Just a little message today about a subject close to my heart at the moment.
I've recently been helping my sister with her two young children - the oldest one is 3 years and the baby just 6 months old. I'm currently experiencing the effects of sleep deprivation second-hand through her as they are having a few sleep issues at the moment!
I barely slept a wink the night before my wedding due to excitement (or maybe nerves at the thought of becoming Darren’s wife!)
It didn't matter because adrenaline would get me through the next day and I had a two week
honeymoon to look forward to!
However, a lot of people I meet are currently suffering with proper, deep, night after night,
sleep deprivation and this is really not good for our health.
There’s a reason why sleep deprivation is used as an effective torture method - simply because it totally messes you up!
Sleep deprivation wrecks your hormonal system and screws up your brain chemistry so you feel depressed as well as the more obvious physical signs of tiredness like a lack of energy and the inability to think clearly.
I'm sure those of you who are totally knackered are thinking by now ‘tell me something I didn't know’!!
Well here it is…
Your body can actually complete a full sleep-cycle i.e. perform all of its restorative functions - the reason why we sleep in the first place - in just 4 hours!
But…
and it’s a big BUT….
If you are only going to get 4 hours the QUALITY of the sleep you get in that time is all important.
If you’re really stressed your body won’t let you get into a really deep, restorative sleep and you end up sleeping ‘on alert’.
I'm terrible if I've got to get up early for a long journey, I literally wake up every hour thinking ‘is it time to get up yet?’ Shift workers experience this due to sleeping at strange times; new parents get it because they’re on alert to hear the baby.
It can happen if you expect to be woken up before the alarm for any reason or simply because you have a lot on your mind.
As I said at the start a night or two of this is fine and adrenaline will get you through but when sleep is disrupted on a long-term basis we need strategies to help.
If it’s likely you’re only going to get 4 hours sleep, you need to prioritise those four hours so that you get the most benefit from them.
A similar principle as to when Darren decides to have a cheat meal - if he’s doing it, he’s going all out to make it a stomach-buster!
I could literally write an essay on this but for today’s newsletter I've just picked my top two tips to help you if sleep is currently an issue for you.
1) Absolute top priority is to properly wind down before going to sleep.
That means no TV, tablet, phone etc. for 30 minutes before bed. Read an easy book or magazine. If readings not your thing listen to some relaxing music.
If you’re a bit of a stress-head clear your head by writing your ‘jobs list’ down so it’s not playing on your mind whilst dropping off, maybe fill in a journal or a food diary - basically anything that isn't looking at a screen will do as long as it helps relax you and doesn't stress you out more!
2) Establish nasal breathing, this is absolutely crucial to restful sleep.
Even if you haven’t got a cold use a basic saline nasal spray and have a good clear out, inhale an Olbas stick for a few seconds and then stick on a Breathe-Right strip to open up your nose. Do this before getting in to bed, make it part of your ‘winding down’ routine. Once you get into bed focus on breathing through your nose.
Keep your lips together and be aware of breathing in to
your belly, not your chest or shoulders.
That’s it for now but if you do have any specific issues with getting to sleep or staying asleep
through the night drop me an email so I can send you some more detailed information.
Fran ‘love being Darren’s wife really’ Checkley
P.S. It’s actually really rare to wake up in the night because you need a wee so if this is happening on a regular basis it’s more likely that your sleep needs some help.