To sleep. Many refer to her as the cousin of death. We live in a society that screams “STAY WAKE or don’t get caught sleeping.” Sleeping implies that you will miss something, that you are not focused or that you are not paying attention. Even napping equates to laziness. “Who sleeps in the middle of the day? You are not a baby.” There is the thought there is no time to sleep or you cannot afford to sleep.
People deprive themselves of sleep, but it is an obligation of life. Sleep deprivation is sometimes used as a technical matter. Lack of sleep can put a strain on your physical and mental health that can basically be torture.
How crazy is that? Something as natural as sleeping can cause you to become delusional, anxious, or even depressed. To think that at times the lack of sleep comes from our own hands and we will justify this self-inflicted punishment.
Believing that by losing these necessary hours of rejuvenation, we will achieve success. Culture exercises your head to keep working, pushing and moving because the hard work is worth it, but guess what?
“Sleeping is a necessity, not a luxury”
Sleep is a necessity, not a luxury, and in order for you to be the best you can be, you need to rest. You can get used to lack of sleep by juggling your life, career, family, and other necessary activities, but eventually, lack of sleep catches up with you. The National Sleep Foundation recommends 7 to 9 hours of sleep for adults ages 26 to 64, but 6 to 10 hours can also be considered sufficient amounts of sleep. The same recommendation is for young adults ages 18-25.
I know what you’re thinking, oh, I can’t sleep that long or I don’t need to sleep that long. Others are wishing they could sleep.
There was a time in my life when I didn’t sleep and when I slept I never rested. I couldn’t separate myself from the day and my problems turned into a tangled bondage. I decided this had to end because I was mentally drained and tired. I discovered ways to make up my downtime.
I set a schedule
I set a schedule and worked hard to stick to it. I made a list of duties or responsibilities that I needed to fulfill on a daily basis. Of course, there are times when I had to be flexible, careful not to present myself with too many obligations. If I didn’t complete something, I wasn’t hard on myself. I did my best to use my time more efficiently, like making phone calls on breaks or looking online for the information I needed for other projects. It felt good to see the progress scoring the points I made throughout the day.
Invested in Hot Yoga
We all know that doing physical activity helps you release those endorphins that make you feel good; therefore, I already had an exercise regimen, but by incorporating hot yoga I optimized the benefits. I was so relaxed at the end of each session. Not only did my stress level drop, but there was also a significant change in my blood pressure. I felt refreshed as if I had detoxified and this prepared me for bed.
I stopped receiving phone calls after 9pm
I am an individual who has the gift of speech. When I communicate with friends and family on occasion, those phone calls can last for hours. They are extremely entertaining, but can sometimes be overly stimulating depending on the theme of that particular night. Anyway, to avoid being too agitated to sleep, I decided to put my phone on silent. It avoids the temptation to answer the phone, search for emails or any other social network.
Prepared myself and my environment for the bed
It’s like when you go to a hotel and the bed looks so cozy with the pillows and a nice duvet. Those beds look so awesome and attractive. I do that same environment in my house. I make my bed with pillows and everything. My bed is inviting and cozy. I differ from hotels because I removed the television from my room. That may have been drastic, but for me, it created the atmosphere for sleeping.
Giving your body the rest it needs to cope with tasks offers you mental clarity, improves functionality, improves your mood and decreases irritability and agitation, makes you feel rejuvenated and refreshed.
I am one of those people who require my full 8 hours of sleep. Now of course I don’t get my full hours every night, but I do have rest nights allotted.
I am by no means a sleep expert, but I am a sleep advocate. Also, I enjoy offering bits of information to my neighbor or wife. There are a host of techniques or medications (holistic, over-the-counter, or prescription) that you can do or take to promote sleep.
Although it is inevitable to sacrifice sleep, sometimes, to achieve a goal, I suggest you find some kind of balance. Think about it!
