3 Reasons Why You're Sleep Deprived and How It's Impacting Your Life
When was the last
time you had a full night’s sleep? It’s easy to lose sleep especially
with so many distractions and responsibilities. You need to fulfill your
roles and then some, so it’s ok if you spend less time sleeping, right?
You could always make it up later; at least that’s what you tell
yourself. So, how does being sleep deprived affect you?
You may not realize
it, but being sleep deprived affects more than just your health. Your
ability to think and reason, your mood, decision making, creativity, and
many other facets of your everyday life are impacted. Are you feeling
irritated lately? Are you snapping at people or lack enthusiasm? There’s
a good chance a good night’s rest will fix you up.
While sleep
requirements vary between people, you generally need 7 to 9 hours of
sleep daily. You probably already knew that, so why is it so hard to hit
the hay and get those much needed hours of sleep? Here are 3 reasons
why you’re sleep deprived and what you can do about it:
1. You’ve got so much on your mind and it’s keeping you up at night
Look at you, the deep
thinker who has so much on your mind that you can barely contain
yourself. You’re thinking of your work day, the weekend, the hangout,
the vacation, the kids, and it just so happens this is all going through
your head when you hit your pillow. Next time this happens, take a deep
breath. Focus on your breathing and pay attention to the rhythmic rise
and fall of your breath. The key is not to stop thinking but to shift it
to something else.
2. You’re hitting the sack too late
If there’s one thing
college and working on projects has taught you it’s staying up late and
skipping your bed time to complete them. Sometimes you think it’s early,
you could have sworn you blinked twice and its a few hours later. The
time flies especially when you’re having fun and before you know it,
it’s bed time and you still have a few tasks to accomplish. Pay
attention to the time you’re spending on tasks. Set timers if needed or
an alarm that tells you when it’s time to start winding down for bed
time. Think of it this way, if you need to wake up at 6:00 AM the next
day you shouldn’t be getting to sleep at 12:00 AM or later.
3. You have a serious sleep related problem and need to see a doctor
Sometimes you hit
your bed early and just can’t sleep. You can’t find the right spot; one
side of the pillow being too warm or too cold isn’t going to cut it and
you don’t have anything serious on your mind. What do you do? Has the
thought ever crossed your mind that you might have a serious sleep
related problem like insomnia? There are many more disorders besides
insomnia and you may just have one and don’t realize it. Speak to your
doctor if you’re sleep deprived more often than you should be or if
you’re seriously having trouble sleeping. It never hurts to inquire, the
last thing you need is to miss those precious hours of sleep and pay
for it later.
So, there you have
it. You’re sleep deprivation should be a thing of the past now, right?
You’ll be sleeping like a baby in no time because you read all this cool
stuff about sleep deprivation. Sadly, reading isn’t enough. You’re
going to have to take some much needed action. Think about all the hours
you’ve missed and the moments you’ve taken for granted or just huffed
and puffed past. What about the great ideas you’ve let slip by or just
didn’t have the energy to invest into them? Enough is enough; you’ve got
to get enough sleep so you can really make a difference in your life.
You aren’t meant to
be controlled by life, you’re meant to conquer it. So if you aren’t
doing your best and you realize that it’s because you’re always starting
your day on half empty, it’s time you really dug in and changed some
things. Even if you can’t rest at night, make sure you’re scheduling
time nap time. Naps sound like a thing of the past; a luxury babies and
little kids enjoy due to their youth. Believe it or not adults need naps
too. So, when is your next nap time? Get on it.
Here’s something you
don’t want to miss; pardon my pun, but you won’t want to sleep on the
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