We want it. We need it, and we’re sick and tired of not getting enough of it. Why are we not allowing ourselves to get the rest we crave? Sleep seems to be the first thing we sacrifice when we’re faced with looming deadlines, anxiety, unexpected demands, or opportunities to cut loose and socialize. In our overscheduled and overstimulated lives, not getting enough sleep seems to be the least of our worries, and the last on our list of priorities.
We regularly burn the candle at both ends and promise ourselves we’ll catch up on the weekend, during our vacation, after exams, once we’ve tackled that major deadline, once we’ve stopped binge-watching that hot new series…the list goes on. The end result: We’re a tired lot…whether we’re 15 or 50. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, just one in three American adults are getting enough sleep. And it’s not just adults who are falling short of getting a good quality night’s rest. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, 73 percent of teens are not getting enough sleep.
How Much We Really Need, and Why We Need It
Chances are, if you’re like most Americans, you’re underestimating the amount of daily sleep you need. According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, adults between 18 and 60 years of age need seven to nine hours of sleep per night regularly for ideal sleep health. Teenagers require an average of 10 hours per night, and school-aged kids, toddlers, and babies need even more.
During sleep, we rejuvenate, replenish, and repair our bodies from the physical, mental, and emotional wear and tear of the day. In a good night’s sleep, we cycle through phases of light and deep sleep. In deep sleep, we rest and repair our central nervous system, our muscles, and our minds. When we’re sick, sleep helps rebuild and recharge our immune systems.
Why Not Getting Enough Is a Big Deal
According to the Sleep Foundation, a lack of sleep has been linked to a higher risk for obesity, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, poor mental health, and early death. Furthermore, according to Harvard Health Online, sleep deprivation negatively impacts both our psychological state and our mental health, citing chronic sleep problems as affecting: “50% to 80% of patients in a typical psychiatric practice, compared with 10% to 18% of adults in the general US population.”
Insufficient sleep negatively impacts overall functionality, job performance, and both our physical and mental health, from impaired cognitive and immune system functioning to irritability, anxiety, low energy, and fatigue. Long-term lack of sleep can result in an increased risk of mood disorders and serious risks, including workplace and traffic accidents.
Good and Poor Sleep Hygiene and the Main Offenders
Through poor sleep hygiene, we routinely deprive ourselves of much-needed sleep to the point where we become used to not getting the rest we need. Let’s take a look at the main offenders, and how we can manage, minimize, or eliminate what’s keeping us from getting the sleep we need.
Especially when our day has been super-active, we need to make time before we go to bed to wind down and allow our bodies and minds to arrive at a place of calmness, ready for deep, quality sleep.
Many of us have daily routines or habits that seriously impact our ability to get to sleep and stay asleep. Seemingly harmless daily rituals, including napping during the day, can get in the way of a good night’s sleep. Eating or exercising before bed stimulates the metabolism and, in turn, keeps us awake. Exercising before bed raises our energy levels and gets in the way of sleep. Consuming alcohol, tobacco, and drugs before heading off for a good night’s rest can also negatively impact quality rest.
- Overexposure to technology and screens
We go, go, go throughout the day. Then, overstressed and overstimulated by our electronic devices, we jump into bed hoping for that much-needed good night’s sleep.
An increasingly pervasive source of poor sleep hygiene is technology. According to the Sleep Foundation, “Electronic back-lit devices like cell phones, tablets, readers, and computers emit short-wavelength enriched light, also known as blue light…which has been shown to reduce or delay the natural production of melatonin in the evening and decrease feelings of sleepiness.”
Though it may feel relaxing, binge-watching movies or TV shows on our laptops or phones, checking emails, and scrolling through Instagram and other social media just before closing our eyes overstimulates our minds and can keep us awake into the wee hours, rather than helping us wind down and fall asleep peacefully.
- Inconsistent sleep and wake times
A lack of a consistent sleep and wake schedule also negatively impacts quality sleep. According to Reena Mehra, MD, Director of Sleep Disorders Research at Cleveland Clinic, “We tend to be better at keeping regular sleep-wake schedules during the week when work and school commitments require us to be on a set schedule.” Schedule some time to wind down before bed.
Many people complain that in bed, while they try to fall asleep, their minds often are racing with worries. If so, before bedtime, grab a notepad and create a worry log. Download those concerns out of your head and onto paper. Place this list aside and realize that you can tackle it in the light of day.
If you are not asleep within 10 to 15 minutes of going to bed, you should get out of bed and go to another room. Without engaging in any overly active stimulating activities in the other room, allow yourself to remain there until you become drowsy, and then go back to bed when you are wanting to sleep.
The Good News
The good news is that much of what stands in the way of regularly getting the rest we need is within our control. When we begin to understand and appreciate rest as a means to calm our minds and recharge our energy levels for the day ahead, we will stop thinking of quality sleep as optional. Our health, safety, well-being, ability to function, and energy levels depend on it.
7 Game-Changing Steps to a Good Night’s Sleep
Setting yourself up for a successful night’s rest will allow you to rejuvenate, repair, and renew your energies and wake with a clear mind ready to face a new day.
- Factor a good night’s rest into the equation of your day. Make getting enough sleep as important as getting to and staying at work regularly.
- Maintain consistent sleep and wake times as much as possible. When you begin to see the benefits of regular quality rest, you’ll begin to understand sleep as a priority.
- Set yourself up for sleep success. Consistent, restful sleep requires a calm, dark, and quiet environment. Since you are in bed for almost one-third of your day, make the place you sleep pleasant, cozy, and comfortable.
- Build routines that help you wind down before bed—a warm bath, a little time to meditate or shake off the worries of the day that’s been or is to come, whatever calms the mind. Limit exercise, napping, alcohol, caffeine, tobacco, and heavy meals before bedtime.
- Detach, turn off, and tune out televisions, computers, and phones at least an hour before heading off to bed.
- Get up if you don’t fall asleep within 10 to 15 minutes after going to bed. Go to another room and allow yourself to become drowsy and then return to bed.
- Seek help for persistent sleep issues if all else fails. Talk to your doctor about solutions like participating in an assessment at a sleep clinic to understand medical concerns or clinical sleep disorders, like sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome, and insomnia, that could be impacting your sleep quality. During stressful periods in life, ask for helpful psychotropic medications or supplements to manage better in the short term that may facilitate a restful night’s sleep.