Sleep – So you aren’t sleeping well, what can you do?
So you have checked out my tips for having a good night’s sleep and you still aren’t sleeping well, so what can you do?
First remember that we are very resilient and our bodies are built to cope with the odd poor night’s sleep. We have an inbuilt ability to deviate from the “normal” pattern of sleeping which can be a big advantage in today’s demanding world.
Napping
If you imagine your cave man ancestors, with predators lurking around it wouldn’t always be possible to find a nice comfortable cave and sleep for 7 or 8 hours! There is evidence that hunter-gatherers slept in short bursts of time throughout the day. This sleep pattern is still around today in babies and young children. In 2002, Ellen MacArthur competed in the Vendee Glob and set a new world record for fastest circumnavigation of the globe as a solo sailor. During this 72 day race she had 385 naps the longest of which lasted 35 minutes. So if you don’t have time for a long sleep or aren’t sleeping well, try napping!
Keep your perspective
Research has shown that people with SAD or depression often spend more time in bed, but not actually sleeping — leading to misconceptions about how much they sleep. So while I would not recommend watching the clock – as it only makes people more concerned about not sleeping, it is useful to examine your thoughts about sleep. For most people not being able to sleep properly is a temporary setback—uncomfortable and mildly debilitating, yes—but remember you WILL sleep again.
Insomnia
Insomnia is usually a symptom, typically secondary to something else. It is best characterized as the inability to fall asleep, stay asleep, or waking too early in the morning. These types of sleep disruptions are often indicators of other medical or psychological problems, such as sleep disorders or depression and anxiety. Insomnia symptoms that last longer than 30 days are usually identified as “chronic” or severe.
Treatments for Insomnia
Cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT, has become widely used to treat many symptoms of insomnia and is especially useful for relieving chronic or severe insomnia symptoms. Alternative therapies such as melatonin, valerian, acupuncture and other holistic or compliment treatments including reflexology are also being used for insomnia.
Related Posts
Does mindfulness meditation help you if you are depressed?
Mindfullness is very trendy right now because it is claimed to help you cope with anxiety and stress and build resilience. But does it help you if you are depressed? This is the question that researchers from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine tried to answer in a recent study. During the study, 31 women most of whom had done nothing to help themselves to deal with their depression in the last 12 months, participated in an mindfullness group. They practicied mindfullness meditation and yoga on average 150 minutes per week. Before starting the study 45% said they had no experience of mediation and 71% said they had never tried yoga. The primary outcome, depression and secondary outcomes (stress, mindfulness, functioning, well-being and depression stigma) were assessed at start of the study and then again at weeks 8 and 16 weeks . The depressive symptoms significantly decreased during the study, in addition the stigma of depression increased from the start of the study to 8 weeks and then significantly decreased between 8 to 16 weeks of the study. A significant decrease in stress and significant increase in mindfulness was found at week 8 and the end of the study when compared to the start of the study. In addition, the women reported increased sense of well-being including self-acceptance and growth. In conclusion mindfulness medication can reduce levels of depression and stress as much as powerful drugs and psychotherapy do. Reference I E Burnett-Zeigler, M D Satyshur, S Hong, A Yang et al, 2016, Mindfulness based stress reduction adapted for depressed disadvantaged women in an urban Federally Qualified Health Centre, Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice; 25; 59 - 67 see >> http://www.ctcpjournal.com/article/S1744-3881(16)30072-X/abstract
How to combat sitting all day
Sitting all day is a current health concern. While I know that sitting all day has been described as "the new smoking" until now this made me uncomfortable - as its not the same. You can get help to quit smoking. If you work in an office you are expected to sit and standing desks are rare, so you have no choice but to sit down. While I am aware that smoking is an addiction, I think it is still more within the individual's control than sitting if you work in an office. I am an optimistic person by nature, so I don't want to be the voice of doom for my readers about sitting. So I was very interested in some recent research which demonstrates how to limit the impact of sitting. Spending much of the day sitting around increases the risk for heart disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer and ultimately, death - with 50,000 people anually in the UK dying as a result, say researches from Queen's University in Belfast. Around 30% of adults spend at least six hours a day during the week sitting and this rises to 37% at weekends. Roughly one-thrid of people who are sedentary will have at least two major health conditions, such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Researchers from the American Cancer Society estimate that just 30 minutes of some physical activity would halve the death rates from chronic diseases such as heart disease and cancer. So 30 minutes of physical activity per day (like walking) is what researchers currently think is required to combat sitting all day. References Journal Epidemiol Community Health. 2019 Jul;73(7):625-629. doi:10.1136/jech-2018-211758 Americal Journal of Preventive Medicine, Mortality Risk Reductions for Replacing Sedentary Time with Physical Activities, Rees-Punia, Erika et al. Volume 56, Issue 5, 736-741
