This post will be short and sweet.... but very important. We NEED quality sleep in order to be healthy. Did you know that it takes YEARS off someone's life to work overnight shifts for an extend period of time? Or that an overnight worker has the same cognitive function of a well-rested person with a .08 blood alcohol content? (Legally drunk in Illinois) Not to mention, this is the time that our body builds new tissue and repairs damage, as well as re-charging our brain, nervous system, and immunity.
We are designed, genetically to sleep when the Sun sleeps, essentially. Winter in Chicago doesn't allow for that, as it is often dark by 5pm and not light again until 7am. I'm not saying we need to sleep for 14 hours!! (Although, we are designed to be less active and sleep more in the winter time - because food was often scarce)
Modern society has VERY recently changed our sleep and rest patterns quite dramatically. Just in the last 100 years, we have introduced artificial light, television, and the internet. These things confuse our body's natural receptors and confuse our hormone production stations. If you're up until 11pm with all the lights on, watching TV, and surfing the internet on your phone - your body has no idea that it's dark and you should be sleeping. You may have difficulty falling asleep in this situation, and your body will be full of stress hormones (if you can fall asleep)...so you will not wake up refreshed, and the repairs/recharging will be incomplete.
Chronically under-sleeping is a very serious detriment to our health, an experiment that we are just learning the consequences of. Grok (our Paleolithic ancestor hero) would have started winding down his daily activities (which by evening generally consisted of lounging around and socializing) once the sun went down, and would be asleep shortly after. If your goal is weight loss and you are having trouble, SLEEP might be what is holding you back. Poor sleep habits = chronic stress on the body = chronic stress hormone production = increased bodyfat, lower metabolism, and a host of other problems!
When the body detects sunlight in the morning (yes, it does this while you're sleeping), it begins to change hormone production from rest/repair (sleepy) hormones to those that will wake you up, naturally. If you are jolted awake by an alarm, while it's still dark- your body does not have the ability to make this smooth transition. You will get a surge of stress hormones, and we all know the results of that. (Crabby, tired, foggy, etc...) Yes. It is natural for you to hate the alarm clock.
For my particular case, I do awaken slightly before it gets light. I am looking into a quality sunrise-imitating alarm clock. It will gradually begin to light up my room 30 minutes prior to the time I'd like to wake up. At the "alarm" time, it is at full brightness and has an easy sound vs. harsh alarm. By this time, my body is ready to wake up, due to the light, and the transition from sleep to awake is smooth and stress-free. I would recommend this for anyone who wakes up before dawn!
Target: 8 to 9 hours of QUALITY SLEEP
We are designed, genetically to sleep when the Sun sleeps, essentially. Winter in Chicago doesn't allow for that, as it is often dark by 5pm and not light again until 7am. I'm not saying we need to sleep for 14 hours!! (Although, we are designed to be less active and sleep more in the winter time - because food was often scarce)
Modern society has VERY recently changed our sleep and rest patterns quite dramatically. Just in the last 100 years, we have introduced artificial light, television, and the internet. These things confuse our body's natural receptors and confuse our hormone production stations. If you're up until 11pm with all the lights on, watching TV, and surfing the internet on your phone - your body has no idea that it's dark and you should be sleeping. You may have difficulty falling asleep in this situation, and your body will be full of stress hormones (if you can fall asleep)...so you will not wake up refreshed, and the repairs/recharging will be incomplete.
Chronically under-sleeping is a very serious detriment to our health, an experiment that we are just learning the consequences of. Grok (our Paleolithic ancestor hero) would have started winding down his daily activities (which by evening generally consisted of lounging around and socializing) once the sun went down, and would be asleep shortly after. If your goal is weight loss and you are having trouble, SLEEP might be what is holding you back. Poor sleep habits = chronic stress on the body = chronic stress hormone production = increased bodyfat, lower metabolism, and a host of other problems!
When the body detects sunlight in the morning (yes, it does this while you're sleeping), it begins to change hormone production from rest/repair (sleepy) hormones to those that will wake you up, naturally. If you are jolted awake by an alarm, while it's still dark- your body does not have the ability to make this smooth transition. You will get a surge of stress hormones, and we all know the results of that. (Crabby, tired, foggy, etc...) Yes. It is natural for you to hate the alarm clock.
For my particular case, I do awaken slightly before it gets light. I am looking into a quality sunrise-imitating alarm clock. It will gradually begin to light up my room 30 minutes prior to the time I'd like to wake up. At the "alarm" time, it is at full brightness and has an easy sound vs. harsh alarm. By this time, my body is ready to wake up, due to the light, and the transition from sleep to awake is smooth and stress-free. I would recommend this for anyone who wakes up before dawn!
Target: 8 to 9 hours of QUALITY SLEEP
Here are a few tips:
- Dim the lights in your house, or turn them off, an hour before bed. I like to read to a somewhat dim light in bed for a while before sleeping. If you do this, keep the material light and easy- even reading something stressful or particularly complicated will cause too much brain stimulation.
- No TV, internet, phone, etc... an hour before bed. Your body can't tell the difference between a stressful situation on the TV or one in real life. You don't want to load up on stress hormones just before sleeping. Also- the light and electromagnetic radiation put off by TV's, monitors, phones, etc... tend to disrupt sleep patterns.
- Room should be COMPLETELY dark. I have recently unplugged my alarm clock (use my phone, which is face-down and on the dresser where I can't reach it) and purchased light-blocking drapes for the bedroom. This prevents lights from outside (streetlights, etc...) from getting in. Your body is designed to sleep in darkness. These drapes would be essential for anyone who must sleep during the day.
- Do NOT sleep with the TV/Radio on. This will cause you to get horrible sleep.
- I LOVE Young Living Essential Oils at night. Some of my favorites are Lavender, Peace & Calming, and Frankincense. If you're interested in learning more about essential oils, I'd be happy to talk with you about them.
- Exercise in the morning/daytime, if you can....especially any intense exercise. Intense exercise at night can prevent your body from achieving an optimal sleep state.
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