Sleep, Glorious Sleep
66It has only been a couple weeks since I’ve last had a full night’s rest. I didn’t think much of it at first because I was just having jetlag, but the new habit shows no signs of discontinuing without my conscious intervention.
Today I have noticed a familiar thought cross my mind which I seem to remember thinking yesterday and the day before, and the day before that… The thought was like a flash of intuition, warning me that I am not totally ok. But it seems like I can continue on with my day as usual, and plan on getting some sleep tonight. This subtle warning signal my brain is sending out is quite easy for me to ignore. Yet somehow the plan to get sleep seems to have be postponed, perpertually, now that I think about it.
On the freeway this morning, a car merged across two lanes, cutting me off. I slammed on the brakes, and then my horn. Oh, how gratifying it was to lay on that horn! I held it down with a tensed palm until I was satisfied with my expressions of disapproval towards the other driver, about ten seconds worth of disapproval: “Hooooooooooooooooooooooonk!”
Later I was grouchy on a phone call to a friend, and I found sanctuary by retreating into my house, removed from all of the craziness ‘out there’. Yet, the pots and pans I used for cooking myself dinner made me mad when they got so dirty, and my dinner was completely unsatisfying. Even the popsicle I had for dessert was a snore. What is with this day? (But I’m ‘fine’, really.)
Come to find out, sleep deprivation can lead to some serious problems. It has become so standard for people to get less hours of sleep per night, that it didn’t occur to me that I should be at all concerned.
Some of the short term consequences of sleep deprivation can include:
-A reduction of mental alertness and performance up to 1/3 (with only 1-2 hours deprivation in one night)
-An increase of stress causing irritability, moodiness or social conflicts
-Loss of emotional control, adopting a depressed outlook
-A decrease in concentration, memory and attention, not being able to enjoy the activities or entertainment that you usually do.
-Increased risk of automobile accident
In fact, studies show that part of the brain ceases to have activity when one has not had the proper amount of rest, while a different part of the brain ‘subs in’ and will take over those duties.
Some of the long term effects can include physical health problems such as hypertension, obesity, and heart disease.
In short, getting enough sleep is absolutely critical to our health, mental, emotional and physical. Such as regular exercise and nutrition, sleep is essential to maintaining a state of well being.
SInce I am currently suffering from sleep deprivation while writing this, my concentration has hastily come to an end. For more information, I've included some links to some of the interesting articles I have found online. Sweet Dreams!
Articles: http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/guide/important-sleep-habits, http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=fact-or-fiction-can-you-catch-up-on-sleep, http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/02/0224_050224_sleep_2.html, http://www.psychiatrictimes.com/display/article/10168/54471, http://www.sleep-deprivation.com/articles/effects-of-sleep-deprivation/, http://www.bostonherald.com/news/us_politics/view/2009_05_12_Memos_shed_light_on_CIA_use_of_sleep_deprivation/
Rene 3 months ago
I don't think we are sleeping the right way, ever thought of that?
We are very uncomfortable, tired when we awake, tired in the aft, tired at night.
Too many distractions, not enough sleep.
Headaches, pain in the back of the head and neck.
Something just tells me that we need to find a better and more comfortable way to sleep.
This may sound crazy but a box of some kind that would cut out all the noise and keep us from awaking until we are ready.
The laying on the bedsprings thing just don't cut it.
A concerned Canadian,
Rene.