Showing posts with label June. Show all posts
Showing posts with label June. Show all posts
Tuesday, 30 June 2015
Friday, 26 June 2015
I wish... I went to bed earlier (part 4)
Do you want:
Want to know how?
No, it's not dress up as Scooby Doo or pass out on the Tube.
It's sleep for 7 hours or more every night.
Today somebody very special to me sent me a link to this: A Report On Sleep by The Do Lectures. I read it and I loved it and I read it again. It reassured me in so many ways that my wish of the month is important.
Here's why...
According to the report, the average amount of sleep per night is 6 hours. With increasingly busy lives and more distractions online than ever before (ahem), sleep is being sacrificed.
Have you seen the Virgin Media advert, Introducing Night Owl? The owl sits in bed watching box sets on a laptop whilst her partner sleeps. Apparently that's OK and perfectly normal.
Worrying, isn't it.
The report goes on to say that 72% of people don't sleep well after alcohol. I can testify to that! You'll know why if you read my last blog post.
Furthermore, 88% of sleep problems are caused by stress and anxiety. Perhaps many of those people see their GP about it, because the report goes on to state that 24% of people in the UK were prescribed sleeping pills in 1 year alone. That's 15,300,000 people!
So, as a nation, we're either downing caffeine to stay awake, popping pills to go to sleep, or watching Game of Thrones until the early hours. No wonder we're all so bloody tired.
And I haven't even mentioned children or neighbours or jetlag... Let's not go there.
So what's the answer?
The report lists 6 tips:
There are only a few more sleeps left this month. I intend to make them good ones.
(This blog post contains information interpreted by me from A Report On Sleep by The Do Lectures. I suggest that you read the original report for accuracy.)
Still awake? What do you wish you could do? Do it in July. It's only a few days away.
- decreased dependence on coffee?
- increased memory?
- decreased inflammation?
- decreased fat?
- increased creativity?
- longer life?
- decreased risk of depression?
- lower stress?
Want to know how?
No, it's not dress up as Scooby Doo or pass out on the Tube.
It's sleep for 7 hours or more every night.
Today somebody very special to me sent me a link to this: A Report On Sleep by The Do Lectures. I read it and I loved it and I read it again. It reassured me in so many ways that my wish of the month is important.
Here's why...
According to the report, the average amount of sleep per night is 6 hours. With increasingly busy lives and more distractions online than ever before (ahem), sleep is being sacrificed.
Have you seen the Virgin Media advert, Introducing Night Owl? The owl sits in bed watching box sets on a laptop whilst her partner sleeps. Apparently that's OK and perfectly normal.
Worrying, isn't it.
The report goes on to say that 72% of people don't sleep well after alcohol. I can testify to that! You'll know why if you read my last blog post.
Furthermore, 88% of sleep problems are caused by stress and anxiety. Perhaps many of those people see their GP about it, because the report goes on to state that 24% of people in the UK were prescribed sleeping pills in 1 year alone. That's 15,300,000 people!
So, as a nation, we're either downing caffeine to stay awake, popping pills to go to sleep, or watching Game of Thrones until the early hours. No wonder we're all so bloody tired.
And I haven't even mentioned children or neighbours or jetlag... Let's not go there.
So what's the answer?
The report lists 6 tips:
- Take 3 deep breaths before you close your eyes (to reduce worry and stress).
- Before you sleep, write down what you will do when you wake up (to ease your mind).
- Invest in some top notch ear plugs (to block out disruptive sounds).
- Exercise in the day (to get rid of restless energy).
- Set a sleep schedule and stick to it (for consistency).
- Set a timer before you nap for 15 minutes (to avoid long naps).
There are only a few more sleeps left this month. I intend to make them good ones.
(This blog post contains information interpreted by me from A Report On Sleep by The Do Lectures. I suggest that you read the original report for accuracy.)
Still awake? What do you wish you could do? Do it in July. It's only a few days away.
Saturday, 20 June 2015
I wish... I went to bed earlier (part 3)
Every evening at 10pm my mobile phone has beeped at me. Turn off your gadgets! OK OK, hang on, let me just finish this comment on Facebook.
Then, an hour later... BEEP BEEP BEEP! Lights out Richard! Come on, stop what you're doing. Go to sleep. OK, alright, chill, I'll just finish this chapter.
The alarms have worked because they remind me to switch off. A few minutes later, I begrudgingly do what they tell me. The result? An earlier bedtime. More sleep. Can't argue with that.
But my goodness, those alarms aren't half annoying. Nag nag nag!
It's like being told to go to bed by your Mum. No! Why should I? I'm an adult, I'll go to bed when I feel like it! Every time the alarm goes off, I have to remind myself that I set the alarm. The only person telling me to go to bed is me.
So I lose the Kevin & Perry attitude quicksmart and get on with it.
It's only gone wrong twice this week:
The first time, somebody else that I live with (who shall not be named) woke me up at midnight by shouting, and then at 3:30am by moving around the house and operating machinery. Needless to say I was a bit tired and irritable in the morning.
However, instead of staying silent on the matter and stewing with unresolved anger (like I normally would), I confronted the person about it. To my surprise it wasn't awkward at all, and I felt better for saying something. Result!
The second time, I had some fizzy alcoholic drinks and a large meal just before bedtime. I felt so stuffed that I had to prop myself up on pillows like the fattest man in the world so I didn't suffocate on undigested hamburgers.
Not my finest hour.
Then I woke up several times during the night with tummy aches and sweats. Nice. At least I can add another thing to my list of things not to do before bedtime.
I checked out a couple of websites about sleep this week. One was The Sleep Council. New tips I picked up from them included:
The Sleep Council also stressed the importance of buying a comfortable bed. Not surprising when you realise it's funded by the National Bed Federation, the trade association for British bed manufacturers!
The other website was goodlife*sleep, which aims to join up the dots between sleep, health and personal development. It's a new venture co-founded by a friend I met recently, Mag Secretario, who doesn't sell beds, so I signed up for the newsletter.
Crikey, is that the time? Night night.
What do you do to unwind before bed? And what do you definitely not do?
Then, an hour later... BEEP BEEP BEEP! Lights out Richard! Come on, stop what you're doing. Go to sleep. OK, alright, chill, I'll just finish this chapter.
The alarms have worked because they remind me to switch off. A few minutes later, I begrudgingly do what they tell me. The result? An earlier bedtime. More sleep. Can't argue with that.
But my goodness, those alarms aren't half annoying. Nag nag nag!
It's like being told to go to bed by your Mum. No! Why should I? I'm an adult, I'll go to bed when I feel like it! Every time the alarm goes off, I have to remind myself that I set the alarm. The only person telling me to go to bed is me.
So I lose the Kevin & Perry attitude quicksmart and get on with it.
It's only gone wrong twice this week:
The first time, somebody else that I live with (who shall not be named) woke me up at midnight by shouting, and then at 3:30am by moving around the house and operating machinery. Needless to say I was a bit tired and irritable in the morning.
However, instead of staying silent on the matter and stewing with unresolved anger (like I normally would), I confronted the person about it. To my surprise it wasn't awkward at all, and I felt better for saying something. Result!
The second time, I had some fizzy alcoholic drinks and a large meal just before bedtime. I felt so stuffed that I had to prop myself up on pillows like the fattest man in the world so I didn't suffocate on undigested hamburgers.
Not my finest hour.
Then I woke up several times during the night with tummy aches and sweats. Nice. At least I can add another thing to my list of things not to do before bedtime.
I checked out a couple of websites about sleep this week. One was The Sleep Council. New tips I picked up from them included:
- 16-18 degrees celsius is an ideal temperature for a bedroom.
- Write down any worries you have in a diary before you go to bed.
- Practise breathing exercises and visualise the muscles in your body relaxing.
The Sleep Council also stressed the importance of buying a comfortable bed. Not surprising when you realise it's funded by the National Bed Federation, the trade association for British bed manufacturers!
The other website was goodlife*sleep, which aims to join up the dots between sleep, health and personal development. It's a new venture co-founded by a friend I met recently, Mag Secretario, who doesn't sell beds, so I signed up for the newsletter.
Crikey, is that the time? Night night.
What do you do to unwind before bed? And what do you definitely not do?
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