I don’t know about you but I sure didn’t get the sleep I needed on this year’s World Sleep Day. Honestly I had no idea there was such a thing until very recently, even though it has been happening annually since 2008. I spend the majority of my nights awake listening to my fiancée snoring away peacefully, so I can appreciate a day that aims to lessen the burden of sleep problems.
This year’s World Sleep Day fell on March 15 and is an annual event organized by the World Association of Sleep Medicine (WASM). The website for WASM states the celebration of sleep is, “a call to action on important issues related to sleep, including medicine, education, social aspects and driving.”
A 2008 study published in Statistics Canada’s Canadian Social Trends suggested many Canadians are not getting enough sleep. Reasons for sleepless nights are varied and can be attributed to high levels of stress, long work hours and a long daily commute, shift work, not getting enough exercise, having a sleep partner, and having children.
“With today’s hectic lifestyle, it can be hard to find the time for basic activities — even sleep,” writes the study’s author and Statistics Canada senior analyst Matt Hurst.
Thanks for that Matt, it fills me with hope.
As an insomniac, it is nice knowing I’m not the only one who spends a good chunk of every night tossing and turning and cussing in my head. That said, knowing I’m not alone really doesn’t help my situation at all and my situation is not only frustrating but bad for my health.
Lack of sleep results in real problems for exhausted people, including impacting quality of work and quality of personal life. Feeling “grouchy” all the time affects our ability to socialize and network and in my case I can keep it together in public but behave like an angry bull if my fiancée says the wrong thing. I wish it wasn’t so but I take it out on the one I love.
Sleep loss is also associated with increased risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, obesity and depression.
This of course leads to the question: what the heck can I do about it?
There is a long list of things people have suggested I do over the years to get some solid ZZZ’s. I’ve heard everything from “take sleeping pills” to “meditate” or “have a glass of warm milk.” I’m sure these techniques work for some people but not for me. Pills come with unwanted risks and side effects, meditation is something I have yet to truly accomplish, and warm soy milk grosses me out.
After attending a sleep study at a Calgary sleep clinic, I was told I did not suffer from sleep apnea and was instructed to buy the book, Say Goodnight to Insomnia by Greg D. Jacobs.
The book outlines what a sleep routine is, why it’s important and how to stick to it. And let me tell you, it actually works.
A sleep routine is an established set of activities you do or don’t do before going to bed that will increase your chances of sleeping through the night.
Stay away from electronic screens, including the beloved television, for at least a half an hour before heading to bed. The screen’s constant updating is said to stimulate brain activity, which can lead to wakefulness.
And speaking of TVs, keep them out of the bedroom. Your bed should be about sleep and only sleep (and maybe the occasional intimate encounter).
Have a set bedtime and waking up time. It is hard in the beginning (no one wants to wake up early on the weekends) but it honestly does help. Eventually, your body will adapt to this routine and you will get sleepy at the same time every night and wake up on your days off without the screech of an alarm clock.
Stay away from over-the-counter sleep aids. These aids don’t allow you the restful sleep your body needs to rejuvenate and will often leave you groggy the next morning.
Now that I’ve given you my tips, it’s time for me to follow my own advice and get back into my tried and true nighttime routine.
