Sleep and Rest

Content related to healthy sleep strategies and issues related to poor sleeping and poor rest.

The Worst Sleep Disorder…Ever and Why You Need Sleep for Health, Beauty and Greater Intuition

Date: May 5, 2011

Author: admin

Sleep is a Necessity, Not a Luxury

Millions of people suffer from chronic and pervasive sleep disorders. But what you are about to read is not about traditional sleep disorders like insomnia, sleep apnea, night terrors, restless leg syndrome, or narcolepsy. For information on those conditions, I ask you to check with a professional source in that area. What I am providing for you here is the most preventable type of sleep disorder and problem; self-imposed sleep deprivation.

What happened to us? When did things begin to change regarding one of our most basic and necessary functions for health and wellness? When did sleep become frowned upon and why? Was it the Industrial revolution? Was it the Technology age? Who did the brainwashing?

When did sleep become a bad habit, a sign of laziness and, pardon me, a luxury?

Well, finally the research is out. But sadly, it seems that no matter how much information is put out there with statistics and fancy research results, many people are NOT heeding the call to sleep. The worst of it is that we are not listening to our own intuition and biological clocks. Well this is your “wake-up” call asking you to sleep more and sleep better.

How Sleep Deprivation Harms You

Did you ever hear or say the phrase “I’ll sleep when die”? Well, guess what? Lack of sleep will catch up to you and cause you overall and long-term harm which could actually lead to premature death, or at least have you looking like a zombie!

Here below are the most common effects of the lack of proper sleep:

* Fatigue and exhaustion.
* Irritability and foul mood.
* Your physical appearance is affected adversely, meaning people who don’t sleep enough look unhealthy, sunken in, older than their physical age-have you heard of beauty sleep?
* Increased risk of diabetes.
* Increased risk of cardio-vascular disease.
* Pre-mature aging.
* Weight gain.
* And possible increased cancer risk.

Purpose of Sleep and Its Benefits-From Sleeping Beauty to Beauty Sleep

Sleep is most assuredly a biological, mental, emotional and spiritual necessity. Just like we need air to breathe and food for sustenance to survive, sleep is a required activity, and not an optional habit. Here are some of the documented benefits of sleep:

* Biological: While you sleep, there is restoration and recovery of your cells, muscles and organs, including your biggest organ-your skin. Human Growth Hormone and Melatonin are released while you sleep and that is essential to healthy skin, hair, nail growth and anti-aging benefits. There is also the release of antioxidants and increased immune system strength. With enough sleep there is increased energy, and we can all use more of that during our waking life.
* Mental: With more sleep, you can expect a sharper mind, better concentration, and increased memory. A more intelligent world is a better world.
* Emotional: Forget being crabby. With restorative sleep you will have better and balanced mood, less irritability, higher optimism.
* Spiritual: Two of my favorite reasons to sleep are to “work things out” and increase in natural intuition. We are only beginning to understand and explore both the physical and the metaphysical benefits of sleep. From personal experience and the research I have conducted, I can tell you that when you sleep at your body’s optimal level, your intuition and psychic ability are increased. You may also tend to remember your dreams more clearly and with more detail and that provides invaluable insight into your life issues, challenges and desires.
* Physical: Sleeping works above and below. The result is literally increased beauty by increasing your overall health and giving you a refreshed appearance everyone will notice.

Your Sleep Process

How many hours do you sleep? Do you feel it is more productive to sleep less and work more? Are you feeling vital and energetic?

I say “your sleep process” because each person’s sleep cycle is. There is no cookie-cutter sleep recipe. The amount of sleep you need varies from anyone else’s in your life. Even if you sleep the same amount of sleep as someone you know, the way you drift off, your style of sleeping, the sleep position in your bed, your dream life, kind mattress or pillow you need, etc. is all your own. But more often than not, the amount you need to feel refreshed, alert and healthy will be somewhere between 7 and 9 hours. There are also factors like your age, phase of life and general health condition that affect how much sleep you need. However some people need less and some, like me, need as much as 11 or 12 hours sometimes to feel rested.

Most people do not get nearly as much sleep as they need out of guilt or the conditioned belief that sleep is a bad habit. But in the process of sleep certain biological, mental and spiritual necessary processes occur. It may take time to find the amount of sleep that works for your highest health benefit. So make that time for yourself-you are worth it.

What the Heck is Sleep Hygiene-Creating a Sleep Conducive Environment and Banishing Sleep guilt

I don’t know who came up with the term “Sleep Hygiene” but it sounds like, cleaning your sheets, or a showering before bed kind of thing. That is obviously not what it means. I believe the term does not accurately represent what it is trying to portray which is what I call, creating a Sleep Conducive Space (SCS).

Some sleep experts claim to restrict your bedroom, (assuming you sleep in a traditional bedroom) to sleep and sex only. But this is simply not realistic. But what is doable is to create the most conducive environment for yourself as possible. This process begins outside and into your bed. General useful considerations are:

* Watch your caffeine intake, alcohol intake or medications.
* Do something that lowers the temperature of your room to the cooler side.
* Gentle stretching and certain gentle yoga poses.
* Darken your environment (whether or not you are a day or night person).
* Quiet a restless mind by having note pad and pen and list quickly all that’s on your mind to deal with another time then RELEASE it.
* Try to use soft and pleasant scents like lavender sleep sprays.
* Try soft nature sounds, or you respond to silence and there is a lot of noise around you use a white sound machine to block out unpleasant noise.
* Ask a doctor or other professional about supplements like Melatonin, or Valerian root etc.

In the end, the way you choose to create a sleep conducive space, will again, be unique and customized to you. If you do the research, reacquaint yourself with your natural biological clock, and trust your intuition, you will no longer succumb to the myth the less sleep is better. You can count on being on your way to better overall health. For a healthier, youthful and more beautiful you, go ahead, slumber Away.
Author: Diana Navarro –
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Should I Go For Otc Or Natural Sleep Aids

Date: May 5, 2011

Author: admin

Categories: Sleep and Rest

Are you getting difficulty sleeping? Rest – it appears like it must be so effortless however above 50% of men and women will, at some stage in their living, have trouble falling asleep. You can find a number of various sorts of insomnia -short term, chronic, difficulty falling asleep, difficulty staying asleep, waking up early or poor sleep in general. Stress, anxiousness, depressive disorders, drugs, tobacco, alcohol as well as caffeine can trigger or worsen difficulty sleeping. What do we do for the next morning to fight our sleepiness? Caffeine! -which worsens stress/anxiety/depression as well as quite frequently alcohol the next night -all in attempt to trick our bodies as well as thoughts into feeling “well rested.” Our thoughts do not assistance either…we now have problems slipping asleep, what do we start thinking? “Oh bother, I can’t fall asleep…now I will only get 5 several hours of slumber…what if I do not fall asleep…then tomorrow is proceeding to suck…” as well as on as well as on -a vicious cycle! When we have sleep disorders as well as invest our nights rolling restlessly on our bed and also staring in the ceiling we can get desperate to discover a very good all natural sleep aid. In our desperation, we are able to attempt so numerous solutions as well as all natural sleep aid with out examining whether or not they are trustworthy rest products and also whether or not they are very good for our wellness. We will need to not believe all that’s discovered on the internet. Numerous companies are keen only in marketing their all natural sleep aids plus they are not worried about buyer security. So it gets really essential that you just grow to be a accountable buyer by selecting only trusted products. You should not topic your self to unnecessary dangers by deciding on unwarranted goods for the sleep.

You can discover a number of all natural sleep aids on the internet for slumber problems. Most on the items which you come across are compound products that attempt to induce rest by means of chemical substances. This isn’t a natural method of falling asleep. Although you might uncover short-term relief via such goods, you might be really likely to possess complications at a later stage. You may experience a lot of side effects and also wellbeing connected troubles which are extremely complex. You must consequently attempt to stay clear of these kinds of products and solutions and also only consider naturall or herbal sleep remedies with no any unwanted effects. As long as you are going to pick compound supplements you can suffer this kind of complications.

The only reputable sleeplessness remedy therefore is all natural sleep aid. You will likely be in a position to save yourself from unwanted effects along with other wellness issues only by selecting healthy rest aid. If your rest ailments are connected to dietary deficiencies, you are going to be in a position to rectify your troubles in a very healthy way by getting pure sleep minerals. These all natural sleep aid compensate for that minerals which are deficient in our food. As these minerals don’t force your body to rest by means of chemical compounds, it is a organic sleep help. Also these all natural sleep aid do not have any unwanted effects. Even if you take these all natural sleeping aids all of your existence, you won’t produce any dependency or addiction. As opposed to quite a few other sleep products as well as pills, you won’t suffer any hangovers. You are going to be able to carry out normally not having any problem the following day.

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Insomnia, Sleep Disorder? – Sleep Aids & Tips How to Sleep Better

Date: May 5, 2011

Author: admin

Categories: Sleep and Rest

By Sean Harbison

You toss, you turn, but you just can’t get to sleep. Below are several sleep aids and tips to reduce insomnia and help you sleep better. Try to get in touch with your biorhythms by resetting your internal alarms. Get up at the same time in the morning by setting the alarm clock (and don’t hit the snooze button!), and go to bed at night at the same time. Your body clock will adjust itself to the new schedule after a while, which should alleviate the insomnia.

One great insomnia tip is to make your bedroom a quiet sanctuary that creates a tranquil atmosphere. How can you expect to sleep if you have loud music blaring, overhead lights glaring or family members wandering in staring and asking questions? Use your bedroom only for sleeping purposes and soon your mind will begin to understand the relation between bed and sleep. Don’t make it a practice to watch T.V. or read in bed. Also, try installing dark shades in the room. There are many window covering treatments that will help you darken the room so that light is not an issue when you want to sleep. The bedroom should be a place of peaceful solitude, not an entertainment center.

Rub your neck and shoulders with scented essential oils such as jasmine, patchouli or sandalwood. Just a little will do the job and the fragrant oil is a top sleeping aid as it lulls your mind into a blissful, relaxed state.

Keep active during the day and don’t take those “cat naps” in between work hours. Periodic, intermittent naps are not that restful and they are a top cause of sleeping problems. Many parents encourage their tots to play hard during the day, if they want them to sleep good that night. The same works for adults, too. The busier and more active you are during the day, the more tired you will be at night, increasing your chances of a good night’s sleep without any additional sleeping aid being needed.

Eliminate cigarettes, alcohol, caffeine, sodas and other stimulants if insomnia is a worry. You should avoid these products all during the day, but many people with sleeping problems find that they no longer need any extra assistance once they break the caffeine and stimulant habit.

For insomnia concerns a warm, non-caffeinated drink about 30-60 minutes before bedtime will be a wonderful and effective sleeping aid. You can try milk, green tea or another herbal beverage of your choice to cure your insomnia. The warmth of the beverage is a key factor and you need to drink it slowly to maximize the calming effect.

Many people like to try meditating just before bedtime to help them fall asleep This is another safe, effective and very natural sleep inducing technique that can be used as often as needed.

A gentle noise in the background can be just the soothing help that you need. You can find many electronic devices that provide sounds that are known as “white noise” which are powerful enough to distract your mind and let you beat your insomnia problem. The sounds could be those of the ocean, the rainforest or just the soothing sounds of an outdoor rain shower.

Bathing in comfortably warm, not hot, water can also be helpful in getting your mind and body ready for sleep. The warm water will relax your body and lull your mind into a tranquil state. Keep your bedroom cool and comfortable so that warm temperatures are not responsible for making you unable to get to sleep. Some people find that a fan or an open window is just the key step they need to battle insomnia.

Reading for about 30-45 minutes just before bedtime can be a great way to beat insomnia issues. When you are reading make sure that you are in a room other than your bedroom though, or you will just be defeating the relaxing purpose of this activity.

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Sleep: 10 Ways to Get a Good Night's Sleep

Date: May 4, 2011

Author: admin

Categories: Sleep and Rest

Sleep – are you getting enough? For some people, enough is four to six hours. Other people just don’t feel right with less than eight hours. People need more or less sleep at different phases in their life. Women may need more or less sleep at different phases of the month.

The simplest way to tell if you’re getting enough is by noticing every morning – do you feel rested? Do you wake up without an alarm clock and feel ready to get right out of bed and start your day?

Not getting enough sleep is one of the most direct ways that we self-sabotage our success and well-being. When we are better rested we not only feel better, but are calmer, smarter, more rational, nicer to be around and we look better. Why wouldn’t we choose to have that every day??

1. Set the Stage – turn off the computer and television at least one hour before you’d like to fall asleep, and turn on some music that you find relaxing. Test what your stereo system will do when the recording is finished – does it SNAP! or does it “wrrrr” – this will make a difference as you’re drifting off. My CD player makes a very soft “wrrrr” noise (though I honestly can’t remember the last time I was still awake when the CD was over).

2. Music without words – words can provoke and direct your thoughts more than instrumental music or pure vocal sounds.

3. Music with natural “breaths” – music where the soloist takes natural pauses to breathe can help you to slow down your own breath – try flute, other wind instruments or voice (either with no words or words in a language you don’t understand).

4. A good book – For bedtime reading, try to stay away from material that gets you thinking about things you deal with during the day. Magazines or stories that distract you from your own life may help you to drift into sleep.

5. Imagery – If you find that your mind is racing when you are trying to sleep, picture a viewpoint where you’re traveling down a road. See your thoughts as signposts that you’re passing. Concentrate on letting them pass right by.

6. Progressive muscle relxation – Imagine that a ball of light is traveling along your body, beginning at the top of your head, going down to the tips of your toes, and then coming up again. As it passes your muscles, they fill with light and relax.

7. Take a nap – If your sleep has been interrupted or there’ve been unavoidable late nights, an afternoon nap can help you catch up. Experts advise that naps should be taken earlier in the afternoon, rather than later, and that we should keep them to 30 minutes or less. This will avoid disrupting your sleep at night.

8. Lavender Bath – Take a hot bath and add a couple of drops of lavender oil. Lavender has naturally occurring relaxing properties.

9. Chamomile Tea – Calms the nervous system and helps to promote restful sleep.

10. Take 500 mg Calcium with 250 mg Magnesium at bedtime – The calcium has a calming effect, and the magnesium works along with it.

The advice and information in this article is not meant to replace medical advice. If you suspect you have a serious sleeping problem such as sleep apnea, or if you experience insomnia or extreme fatigue, please consult a healthcare professional.

Linda Dessau, the Self-Care Coach, is the author of “The Everyday Self-Care Workbook”. To receive one of her free monthly newsletters, subscribe at http://www.genuinecoaching.com/newsletter.html

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