Sleep

Are you getting you 7~9 hours a night? Is it restful? Do you know that all of your bodies healing & regeneration (cells, brain, blood, muscles, etc) happens while you are deep in sleep? Not when you are resting, but actually sleeping. There is an important difference.

There are many different thoughts on types & duration of sleep, my thoughts about length of true sleep is that you should aim for 6, 7 1/2 or 9 hours total (this is in accordance with the 45 minute sleep school of thought, which says that deep sleep happens between these 45 minute or 3 hour time frames). In regards to your Circadian Rhythms the school of thought is to not be awake after 10:30pm and to wake up around 5-630. With these 2 different schools of thought it should be fairly straight forward in finding the right lights out & wake up times for you (depending on your lifestyle & workload ~ you are a better judge of what is feasible).

It may take some getting use to, but going to sleep & having a productive & restful sleep leads to Optimal Health. Being in total rest mode, & letting your body’s natural healing ability take over truly gives your body the love & attention that it so desperately needs after your hard day. Your immune system gets refreshed, your cells become renewed, your muscles can finally rebound & relax. Your mind is able to shut off & flow freely.

It is just as important to set a bedtime as it is to set a time to wake up! Do your body a favor & give it what it needs for health. Here are some tips to getting a longer, higher quality sleep!

Turn off all electronics well before you decide to turn in (at least 45 minutes before).

End all caffeinated or alcoholic beverages 3~4 hours before your plan on tucking in. Recreational drugs & smoking should also be stopped 3~4 hours before (think about quitting these for life as well!)

A warm bath or light reading before you turn the lights out can do wonders to relax. Don’t make the bath too hot, or stay in longer than 30~45 minutes, & don’t read things that will have your brain continue to work once you stop.

Having it as quiet as possible as well as having it near complete darkness will greatly improve your quality of sleep. If quiet doesn’t do it for you, try some soft meditative sounds.

Above all don’t stress. Learning new skills & teaching our bodies new (better) habits can take some time. Take your time & be patient with yourself. Give yourself ample time to practice. If you still feel you need some additional help you can try:

~ Tart Cherry Juice (1/4 cup an hour before bed)

~ Oatmeal as a bed time snack (2 hours before bed)

~ Melatonin found at your health foods store. Both Natural & Non~Addicting sleep aid.