LIFE AREAS
PHYSICAL | EMOTIONAL | INTELLECTUAL | SPIRITUAL | SOCIAL | FAMILY |
WORK | FINANCIAL | RECREATIONAL | HOME/OFFICE ENVIRONMENT | OVERALL
Have you ever wondered why people start their day with a comment on how they slept the night before? “You will not believe the dream I had”, “I did not sleep a wink”, “I slept like a baby”, “Why are you so chirpy this morning?”, “I got sea sick from your tossing and turning in bed”, “I was dead to the world”, “The roar of your snoring kept me up”, “A kingdom for a good night’s sleep!” It is all with good reason.
Sleep is on everyone’s mind as it is a much coveted commodity. Tom Rath, author of Eat, Move, Sleep: How Small Choices lead to Big Changes recently said in an interview that he would address sleep before eating and exercise behaviors. It is only after a good night’s sleep that we are fully rested and recharged to take on the day. It is primary to optimal functioning. It can also be the most easily overlooked life area, as we take it for granted. We do not have to do anything at all, simply close our eyes. Where is the challenge in that? Yet, many are the colorful stories exchanged about fitful nights and ragged rest.
It is said one form of torture is sleep deprivation. What does that tell us? It is crucial for survival. Studies show that animals lose their immunity when sleep deprived and die within weeks. The restorative power of sleep is touted over and over again: muscle growth, tissue repair, cleansing of brain cells, memory, learning, performance, brain plasticity and energy conservation are all aided by sleep. We are literally allowing the ravages of the day on the body to heal during the night. We regroup our thoughts and come up with fresh ideas in the morning. Have you ever found the answer to a problem suddenly becomes crystal clear in the morning? Or the fight you had with your spouse seems utterly silly the next day? Or the harsh words of your boss at work are now surprisingly limp? Or what seemed like a nagging worry has soothed itself out by daybreak?
Burning the midnight oil may seem fiercely necessary in the moment. Just when your work deadline is looming, your daughter pleads for help with her trigonometry homework. As you are hastily packing for a dawn flight, your toddler has a severe tooth ache that needs tending. You have put off preparing for your presentation and now the night before you are up rehearsing in front of a mirror as coached to do. You are feverishly reading, knee deep in research as you have to appear in court at 8:00 am sharp. But in the long run these all-nighters have adverse effects. The extra effort is wasted when you are too exhausted to put your best foot forward in the morning, to recall material learned or make winning closing arguments. Before the crucial job interview, the promotion dependent presentation, or the heart stopping stage performance, a goodnight’s sleep is usually what the doctor orders.
The National Sleep Foundation has a list of 10 sleep tips that are practical and feasible. Studies on insomnia suggest that if a person has difficulty falling asleep, it is a good idea to get out of bed and find a spot to sit and relax in a manner that would be conducive to drowsiness, such as light reading or listening to soft music. Our pals the electronic devices that we have so come to cherish, turn into our worst enemies for inducing sleep. Sorry to be the bearer of unwelcome news. Harvard Health Publications of Harvard Medical School states that after sunset the blue light emanated from our newly popular LED lights and screens of electronic devices suppresses the secretion of melatonin in our brain. To regulate the circadian rhythm it is recommended that we expose ourselves to bright sunlight in the morning, dim lights at dusk and turn off our devices at least 2 hours before bedtime. I can see how many of you would start to hyperventilate at this point, as if your very life line has been cut off. It is after all just a hard habit that has been developed. Are you willing to trade it for a good night’s sleep?
Bring on the lavender essential oil, decaffeinated chamomile tea or soothing, warm milk, strains of soft, instrumental music and a good, juicy novel. Curl up in a chair and be ready to be pampered. Find your soft spot and indulge! Before you know you will be slipping under the covers and into slumber land. Good night. ~ Sushama Kirtikar, September 2015 
http://sleepfoundation.org/sleep-tools-tips/healthy-sleep-tips.
http://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/blue-light-has-a-dark-side