Why should you care about these?
We humans run on circadian rhythm.
And why is that important to you?
Because we use internal and external cues.
If you didn’t see Tip One, you can still catch up.
You will need to add ALL the tips together to begin creating the best night's sleep
Improve your chances of sleep
Here is Tip Two -
We need to create sleep pressure.
We need routine.
Three Steps:
1. Create a routine. Prepare for bedtime with a pattern. This will begin to signal to your body that it's time to wind down.
2. Restricting your hours in bed*. Do NOT work on the basis that more hours in bed means an increased chance of more hours of sleep.
3. Set a time in bed for example 11pm-6am. Stick to this and once you have learnt to sleep fully and deeply within these hours you can slowly increase it. If you need more information or help please message me your questions)
Why do we need to sleep -
It is critical for:
Immunity,
Metabolism,
Learning,
Many vital functions,
Processing and retaining information,
Performance and productivity,
Judgment,
Reducing stress and anxiety
So sleep - leads to better alertness, energy, functioning, happiness, restoration, overall better mental wellbeing
But what are we actually doing when we sleep?:
Memories are processed and consolidated. Then they are moved to LT memory.
Toxins are removed (if they are not removed this can result in Parkinsons/Alzheimers)
Growth is accelerated - growth hormones are released - thus repairing muscles and cells, skin and other organs, healing damage from stress
Hormones are regulated.
Sleep can be a learned habit. If you have sleep issues then you may have picked up some bad habits. We can develop unhelpful habits but the good news is that we can correct and improve them. We can now learn right.
Internal cues are regulated by the SCN Suprachiasmatic nucleus .
This is a bilateral structure in the hypothalamus.
It is the central pacemaker of our circadian timing.
It regulates most circadian rhythms in the body.
It regulates the timing of melatonin release.
This melatonin increases sleep propensity about two hours before a person's normal bedtime.
We have receptors in our eyes which are not for vision but for light reception.
It also controls the sleep-wake cycle, promotes arousal and REM sleep and sleep consolidation.
Light resets the oscillations in the SCN.
The light comes in through our eyes.
Our zeitgebers are our time keepers. Using external cues are as follows:
environmental - light, exercise, temperature, gut function
So your habits become important to getting good sleep.
Tip one talked about light and getting outside.
Here we talk about routine and setting up a pattern.
Creating a routine becomes important.
Especially when sleep has gone awry.
As humans, we run on a circadian rhythm with internal and external cues.
Don’t set yourself an early bedtime in the hope that you will clock up more hours.
Create sleep pressure - go to sleep when you are tired.
*yes, really!
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