GravityEight

Wake Up! And Get to Sleep

The alarm goes off.  We stagger out of bed, wolf down our breakfast bar, and head out the door to face another day.  True, we’ve only had five and a half hours of sleep instead of the eight hours we probably need, but a quick stop at Starbucks and a double shot of espresso will take care of the problem.  Right?

Wrong, say sleep experts.  According to Dr. Michael J. Breus, not sleeping well and not sleeping enough is not okay.  As a matter of fact, we pay a very high price for it.  Sleep deprivation not only makes us feel bad, it significantly impacts our health, performance, safety, and pocketbook.  

There are both short term and long term effects of getting less than six hours of sleep a night (a trend which is growing according to a Harvard Health publication).  In the short term, lack of sleep is linked to:

• decreased performance and alertness
• memory and cognitive impairment
• dtressed relationships
• poor quality of life
• occupational injury
• automobile injury

In the long term, the clinical consequences are even more alarming.  Sleep deprivation is associated with serious diseases such as:

• high blood pressure
• heart attack
• heart failure
• stroke
• obesity
• psychiatric problems like depression and mood disorders
• mental impairment
• fetal and childhood growth retardation

As Breus points out, “One study found that reduced sleep time is a greater mortality risk than smoking, high blood pressure, and heart disease.”  And clinical dietician Timi Gustafson argues that sleep is just as important as nutrition, exercise, and stress management.  Says Gustafson, “While we sleep at night, we heal and recuperate from the wear and tear of our day.”

Chronic sleep deprivation also affects those around us.  The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates conservatively that each year drowsy driving is responsible for at least 100,000 automobile crashes, 71,000 injuries, and 1,550 fatalities.  In fact, sleep deprivation has become such a widespread problem, some states have enacted legislation that defines “fatigued driving” in similar terms to drunk driving.

So if lack of sleep is such a big deal, why do so many of us seemingly ignore the problem and continue to suffer from it? The answer may be found in looking at some of the causes of sleep deprivation. 

The first one is fairly simple…..we just don’t go to bed.  The reasons for this are many:  societal norms tell us we need to be productive and in order to be productive we have to be awake; evening is when we can spend time with family members, or it is the only time we have for ourselves; we have trouble getting to sleep so we postpone bedtime as long as we can; we think we can make up the “sleep deficit” on the weekends (a myth which research does not support).

The second reason many of us are sleep deprived is environmental.  The National Sleep Foundation suggests the following situations are “sleep stealers:” stress (the number 1 cause in their opinion), a room that is too hot or too cold, interruptions from children or other family members, working night shifts, the habits of your sleeping partner, drinking alcoholic or beverages containing caffeine too late at night. 

The third cause is an actual sleep disorder.  More than 85 sleep disorders are recognized by the American Sleep Disorders Association, affecting more than 70 million Americans.  Up to one-third of Americans have symptoms of insomnia and more than 20 million Americans are estimated to have some degree of obstructive sleep apnea.  Although these statistics are formidable, there is good news.  There are a number of treatment options available to those of us who suffer from a sleep disorder.  The key of course is to be aware of it and seek medical advice. 

Regardless of the reason (or reasons) we find ourselves being sleep deprived, experts agree that there are some steps we can take to help rectify the situation:

• Avoid caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine in the late afternoon and evening.
• Exercise regularly but do so at least three hours before bedtime.
• Don’t use our bed for anything other than sleep or sex.
• If we have trouble falling asleep, avoid napping during the day
• If we do nap, limit it to 30 minutes.
• If we can’t go to sleep in 30 minutes, don’t stay in bed.  Get up and involve ourselves in a relaxing activity such as listening to soothing music or reading.
• Consider the sleep environment---make it pleasant, dark, and quiet.
• If you suspect the cause of your sleeplessness is a disorder, see a physician and get an evaluation.

Most of us lead busy, even chaotic lives and knowing that we need more sleep does not always translate to being able to get it.  Furthermore, understanding sleep is not an exact science--- the amount of sleep we need depends on our own personal make-up, so what may be a “deficit” for some of us will not be for others.  That said, both sleep researchers and the medical community in general are now recognizing that chronic sleep deprivation is a significant problem in this country, both to our health and to our safety, and warning all of us that we need to take it seriously.  As Dr. Alex Lickerman puts it in Psychology Today:

We should all be merciless about defending our sleep.  We often think we can sacrifice it temporarily for a variety of reasons, and certainly if we do so infrequently, we won’t likely suffer adverse effects.  The problem comes in when we do so repeatedly, thinking perhaps because initially we don’t suffer any negative consequences that we can continue to function normally with an inadequate amount in the long term.  But nothing can be farther from the truth.  If for no other reason than when we’re well rested we feel more capable of handling the obstacles that invariably arise in life, we should make every effort to conceive of our sleep as a top priority rather than something we just happen to do at the end of the day.

Heeding Dr. Lickerman’s warning might very well change our lives for the better.  And if we still need that stop at Starbucks after a good night’s sleep, that’s okay too.

To learn more about the importance of sleep, read “Sleep Habits: More Important Than You Think,” by Michael J. Breus, Ph.D.; “The Importance of Sleep for Your Health” by Timi Gustafson;  Dr. Alex Lickerman’s article in Psychology Today; statistical reports on sleep deprivation and your safety from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; and sleep disorder articles from the American Sleep Disorder Association.

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