5 min read
A lot on your mind? Just can’t stop these thoughts all the time? We’ve all been there. If only there was a rulebook that guarantees a good night’s rest... and you may find that the harder you try to sleep, the more difficult it becomes. Fortunately, there are things you can try to enhance your chances of finding a better quality of sleep.
Understanding more about sleep may help you have a better relationship with it. In Matthew Walker’s book Why We Sleep, he is quoted to describe sleep as “treatment that makes you live longer”. Other than giving us a sense of restfulness and make us feel energized for the day that follows, sleep is a vital process that serves many biological functions of our body. Without getting too deep into what REM and Non-REM sleep cycles do for our brain, it is important to know that when we sleep, our body remains at work: it fixed and adjusts things to maintain our body for its daily functions.
When we sleep, our bodies undergo several physiological changes, such as slowed heart rate, reduced body temperature, and a more systematic change in our breathing rate, it is also during sleep that our kidney activity will be reduced, thus producing less urine. It is said that during sleep is when our growth hormone, somatropin, works the most effectively. Somatropin is responsible for stimulating and regulating the growth of our cells: when we have good cell metabolism, our bodies are more able to replace old, damaged, or harmful cells, thus keeping our bodies healthy and functioning effectively.
When we lose sleep or don’t sleep well, we miss out slightly on the repair of our bodies and benefit less from how the sleep process removes impurities from the inside out, which can accumulate overtime in forms of illnesses or diseases due to a weakened immune system. According to Chinese medicine, our body has a set time period during the night for detoxing and repairing of individual organs, for example, during 1-3AM is when the liver is in ‘deep cleansing’ mode, and this is the time where toxins, from what we eat and drink in the day up until evening, are removed. If you’re waking up around the same time during the night, maybe check out which organ it relates to, and see if you may need to alter your daily habits or diet to improve that.
Insomnia is more than just not being able to sleep. There are differing degrees to its symptoms; acute insomnia involves occasional sleep disturbances that may be due to recent stress-inflicting issues in life, and usually will go away by themselves once issues are resolved. Chronic insomnia, however, can occur when an individual experiences a lack of sleep for at least 3 nights per week, for at least 3 months. This pattern will greatly impact daily life, as well as mood and other physical functions. Lack of sleep doesn’t only consist of not being able to get to sleep (onset), it also involves struggles to stay asleep during the night, as well as how we wake up from a long night’s sleep but still feel tired.
According to a local study, over 2 million people in Hong Kong suffer from insomnia. On average, Hong Kongers only sleep 6.5 hours, which is 1.5 hours short of a typically ideal 8 hours per night. From work and financial to social issues, living in Hong Kong can carry considerable stress and pressure.
This is a major issue as along with nutrition and physical activity, sleep is the third pillar of good health. Considering that we spend a third of our lives asleep, it is essential to pay attention to our sleep habits.
According to sleep experts, adults need around 7-9 hours of sleep per night. Getting there may take some adjusting to current habits, but trying doesn’t cost much and is worth it.
Make your bedroom a cozy, inviting sleep space. The activities associated with specific spaces also influence our chances of getting good sleep, so it’s important we separate space more strictly. These tips are a good start:
Once you finally get some good rest and experience working through the day refreshed and energized, you won’t want to go back to your old routine!
We hope this article can help you catch some better z’s… share it and subscribe to our newsletter for more interesting articles about health and well-being!
This article was independently written by Healthy Matters. It is informative only and not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. It should not be relied upon for specific medical advice.
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