At the end of this month I will be traveling to South Africa with my daughter and my girlfriend. I am super excited about the trip and as we get closer to the trip I’m starting to strategize about how to best handle the sleeping during the total of 18 hours, three flights and 10,575 miles it will take to get there. I want us to arrive filled with energy and a joyful mood so that I can take in as much as possible. Which has lead me to thinking about sleep in general and how important it is to regularly get a good nights sleep, to even have a chance of being the person I want to be.
Sleep is necessary. Sleep has been shown to influence everything from athletic performance, concentration and creativity to weight loss, diabetes, stroke and heart attack.
Sleep is also critical for learning. Being well rested helps you acquire information and resting well after you’ve learned something helps consolidate the information and refine new skills.
Sadly, sleep is increasingly difficult for so many of us to obtain. According to the American Sleep Association upwards of 70 million Americans have a hard time sleeping and the National Sleep Foundation reports nearly half of American claim lack of quality sleep has effected their daily lives in the past week.
If sleep is so important for maintaining health and feeling alive why has it become so challenging for so many of us to get a good nights sleep? The answer is elusive and may be different for you than it is for other folks but there are some things you can do to help set yourself up for getting a good nights sleep:
For help calming daytime stressors, soothing your nervous system and tapping into your body’s innate preference for rest so you awaken refreshed and ready for your day, please join me for a 2-hour workshop at the Dailey Method Berkeley Studios on Sunday June 24, 2018 from 5:30-7:30. The cost is $25 for non-members and $15 for members... remember to bring your favorite blanket!
Sleep is necessary. Sleep has been shown to influence everything from athletic performance, concentration and creativity to weight loss, diabetes, stroke and heart attack.
Sleep is also critical for learning. Being well rested helps you acquire information and resting well after you’ve learned something helps consolidate the information and refine new skills.
Sadly, sleep is increasingly difficult for so many of us to obtain. According to the American Sleep Association upwards of 70 million Americans have a hard time sleeping and the National Sleep Foundation reports nearly half of American claim lack of quality sleep has effected their daily lives in the past week.
If sleep is so important for maintaining health and feeling alive why has it become so challenging for so many of us to get a good nights sleep? The answer is elusive and may be different for you than it is for other folks but there are some things you can do to help set yourself up for getting a good nights sleep:
- Go to sleep and wake up at the same time… having a sleep routine helps your body prepare for sleep so you can go to sleep faster and spend less time awake.
- Get regular exercise. Getting the blood flowing during the day will make sure you have adequate oxygen to your muscles and organs. Plus, it feels good to put yourself to bed knowing you worked hard that day!
- Eat your last meal with plenty of time to digest before bed. Timing is going to differ for each person but it is harder to sleep and recuperate when your body is focused on digesting (plus this can lead to heartburn).
- Put the devices away, read a book instead. The kind of light emitting from your smart phone or laptop is stimulating to your eyes and nervous system, literally causing you to stay awake.
- I know you may not love this idea but, don’t drink caffeine. With a 7-our half life, you can do the math: a cup of coffee at noon is life having half a cup of coffee at 7pm and then a quarter of a cup of coffee at 2am…
- Practice something to help calm your nervous system during the day so that you have a baseline of relaxation when it comes to actually putting yourself to sleep (see below for a simple somatic task that can help with this).
For help calming daytime stressors, soothing your nervous system and tapping into your body’s innate preference for rest so you awaken refreshed and ready for your day, please join me for a 2-hour workshop at the Dailey Method Berkeley Studios on Sunday June 24, 2018 from 5:30-7:30. The cost is $25 for non-members and $15 for members... remember to bring your favorite blanket!
These somatic tasks can be done easily without drawing too much attention to yourself and they don’t have to take up too much time.
At least once an hour stop what you are doing stand or sit someplace where you can see the horizon. Gently allow your eyes to focus on a point on the horizon. Keeping your focus on the horizon easily slide your gaze along the horizon a little to the right and then back through center and a little to the left. Do not strain, let the muscles of around your eyes soften and relax the muscles of your face… allow yourself to drift off a bit, maybe daydream.
Rest with your eyes closed for a moment and notice the rhythm of your breath.
Next, float your gaze to the tip of your nose. With your gaze focused on your nose slowly shift your focus left and then right… this will likely mean that you will keep one eye looking at your nose and the other will start to look towards the outside of your eye and come back. If this is challenging, do not struggle. Allow yourself to play with the movement without needing to “success”
Rest again with your eyes closed and notice your breathing. Were you holding your breath?
Now, easily turn your head a little to the right and left. What do you do with your eyes when you turn your head? Do they turn in the direction of you head or do they stay looking forward… or have you don’t something else with them?
At least once an hour stop what you are doing stand or sit someplace where you can see the horizon. Gently allow your eyes to focus on a point on the horizon. Keeping your focus on the horizon easily slide your gaze along the horizon a little to the right and then back through center and a little to the left. Do not strain, let the muscles of around your eyes soften and relax the muscles of your face… allow yourself to drift off a bit, maybe daydream.
Rest with your eyes closed for a moment and notice the rhythm of your breath.
Next, float your gaze to the tip of your nose. With your gaze focused on your nose slowly shift your focus left and then right… this will likely mean that you will keep one eye looking at your nose and the other will start to look towards the outside of your eye and come back. If this is challenging, do not struggle. Allow yourself to play with the movement without needing to “success”
Rest again with your eyes closed and notice your breathing. Were you holding your breath?
Now, easily turn your head a little to the right and left. What do you do with your eyes when you turn your head? Do they turn in the direction of you head or do they stay looking forward… or have you don’t something else with them?