Sleep Deprivation : It’s Not Just for New Parents Anymore
Thursday, den 25. October 2007
In the last year or so, I’ve found it more and more difficult to not only get to sleep at night, but to stay asleep. Part of it is my own fault. I’m a night person. That’s when I get my best work done. The house is quiet. The kids are asleep. No interruptions.
But the result is I’m frequently still up at 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning, which wouldn’t be so bad, except I have to be up at 6:30 to get my kids off to school. That leaves me (yes, it’s true) 3.5 to 4.5 hours of sleep. But wait! It gets better. Sometimes I don’t fall asleep right away. I toss and turn for a little bit, worry about bills, think of all the stuff I didn’t get done that day.
Now most of the time, I can go back to sleep for a few hours after I drive the kids to school. But if I have transcription work due that morning, it’s just not happening. And even if I do get back in bed, there’s no guarantee I’ll actually get any quality sleep. Many times, the phone wakes me, or the dog next door has a yapping fit.
So I’ve been searching the Internet for information about insomnia. And here’s some of what I found:
- Sleeping less than 8 hours a night leads to obesity.
- The less you sleep, the more likely you are to suffer a serious illness.
- If you sleep less than 5 hours a night, you are at increased risk for high blood pressure.
- Sleep deprived brains don’t make new brain cells. So yes, you are getting dumber.
- Recent studies show that more and more Americans are sleep deprived.
What can you do about it? Here are some tips:
- Only use your bed for sleeping. Don’t lie in bed watching TV or reading. Help your brain to associate the bed with sleep.
- Keep your room dark.
- And this surprising fact which, in my case, explains a lot: Using your computer before you go to bed suppresses melatonin.
- The best temperature to sleep at is between 54 and 75 degrees. My sleep number is 74.
- Get up at the same time each morning, and try to hit the sheets around the same time each night. You have to train your body to sleep.
- Avoid caffeine after 7:00 at night. (All bets are off on this one.)
- Get some exercise.
- Have a light snack of tryptophan before bed. That’s milk or turkey.
I’m going to try some of these tips myself. Maybe I’ll get some sleep tonight and grow some new brain cells. Wish me luck!
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Keeping Up With The Web Design Joneses
Thursday, den 25. October 2007We have not had a good debate discussion around here lately and frankly, I’m bored with the whole Page Rank hullabaloo already, so let’s talk about something else.
I’d like to hear your thoughts on keeping up with the Joneses when it comes to web design techniques, development, and programming.
If you are a designer or developer, [...]
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Will the San Diego Wildfires Be Our Wakeup Call?
Thursday, den 25. October 2007If you’ve been wondering where I’ve been, I attended a wedding for friends of ours in San Diego last weekend. The wedding ceremony was memorable and everyone truly had a…
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Will the San Diego Wildfires Be Our Wakeup Call?
Thursday, den 25. October 2007If you’ve been wondering where I’ve been, I attended a wedding for friends of ours in San Diego last weekend. The wedding ceremony was memorable and everyone truly had a…
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When Was The Last Time You Had Fun?
Thursday, den 25. October 2007I read an absurd statistic yesterday that nearly 80% of Americans don’t have “fun” on a weekly basis.
Are you freakin’ kidding me?
How can 4 out of 5 people not have fun at least once a week?
Is the planet that truly screwed up?
Or is it something much, much deeper?
Can you have fun where others see only [...]
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Growing Your Home Business
Thursday, den 25. October 2007Growing your home business should be an important part of your business game plan. After you’ve been open for awhile, it can be easy to reach a profit plateau, but…
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Growing Your Home Business
Thursday, den 25. October 2007Growing your home business should be an important part of your business game plan. After you’ve been open for awhile, it can be easy to reach a profit plateau, but…
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Attack of the Blob
Thursday, den 25. October 2007Ever had one of those days when you just want to stay in bed and watch tv? Not because you´re sick, but because you just feel lazy. I suspect everyone has those days once in a while, but if you find it hard to get up and get moving every single day, sit in front [...]
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Google Page Rank Drops Like A Rock for SEO Stars and Network Gamers
Thursday, den 25. October 2007Uncategorized | 0 Kommentar »