Sleep

Finding your zzzzzzzzzen!

Of course having children I knew that sleep was important to function.

Like meditation, yoga, running, training, you don’t have to be great at sleep to get to the point of it. You just have to make a plan, try, try again, and again, keep going, and never stop pursuing being your best. How do you “try” to sleep?

Well like drinking water (Liquids) I make a plan and if I feel the urge I go for it. That isn’t to say that if I am in the middle of the grocery store and feel a nap coming on that I am going to plop into the marshmallow rack and take a snappy nap (a 10-15 minute refresher) but I am going to do it if I am home. My point is; you need to think about what is going on in your sleep-life. Make a plan, try things out, and get some rest.

Everyone is different. There is not a magic number. Age, habits, schedules all come into play. Have an intrapersonal dialogue about what makes you feel restful and ready for sleep. Figure out after keeping a journal for a week, how much sleep you think you might need. This is not a one stop shop blog and you are not a one snuggie fits all person. But here is some guidance:

If you are tired during your active time then you probably need more sleep at night or need to arrange for a nap in the daytime if possible. Just like if you are thirsty drink water. Mr. Rogers was a true believer in the nap. I am too. There are other natural options as well: a warm bath stepping into a cold room, Chamomile teas with Valerian Root (seek advise from your physician on this, Valerian Root can be dangerous if you are scheduled for surgery), sleep audio, white noise, all of these have shown to be beneficial to assisting in the process of falling asleep. Personally I put a pillow over my ear (not my whole head) and I turn the tv on low volume and soon I am off to sleep. The quiet voices help lull me to sleep.

Getting good rest is becoming a hot topic among the health conscious because SCIENCE! I love science! You probably have read the articles, you have seen the posts, you might have watched some interviews on the topic. The research and data is not hard to come by. Sleep is important.