain in older adults. Rest is not to be minimized; it is vital to the quality of our lives.
There is no glory in being ‘productive’ while depending on stimulants and adrenaline, it only damages the body in the long run. Chronic sleep loss creates susceptibility to illness, disease, and burnout. In a Sleep in America Poll by the National Sleep Foundation found that caffeine consumption caused a loss of three to five hours of sleep per day.
How do you know if you are getting enough sleep? Here are some clear signs that reveal where you are on the sleep spectrum.
Signs of getting enough sleep and being well rested:
Waking up without an alarm, maintaining your weight, not needing a caffeine boost during the day, not craving junk food, clear skin, and a good mood.
The long-term benefits of good sleep, of course, supports health and wellness; you’ll get sick less often by boosting your immune system, and have less risk of serious health problems, like diabetes, weight gain, stroke, high blood pressure, heart attack, and heart disease. With adequate sleep, you’ll also have a better cognitive function, and get along better with other people.
Signs of sleep loss:
Being tired is just one symptom of the cumulative effect of less-than-ideal sleep. Cognitive difficulties and memory impairment in people of any age, depression, and personality changes are common issues for people with a chronic sleep deficit. People who experience sleep deprivation over time have difficulty making decisions, have work performance problems, slower reaction times when stressed and are at risk for automobile and work-related accidents.
There are important physical and medical factors that influence sleep quality; chronic diseases like ulcers and asthma make it hard to sleep comfortably, excess stress elevates cortisol which inhibits sleep hormones, and some medications interfere with sleep. Don’t lose hope if you suffer from these things, it only means you need to make sleep a priority, make time for it, it is that important. Sleep repairs the body, reducing the severity of your symptoms of the disease.
So, napping more or getting to bed earlier are two strategies to support better health.
Prepare and protect your sleep quality and length by making it a priority:
Atmosphere- ensure your pillows and blankets are comfy and use a white noise machine to drown out any noises that interrupt your slumber. Ensure a darkroom to get and stay asleep, keeping the nightlights in the hallway and away from your bedroom.
Nutrition- Sugar and carbohydrates, especially before bedtime is proven to make people feel sleepy and fall asleep quicker, but it causes poor quality of sleep and more nighttime wake-ups. Although sugar makes people sleepy, after the ‘sugar high’ wears off, it brings a difficulty later on in the night in maintaining sleep. Also, eating too much sugar and processed carbohydrates, found in most snack foods contributes to inflammation in the body, which can have a negative effect on chronic pain and sleep quality.
Technology Screentime- Minding the golden hour, abstaining from using your electronic devices at least one hour before bedtime can help in calming the mind down and preparing it better for sleep. The blue light disrupts the sleep-wake cycle, making it hard to fall asleep and wake up the next day. Blue light blockers may help, but turning off your brain and resting your eyes is the best way to get your brain and body ready for bed.
Stress Hormones- Doing all you can to calm down before bedtime protects sleep quality enormously. Stay away from thought-provoking and disturbing topics in real life and on your screens. Watching the news before bed is a sure-fire way to stare at the ceiling for a few hours. Distance the news and thrilling movies from the day’s end. Your nervous system (and all the other ones in your body) will thank you for it.
Activity- Getting a little exercise every day, even if only for a few minutes releases nervous tension accumulated in your waking day. Getting to release some energy through low-impact or any other kind of activity will help calm the body when it’s time to lay your head down. Walking outside or on a treadmill is a great way to get moving without having to think much about it. Just like a dog, we need to be walked too!
If you know you have a lot of work to do to improve your sleep, don’t make too many adjustments all at once! Approach it incrementally, plan out a sleep strategy and prioritize the easiest changes or the most significant ones. It will support getting better rest gradually, rather than getting overwhelmed and sacrifice your progress. You deserve good quality rest, making it important will pay you back with dividends!
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Lisa Beth Lent, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Lisa Beth Lent is a body-alignment educator and trainer, working with courageous individuals and progressive corporations in calm confidence cultivation, achieving authentic inner-alignment of purpose and fulfilment. She leads with her knowledge of anti-inflammatory nutrition and posture awareness, training in the "abundance mindset" and how it ties into growing health and enjoying profound wellness. By encouraging courage and self-trust, deep diving into personal accountability in her private coaching and group engagements, Lisa Beth bridges sensible embodiment to practical empowerment. Align the body, align the life.
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