Sleep

What is sleep?

It is thought that the average person spends a total of 33 years in bed throughout their lifetime – 26 years actually sleeping and 7 years trying to fall asleep! No one ever teaches us how to sleep, but what actually is it?

While researchers find it hard to pinpoint exactly, at its simplest, sleep is a form of unconsciousness like fainting or being in a coma. Although, sleep is unique in that we need this kind of unconsciousness daily in order for our brain and body to be healthy.

Our brain has naturally occurring chemicals to both put itself to sleep and wake itself up. Sleep happens in four stages to make up one cycle that lasts about 90 minutes and occurs about four to six times in one night. Each stage is progressively deeper sleep, with most dreams happening in the Rapid Eye Movement (REM) stage. After we have cycled down to Stage 4, our body cycles back up to Stage 1 and we undergo the REM stage. After this, it is normal to wake up completely for a short time and then fall back asleep to start the cycle all over again, but usually we do not remember waking up.

Tips for sleeping well

In order to sleep well, we must strive to be awake well. This means we can’t live however we want during the day and expect our brain to ship us off to sleep at night the second we want it to!

Use nature to assist your body clock:

o   When you wake up, stand outside or near a sunny window. Your brain will register the sunlight and tell your body it’s time to wake up.

o   Go outside at dusk/sunset. Again, your brain will register the sunlight decreasing and start the process of preparing itself and your body for sleep.

Watch your technology use:

o   Avoid using devices an hour or two before going to sleep. The blue light in screens mimics daylight and can trick our brain that it’s not night yet.  

o   Be mindful of your social media intake – what we read and see in social media is often not pleasant and can cause us to feel anxious or down, especially

in COVID times. Be mindful to either limit your social media time, or be intentional to fill your social media with positive, hopeful messages.

If you are in bed and not sleeping, get out of bed:

o   People often make the mistake of forcing themselves to stick it out, but this causes our brain to associate our bed as a place where sleep doesn’t happen.

It can also cause us to become anxious or frustrated that we aren’t falling asleep.

o   If you find you aren’t falling asleep within about 20 minutes, get up and do a quiet relaxing activity in another room, like reading, craft, or listening to

music. Only go back to bed when you are sleepy.

o   During the day, reserve your bed for sleeping only. 

Managing stress/anxiety:

o   During the day, draw on strategies to manage stress or anxieties. This might mean writing a list of your worries, chatting to a good friend, or engaging in

relaxation strategies such as deep breathing or mindfulness. You might also like to consider speaking to your doctor or a psychologist to help you manage

stress or anxiety.

Remember: In order to sleep well, we must strive to be awake well.

Written by Susie Robinson.