Looking After Your Sleep

By Lisa Artis

Like proper nutrition and exercise, sleep fulfils a vital role in keeping us healthy and happy. We need a good night’s sleep to ensure we’re feeling fit, thinking sharply and generally to give us the appetite and enthusiasm to make the most of everyday living. However, poor sleep and fatigue are common problems, affecting millions of people world-wide.

We spend a third of our lives sleeping. It’s vital to our health and wellbeing. And yet we don’t always pay enough attention to why we need it. People go to huge amounts of time and expense to eat well and exercise regularly, but without a good night’s sleep all that effort will be in vain.

Sleep doesn’t just make us feel better, it can improve our health by decreasing the risk of heart attacks, diabetes, strokes and it helps us fight off minor ailments, deal better with depression and even tackle weight problems. Lack of sleep diminishes levels of concentration and makes you liable to swings in temper and depression. Sleep affects our learning and problem-solving capabilities. The more REM sleep (dream sleep) we have, the easier it is to retain things that were learned the day before. Problems that appear insoluble can become clear in the morning. GOOD SLEEP AND LIFESTYLE HABITS

So how do we sleep better? To ensure you experience good sleep it’s essential to follow good lifestyle habits and to eliminate the factors that are causing you disturbed sleep. First make sure your bedroom is conducive for sleep. A restful bedroom environment should ideally be cool, quiet and dark and free from distractions – that means removing computers, tablets, mobile phones and even TVs. Avoid screen time at least an hour before bed as the blue light that emits from these devices suppresses the sleep-inducing hormone, melatonin. Comfort - whether that’s the bed or the bedding - also plays a large part in optimising sleep. It’s difficult to get deep, restful sleep on an old, uncomfortable bed. Use adequate bed clothes and pillows. The next factor is a proper bedtime routine. You should be aiming to wind down at least an hour before bed. Do something that you find enjoyable and find alternative ways of relaxing. This could be listening to soothing music, reading, doing some gentle yoga or meditating.

If you struggle to sleep or wake in the middle of the night with your mind – and heart - racing, try to practice some deep breathing techniques. If your mind is buzzing with things to do, write them down. Speaking positive thoughts aloud can help too.

Don’t try to sleep – it needs to find you. Keep your eyes open and gently resist sleep or try to adopt a carefree, accepting attitude to wakefulness. Avoid clock watching if you can’t get to sleep within 15 minutes from switching the light off then get up and go to another room and doing something relaxing.

SLEEP IS INDIVIDUAL

Our sleep isn’t always the same and certainly isn’t always ‘perfect’ depending on what’s going on with our lives and how well we look after ourselves. It’s not uncommon to have an odd night of unrest but it’s important this doesn’t become a regular occurrence.

The key to getting a good night’s sleep is routine: keeping regular hours and going to bed and getting up at roughly the same time every day. This will help to programme the body to sleep better.

We also shouldn’t get too hung up on the number of hours we sleep – quality over quantity – remember one size doesn’t fit all. Some of us cope perfectly well on 6.5 hours of sleep whereas some of us need nearer to 9. The best way to determine if you’re getting enough sleep is to look at how you feel the next day. Being tired doesn’t mean you’ve not had enough sleep. However, if you feel sleepy, exhausted and unable to function then chances are you are not sleeping well.

HOW TO LOOK AFTER OUR SLEEP

How we sleep affects how we feel about areas of our life – whether that’s our mood, our relationships and even our work – which is why we need to protect it. Start by having a good morning routine. Try to wake up at a similar time, and avoid lengthy lie-ins, to strengthen the body clock and, where possible, expose yourself to natural light in the morning to suppress melatonin and boost alertness.

Consider what you do during the day that may impact on sleep. For instance, if you are sensitive to caffeine, avoid it 8 hours before bed so it doesn’t interfere with getting off to sleep. Exercise is great for sleep, and for mental health, but try to do it earlier in the day rather than before bedtime. without further intervention like Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia which looks at sleep restriction therapy (restricting the amount of time in bed) and stimulus control (creating a strong association between sleep and the bed). Sleep is the number one way to improve your lifestyle. For more information visit thesleepcharity.org.uk or contact info@thesleepcharity.org.uk

Lisa Artis

Deputy CEO The Sleep Charity