5 Lessons on Sleep by Arianna Huffington

“If burnout is civilisation’s disease, sleep deprivation is one of its chief symptoms” (Arianna Huffington)

Do you know how many hours of sleep you get per night? If you are reading this post you are very likely to be in the group of people who should get an absolute minimum of 7 hours per night: 7-9 hours.

Are you getting 7 hours of sleep?

Now, I talk a lot about slowing down, about creating balance, cyclical living, presence, mindfulness, all of that.

But somehow I did not even think about sleep as a topic in the tool kit of slowness – even though I have been prioritising mine for a few years now.

Don’t get me wrong. Before I moved here, I used to sleep somewhere around 5 hours a night.

But luckily, I have been inspired to prioritise my sleep and to go to be at a very strange hour: 9pm.

When I first heard abbot people going to bed this early, I thought – is this allowed?

Well, maybe I didn’t think exactly that, but I was a little surprised.

But sleep is an absolute powerhouse of our human nature and it is simply a disgrace that once again man thought he can win over nature.

“Sleep involves a range of complex functions associated with memory, our ability to learn, brain development and cleaning, appetite, immune function, and aging. And that doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of what it does for our mood, our well-being, our creativity, ardour relationships”.

And now I am absolutely obsessed with my sleep and it comes first.

Of course, the art of boundary setting is absolutely paramount in this arena, but for now, I want to share these 5 lessons I learned when the wonderful book The Sleep Revolution by Arianna Huffington fell into my hands.

I hope you find some inspiration here to prioritise your sleep, too.

Sleep is a tool for performance

Let’s cut to the chase. Too many people believe that sleep is a waste of time – or wasted time. For way too long, since about the Industrial Revolution, sleep had to step aside and allow more time for work hours. Men have created a macho-attitude to needing little sleep and the busier you are and the less rest you get the more important you are. (But can we JUST! Just look at this previous sentence. Does it really make any sense? You do not need to buy into this.)

People pride themselves on getting by on very little sleep – but here is the thing.

Sleep improves performance: "To professional athletes, sleep is not about spirituality, work-life balance, or even health and well-being; it's all about performance."

They have found that the performance of athletes increases notably with every hour of sleep gained and some athletes swear by it so much that they sleep around 12 hours a night during heavy training seasons!

The more stress you experience, the more you should be sleeping and resting in order to create a healthy balance.

Sleep enhances mood & emotional intelligence

Not only does a good night’s sleep help regulate your mood, but dreams help you process and recognise emotions. It is also associated with higher levels of emotional intelligence and with a higher ability to empathise with other people’s emotions. Participants at a study at the University of California, Berkeley, “were asked to distinguish among various facial expressions… . Those who had had sufficient REM sleep correctly read the faces; the sleep-deprived group failed. … Dreams also help us process our emotions, since when we don’t process our negative emotions, we are likely to experience an increase in stress and anxiety.” And so, while, of course, it is normal to feel a little heavy or groggy in the morning, getting the right amount of sleep and having a well set-up sleep hygiene or night-time routine in place and sticking to your own boundaries can work wonders for your own mood and your social interactions and relationships.

Don't just wear anything when sleeping

Have you ever set yourself a goal to go for an early workout and to help you get there, you slept in your workout clothes? This is actually really not recommended. Why? Because the message that this sends to your brain is basically hindering the quality of your sleep. You would be much better of sleeping in clothes that are dedicated for sleep only, get a good night’s rest, and have more energy for the infamous workout. “So what should you wear to bed? The short answer is, anything you feel comfortable and relaxed in – except what you wear to work out.” And the best of all, of course, is a pyjama or at least a set of clothes that is your dedicated sleepwear only. Changing into your sleepwear simply sends a message to your brain, it serves as a door between day and night, it is a symbol that it is time to go to sleep.

Naps are amazing

Naps are a great way to refill your energy cup during the day. Unfortunately they may largely still be seen as a sign of laziness or weakness, but let’s just stand above that, okay? The performance-enhancing benefits of naps are no secret to great leaders and what is good for them, is good enough for, well, everyone! “Rather than reach for our fifth cup of coffee or third donught to deal with the usual post-lunch lull, consider a twenty- or thirty-minute nap. ... The science is clear that in a productivity version of rock-paper-scissors, naps trump caffeine." Why is this also important? A good sleep improves our sense of clarity and decision making.

The less you sleep, the more essentially drunk you are.

You don’t want to make life or work decisions drunk. Take a nap. “Experts say that the best ‘circadian timing’ for a nap is the early afternoon” but whenever it works for you is fine. Don’t overthink it, but fill up your sleeping cap. It’s like setting the reset button during the day. You create yourself two days in one with similar benefits of the early morning and post-nap brain. But while naps can help you make up for lost sleep during the night and overall fill up your circadian sleep requirements, they are not meant to be a replacement for your sleep at night.

Natural remedies, soft movement and positive emotions help us sleep

“Richard Davidson, a neuroscientist at the University of Wisconsin who has worked closely with the Dalai Lama on the connection between meditation and science, explained to [Arianna] that emotions like kindness and gratitude help us sleep because they have a calming effect on the mind and reduce disturbing emotions.” So, why not introduce a gratitude or kindness practise at the end of your day? Arianna also recommends a brain dump at the end of the day to empty out all thoughts, and also meditation, qigong, acupuncture, Chinese herb formulas, yoga and calming rituals and more are named as beneficial for preparing for a good night’s sleep. And even words can help! By her bed, Arianna keeps a beautiful quote I cannot not share with you:

“Finish every day, and be done with it. … You have done what you could – some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in, forget them as fast as you can, tomorrow is a new day. You shall begin it well and serenely, and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.”

(Ralph Waldo Emerson)

Takeaway

These are only a few small lessons from this really well-researched book. If you are curious about sleep, are getting less than 7 hours, are looking for the right kick in the butt, or are looking for a simply good read about human nature – I can absolutely recommend this book. Read it. Apply it. There are a lot of handy tips inside the book about creating a bedtime routine or what modalities can help support falling asleep.

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photo credit: cottonbro