Sleep

Sleep: The Fundamental Habit

What is sleep? It is a naturally recurring process of the body and of the mind. We live in a state of constant flow between periods of rest and wakefulness controlled by an inner “clock”.While we sleep our bodies appear inactive but they are still at work, developing and maintaining the support for healthy brain function and overall good health.

Sleep strengthens our immune system and helps us build the physical and emotional resilience needed to function on a daily basis.

Back to Basics: Sleep is Essential for Humans

Sleep plays a vital role in establishing good health and well-being.
Sleep helps our brain function in all aspects of our functioning, from managing our emotions to lowering our risk of disease to weight control and physical fitness.

Without sleep, our brains are not able to effectively process all the material that we encounter during the day and our ability to process this information and set a path for achieving our goals is severely impaired.

Daily Planning for Sleep

Individuals set daily agendas or schedules for day to day life and this plan needs to include a section for Sleep Habits. Sleep fuels creativity, recovery and overall good health. Why then wouldn’t a section in your agenda for sleep planning not be there? We schedule appointments for everything from dentists to carpooling so planning for something as vital as sleep is essential.

Practical Tips and Tricks for Sleep

Set up your own personal sleep hygiene plan.
Plan for success with your sleep routine.
Include a regular bed time and rising time. Our brains learn by repetition so setting this routine and sticking to it will help develop a good sleep habit.
Avoid heavy meals too close to bedtime.
Adopt a no tech zone an hour before this time.
Set up a comfortable sleep environment that addresses the light and temperature to help our bodies relax into their stand-by roles.
If falling asleep is an issue, don’t lie in bed and fret about why you’re not sleeping. This will just teach your brain that bed is a place of alertness.
Give yourself permission to take a bit of time to destress and enter a sleep readiness state of mind.
Use tools like meditation, relaxation breathing or soft music to create the soothing ambiance you need to fall asleep.