“I love sleep. My life has the tendency to fall apart when I'm awake, you know?”
While I was writing my last blog post I was shocked to find out that the risk of death from stroke and heart disease was significantly higher in people who get less than six hours of sleep a night ( think 48% higher).
I had watched Arianna Huffington talk about sleep about 4 years back at a Women's Conference ( you can see the jist of it in this Ted Talk by Arianna Huffington ). She insightfully quoted "sleep your way to the top" and rediscover how to live a more productive and joyful life by getting more sleep. According to AH, for men, sleep deprivation is an act of virility and one-upmanship and goes on to talk about examples at the work place of how "lack of sleep" was being worn as a victory badge (don't shoot the messenger guys...instead look at yourself and scan yourself and see if you indulge in those behaviors).
How to get more sleep?
1. Get checked for medical problems that might be waking you up - these include issues like Obstructive Sleep Apnea ( did you know people with OSA had 3 times the risk for Type 2 diabetes). My dad suffered from OSA and sure enough he had Type 2 diabetes.
2. Set up your environment for sleep — have a comfortable bed, a dark room (or an eye mask, if needed), and quiet (use earplugs, ambient music).
3. Set up your evening for sleep — do a quieting half hour before bed - they say don't take a device to bed but for me the Kindle is my version of a physical book, so I read for 1/2 hr before bed.
4. Set up your days for sleep — get sunshine during the day and keep the room dark in the night. Get some physical movement aka exercise, so your body doesn’t want to move when it’s time to sleep.
5. Prevent hunger and low blood sugar. A bedtime snack including protein and some complex carbohydrate (a small bowl of oatmeal, some nuts, even a small piece of dark chocolate) might help you stay asleep. I swear by this smoothie recipe of mine (it's a play on the Ethiopian Drink Telba) - 1 Banana, 2 tablespoons roasted flaxseeds, 1 teaspoon cacao nibs (optional) , 1 cup of water or more depending on the consistency you want and 1 tsp honey to sweeten (I added Stevia, as I am trying to cut down on sugar). It's high in protein, fiber and essential minerals like Magnesium and potassium (it's good for you heart too!).
6. In consultation with your health-care provider, consider proven sleep supplements such as magnesium and melatonin. On high stress days, I take 5 mg of Melatonin to ensure uninterrupted sleep. I take a magnesium supplement every day called Natural Calm and have been taking this supplement for 4 years now.
7. Get help with anxiety, stress, and depression, if you think those might be problems. I think everyone goes thro' phases and sometimes the depression and anxiety might just be a chemical imbalance ( for me a couple years back it was a severe Vitamin D deficiency) or even if it is a deeper seated issue, its better to meeting it headlong vs. let it fester.
8. Accept that sleep is important. It’s not being lazy; it’s not shirking your responsibilities. Your body needs it. You may have to spend some time in the day clearing up things that are worrying you, like taking care of the kids so that you can relax and heal at night. Sleep is especially important for kids and setting them up with good sleeping habits is critical to their well-being.
I look forward to shutting off the lights and having this free entry into a "land of dreams"... I especially love getting up in the morning rested after a good night's sleep. How did you sleep last night?
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