Sleep
This week the press seem to be full of articles on sleep, ranging from recent research to the reasons why we lose sleep – the top reason being a heavy workload.
I am sure that most people reading this blog post know that if they have a good night’s sleep they wake up feeling refreshed. So the recent discovery by scientists from University of Wisconsin which shows sleep restores your brain will be of no surprise. (For any geeks out there the research showed that sleep boosts myelin which is essential in the growth and repair of our brains. The research also revealed that deep sleep doubles the rate of reproduction of some cells.) While over in Stockholm researchers have discovered that people think sleep deprived individuals “look sad, unhealthy and unattractive”. For anyone that is struggling to get a good night’s sleep knowing science has proved that they look as awful as they feel isn’t exactly helpful either! So I wanted to share a few tips with you on getting a good night’s sleep.
- Try to go to bed and get up at the same time as bodies like routine and it will help you sleep better.
- Ensure your bedroom is quiet, dark, restful and the right temperature i.e. not to hot and not to cold. Remember it isn’t ideal to watch TV or work in your bedroom that includes trying to sleep while keeping one eye on your blackberry.
- Try to mentally and physically relax before going to bed by turning of the TV or computer and having a warm bath, listen to some relaxing music, read a book or simply sip a cup of Chamomile tea.
- Valerian is a dietary supplement that has been used since ancient times to help with a good nights sleep as it is known for combat insomnia and nervousness.
- While exercise is great to combat stress, exercising too close to bedtime can actually make it harder to sleep.
- It is best to avoid alcohol before your go to bed as for some people it will interrupt their sleep pattern later in the night.
- It is best to avoid coffee from later afternoon onwards as for some people it will keeps them awake.
Finally some of my clients have reports that Reflexology has helped them by because they find they sleep deeper and hence wake up more refreshed.
Related Posts
Good news for the desk bound…
We have all heard about the target of walking about 10,000 steps per day which roughly equates to walking 5 miles per day. Well many years ago when I worked long hours in IT some days, and lets be frank even some months, the possibility of me walking 10,000 steps per day was a pipe dream. I would say this was especially true in the winter when the dark skies, cold, wind and rain didn't exactly entice me to go outside even though I love walking. Researchers in Trondenheim University in Norway have discovered that in heart patients after just 12 weeks of walking 3000 steps every day, the hearts pumping function improved which in turn improved their ability to exercise. They concluded that moderate continuous exercise, such as walking 3,000 steps or 1.5 miles in 30 minutes had as much benefit on the heart as more vigorous, intensive exercising. Moderate walking decreased the strain on the heart, improved heart muscle function, improved blood vessel dilatation, helped form new blood vessels and lowered blood pressure. On average a sedentary person completes between 1,000 to 3,000 steps per day. Which is good news for the desk bound as you can now aim for 3,000 continuous steps which is much easier to achieve than 10,000! Reference http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/early/2017/01/19/CIRCULATIONAHA.116.022924
Yet more how to chill out…
So in the past I have talked about how any activity can help you chill out as long as you enjoy it and it absorbs you including video games. But what about Origami? The ancient Japanese art of Origami has recently seen a surge in popularity due to the fact it can be done any-time, anywhere, with materials that are often to hand in stressful environments such as schools and offices. It may seem complicated, but thanks to YouTube, and online course platforms like Udemy, anyone can make learn to make simple creations from table decorations to paper aeroplanes without spending a fortune on expensive tools or equipment. According to paper folding guru Himanshsu Agrawal (who has five world records to his name- including the creation of a 44 foot human being and a 105 foot dinosaur!): “Origami is inherently geometric; as you fold from one end to the other, the movement becomes rhythmic. It soon feels like you are detached from the world.” The act of folding paper has been shown time and again to help decrease anxiety and increase feelings of inner calm. The beautiful film “Between the folds” takes a deeper look at the art of paper folding and it’s many benefits for health and its a good place to get more information.
