Why Sleep is Important?

As the pandemic sinks in many of us are working from home. In the other parts of the world, many are in lockdown with less physical activities. This can pose a significant threat to our quality of sleep. It is important to maintain optimum sleeping hours to maintain optimal health and well being. It is as vital as regular exercise and diet. Therefore, it is important to sleep better every night. Some of the benefits of having quality sleep are as follows:

 

Enhances Concentration and Productivity

There are many studies suggesting that a good night’s sleep seriously boosts productivity. One study of 4,188 US workers found “significantly worse productivity, performance, and safety outcomes” among those who slept less. It was estimated a $1,967 loss in productivity per week due to poor sleep. A study on sleep duration and academic performance among student pharmacists found that adequate sleep at the night prior to an examination was positively associated with student course grades and semester GPA’s.

 

More Social and Emotional Intelligence

Sleep is linked to our social and emotional intelligence. People who do not get enough sleep are likely to have difficulty in identifying the emotions of others. There are research studies that a person’s emotional empathy is less when they do not get adequate sleep. So it is wise to have better sleep every night.

Sleep and Mental Health

There are many studies showing how sleep contributes to mental health. Many of the mental health problems being associated with inadequate sleep or not getting sleep. Some psychiatric conditions can cause sleep problems, and sleep disturbance can also exacerbate the symptoms of many mental health conditions including depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder.

 

Strong Immune System

Sleep helps the body repair, regenerate, and recover. In one of the articles of Mayo Clinic, it was mentioned that people who don’t get quality sleep or enough sleep are more likely to get sick after being exposed to a virus, such as a common cold virus. Lack of sleep can also affect how fast you recover if you do get sick. Therefore it is a must for anyone in the quarantine or outside to have adequate sleep to have a good immune system to fight the pandemic.

In addition, infection-fighting antibodies and cells are reduced during periods when you don’t get enough sleep and making yourself vulnerable to getting diseases.

Therefore, if you are not getting to sleep in this epic of the pandemic here are some of the strategies to have quality sleep:

 

Get Into a Routine

Stick to the same sleeping schedule for every day. For example, try getting into bed at 10 PM and wake up around 7 AM which gives you adequate hours of sleep. It will help you to have sound sleep every night.

 

Find Your Own Stress Management Techniques

Stress often keeps one awake and vigilant. It is important to have our own stress management techniques such as:

 

Avoid Using Phone

If you are looking at the screen at midnight, your brain is going to get confused and think that the sun is out – making it even tougher to fall asleep.

 

Less Caffeine

Caffeine can have a disruptive effect on sleep. The most obvious effect of the stimulant is that it can make it hard for you to fall asleep. Make a habit to say  “NO” to caffeine in the evening.

 

Make Sure Room is Dark

Light and darkness are powerful cues that tell our body it’s time to rest or get you ready for a productive day. Insufficient darkness throughout the night can lead to frequent and prolonged awakenings.

 

Exercise Regularly

Research indicates that exercise – in particular, regular exercise that is part of a consistent routine can help boost sleep duration, in addition to sleep quality. I have experienced it myself where I used to do Yoga and had sound quality sleep. While in quarantine or at home you can do indoor exercises like Yoga, Zumba, etc…

 

Maintain Sleep Diary

It is important to maintain a sleep diary if you are not able to get good sleep. It helps to track how much quality sleep you are getting. The national sleep foundation has a good sleep diary that one can use. You can download it from here Sleep Foundation Organization.

 

These are some of the simplest ways that can help one to have good sleep and also maintain the productivity of your work.

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