The Effects of Sleep Deprivation - Adults

This week we will be looking at how adults can be affected by a lack of sleep - worryingly these effects are the same whether the deprivation is caused by insomnia or just trying to fit too much into your day.

Since the beginning of the last century great leaps in technology have promised us more time for leisure and activities we enjoy. Electricity and light-bulbs promised us that we could do more in the evenings and the early hours of darkness. Time to spend with family and loved ones, time to read and do other hobbies rather than going to bed soon after dusk.

In reality some of the advances have actually impacted the amount of time we spend asleep and the impact is increasing year on year. On average humans now sleep for about an hour less than we did 60 years ago.

Television was a great invention but used to switch off in the evenings, now it is available 24/7 and there is always another programme to watch. As the technology improved, TV's have now expanded into the bedroom and have an even bigger impact on sleep levels.

Now the internet and the sophistication of mobile technology means that we are connected to work all the time. The days of leaving work at 5pm and heading home for an evening with the family are diminishing, with only a few occupations left where this is possible. I remember my father being 'on call' one night a week and one weekend in four. This did impact our lives but for the other nights/weekends he was off duty. Now Doctors can be called all the time and are never off duty. This isn't just for the medical profession though - hands up who checks their emails one last time before going to bed, over the weekend or even when on holiday.

Computers have introduced and updated a new range of hobbies and pastimes. Several clients have reported to me that if they can not sleep they get up and play on-line games during the night. These range from card games and chess through to the latest shoot-em dead epic. The thing is they all stimulate the brain and delay the opportunity for falling back to sleep.

Sometimes we expect our brains and bodies to act like computers and switch on and off automatically. We go to bed, so stimulated - through technology, work, caffeine etc - and expect to fall asleep as soon as we hit the pillow. In fact our brains need time to wind down before being relaxed enough to sleep. In the 'old days' the sunset and darkness would be enough of a trigger but now artifical light (especially the lights on computers and kindles etc) stimulate the retinas at the back of hours and delay the sleep mechanisms of the brain kicking in. Reading your kindle, even on the low light setting, sends light directly to your eyes, whereas reading a book with a sidelight slightly behind you sends only the light reflected off the page to your eyes. A big difference.

In this world of physical perfection some people are getting up ever earlier to fit in a workout or run before they go to work. In fact I often see this being offered as a solution to people who say that they do not have the time to exercise during the day - paraphrasing somewhat it is along the lines of 'Get up an hour early and fit in your exercise as it is important to have a physically fit body.' However, unless done with care, the physical benefits of exercise are diminished -if not negated - by the physical effects of sleep deprivation.

So whether or not you have the classic insomnia and lie awake staring at the ceiling or you are getting less than the recommended 7 to 8 hours as you are burning the candle at both ends - the effects on your body are exactly the same.

Sleep deprivation portrays itself in the body in a variety of ways including -
Lethargy
Poor concentration
Decreased performance in both physical and mental tasks
Increase in appetite
Weight gain
Increased risk of heart problems
Increased risk of diabetes
increased risk of strokes

The problem for most sleep deprived adults is that the effects are accumulated over time. You do not get diabetes after just one night of poor sleep. In fact, after just one night of poor sleep you feel ok, it was not a problem and you feel as if you could do it again.
You may have been slower at work, or felt tired on the way home but these effects are diminished by taking caffeine or other stimulants. So you do it again. Pulling an all nighter to get a report done. Staying out late with your friends. Watching a late night TV programme.

In fact your body has been pulling out all the stops to help you feel normal and ok and it has the resources to do this and it these that are causing the long term damage that one day may show up as a heart problem.

When you are sleep deprived your hormones are affected including leptin - that suppresses your appetite causing you to eat more. (The science bit is here). So you may eat a little more after a bad night's sleep, so what? It is the accumulative effect that causes weight gain and the increased risk of diabeties, heart problems and strokes.

Constantly taking stimulants to keep your performance levels high at work may gradually become a cycle of stimulants to wake you and sedatives to help you sleep.

Also if you start feeling tired, you skip on the exercise, further impacting on the problems for your health.

Without becoming a social recluse - what can you do help get back into a normal, healthy sleep pattern?

Make a sleep a priority in your life
Work out how many hours sleep you need a night and start to work towards getting them
Cut out caffeine after 2pm
Stop drinking alcohol 2 hours before bedtime
Take technology out of the bedroom - computers, smartphones, kindles, TV's etc
Have a 'no screen time' hour before bed
Read proper books at bedtime, not kindles
Use things like a having a bath as a wind down time before going to bed
If needed have strategic naps but not too late in the afternoon
Record and watch favourite late night programs at a later date
Have a time limit on social events on 'school nights'

If you are aware of sleep deprivation and the affect it is having on your body, you are already one step along the path of changing your habits. Good luck in your journey.

Sweet dreams

 If you think you have a problem with sleep deprivation and would like help resolving it and do not know where to begin, then please contact me for a free consultation session. charlotte@charlottewelply.com

The Effects of Sleep Deprivation - School Children

In this second post of the series I'll be looking at sleep deprivation and how it affects school aged children, this is an important stage for children's learning and even a small reduction in their sleep can have a big impact on their all round development.

Children need gradually decreasing amounts of sleep as they get older and it is important to check that they are actually getting what they need, rather than what they say they need - which can be two different things!

Children between the ages of five and twelve need between 11 and 12 hours sleep each night. By the time they reach school ages they no longer need a daytime nap, so this all needs to be at nighttime, so a prompt bedtime is essential to make sure they get their full daily sleep requirements met.

In school aged children the growth rate has slowed down and is not as dramatic as when they were younger however still needs to be taken into consideration for their sleep needs. Unlike an adult whose bodies repair and renew themselves during sleep and rest, children's bodies also need sleep time to grow. Even a half an hour sleep deficit each night can also have a drastic affect on children's concentration and learning abilities.

There is a huge demand on children this age from school, homework, sports and extra-curricular activities. Children of this age also have a growing interest in TV, computers, internet and games. There is also an increase in consuming caffeinated products as well and parents have less control over their diets with school canteens and pocket money spends, which makes more demands on their health needs too.

This is also an age where sleep problems begin to show up and there can also be a resistance to bedtime and sleep. It is important to observe and take not of any dramatic changes in children's sleep patterns.
A lack of sleep will show up in mood swings, behavioural problems, lack of energy and enthusiasm as well as a decrease in school marks and grades.

As parents you can help your child by

- keeping an open discussion about the importance of sleep and setting good sleep habits
- keeping bedrooms for sleep and having play areas elsewhere in the house
- keeping computer and gaming equipment out of the bedroom
- having a 'no screen hour' before bedtime to help them wind down for sleep
- encouraging mobile phones to be switched off at night
- ensuring they eat a balanced diet with only a small amount of caffeine

These simple sleep measures will help ensure that school aged children wake each morning ready to get the most out their busy days at school.

If you would like help in changing your children's sleep routines, then please contact me and we can arrange for a free introductory session.

Clearing Clutter to help create the perfect bedroom!

This is a previously published post that I would like to share again to coincide with my Clearing the Clutter for Sleep Event that I'm holding on Saturday. If you would like to join this free event then please sign up by clicking here!  Looking forward to seeing you there! 

In the last post, I encouraged you to look at your bedrooms and see if they could be made more sleep friendly by taking things out. This time, it's about putting things in!!

Doing these things is not going to cure insomnia overnight, but will definitely help. A lot of insomniacs dread going to bed as it brings up associations with not sleeping, with lying in bed awake, tossing and turning, in fact bed is associated with everything but sleep.
In order to start changing this mindset, it helps to make your bedroom somewhere where you want to go, a place that you want to spend time in.

In my London flat, the bedroom was the last place I decorated. My logic went along the lines of the other rooms - where I would be spending most of my waking time and where I would entertain, seemed to be the most important to get looking good. So by the time I got round to my bedroom, it had already become a dumping ground and the thought of moving all the stuff out seemed too daunting, so I kept delaying and delaying! Then when I did get round to painting - I painted it a bright and cheery yellow.

In hindsight all these things were big mistakes and I was not creating a calm, relaxing place to sleep.

Since then I have done a lot more research into sleep and especially (the horribly clinical sounding) 'sleep hygine'. It all makes sense!

Your bedroom should be a calm, relaxing place to be and my bright yellow walls were more stimulating than calming. So think about your colour scheme - is it calming or stimulating?

What is your bed like? Does your mattress need replacing? It is recommended to replace them every 10 years. It is also worth spending quite a lot on a good quality mattress that supports your back. It can seem a waste to spend a lot of money on something as simple as a mattress, but you do spend a 3rd of your life in bed, might as well be comfortable when you're there! Take your time buying a mattress, spend an afternoon or two trying out different ones, go on, lie on all the beds in Ikea!! I like a good quality sprung mattress, but if anyone has tried the tempura ones, please comment below and let us know what they are like.

How about the bedding? I like pure cotton, it feels so good! I also prefer white sheets, this may be something to do with Feng Shui that I learnt in Hong Kong, but it could be just because I like the look, the reasons are lost in the mists of time. I also have one of the 4 seasons type duvets and even in the winter have them in two separate duvet covers as I like to be able to adjust the temperature. I also have a feather duvet as I was going for luxury and the feel good factor, but again, this is a personal preference. I also sleep on an anatomical pillow. At first it was strange but now I really like it and don't feel as if I have the same support from a traditional pillow. I also have a feather pillow that I hug!

The bedroom should also be slightly cooler than the other rooms, as again this helps sleep. I know that I find it difficult to sleep in a heated room and like to have the window open.

I know some people swear by blackout blinds. I did have one when the bedroom window was East facing and the sun would come in early in the morning, but apart from that one place have not felt the need for one. What about your bedroom window, would one help you?

So look through the list and think about the different areas and if there are things you could change. You may say to yourself - but I need to have 3 pillows, but if you are not sleeping with 3, is it worth trying something different? You could be saying - I need to warm whan I sleep, but again, could this be something to change to see if you sleep better?

I used to read these articles and ignore them, but the reality has been that changing things, little by little, has improved my quality of sleep. I love going to bed, I know I'll be cosy and comfortable and that helps a lot when I'm going to sleep. Let me know what works for you - it could really helpful for another reader too.

Sweet dreams!

To share or not to share?

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After last week's slightly tongue in cheek post about duvet stealing, this post is about ways to share a bed in comfort.

Historically people have always shared beds as beds, bedding and even extra bedrooms were expensive and prohibitive. It was only the super rich that could afford to have separate bedrooms. In the past if you were a single traveler you may well have shared a hotel bed with a total stranger. Siblings, if not whole families, would sleep together in the same bed.

There is also the simple fact is that as a general rule, humans do sleep better on their own. Everyone seems to have slightly different needs in terms of warmth, bed softness, space etc. Against this is the need to balance the need for intimacy in a relationship and studies have shown that sleeping separately can impact negatively on relationships.

So what to do if you do want to sleep in the same bed but have different needs?


Respect different body clocks
A night owl married to a morning lark is a nightmare combination for bedtimes, the good news is that the majority of the population are hummingbirds and can adapt to either. However some people do prefer early bedtimes while others would like to stay up an hour or so more. If this is your situation then have a discussion with your partner. Maybe they are not being lazy in the mornings but genuinely getting some restorative sleep? Perhaps it's not the lure of another TV show that is stopping them coming to bed with you but a real feeling that they are not tired. If you do opt for different bedtimes then make sure you have some shared bedtimes, perhaps at the weekend, to keep a level of intimacy within the relationship, as this allows for and respects different sleep needs.


Buy as large a bed as possible 
Though falling asleep wrapped in each other's arms seems the romantic thing, we actually need a lot of space when sleeping and a larger bed will help with this.
If you both like different levels of support from a mattress then it is possible to buy two different mattresses that zip together.
Although buying a new bed may seem like a huge investment, it is the place where you will spend a third of your life and can help reduce stress levels in a relationship. Is that not worth paying for?

Have two different duvets
Although I joked about this last week this is a very easy and practical solution if one person prefers warmer bedding and the other throws of heat (and the covers) during the night. It is also possible to buy different duvet weights that again zip together.

Technology
What to do if one person likes watching TV to fall asleep and the other prefers peace and quiet? As a general rule technology in the bedroom disturbs sleep rather than enhances it, so I do recommend taking out TV's and computers. How about listening to a podcast with earphones, or investing in a 'speaker pillow' that you can plug your mp3 player into. A little light than you can clip onto a book is less intrusive than a bedside light. Likewise eye masks and earplugs can help too. Discuss and compromise, one person should not be making all the sacrifices as this will cause resentment.

Pets
An area that needs discussion and agreement however pets have no understanding of respecting bed space and if they are disturbing your sleep, then they should not be allowed to sleep on the bed, hygiene issues aside, they simply take up to much space. If necessary then they can be trained to sleep on their own bed in your room.

These are just a few suggestions, I would love to hear from you any thing that you have found useful, please comment below.

Sweet dreams. 

The 5:2 Sleep Fest

There has been a lot of talk recently about the 5:2 diet and how it is a way to improve your health into old age and, that as an added consequence, participants lose weight (the natural side effect of being on a calorie restricted regime). I do not intend to go into depth about it in this post - but if you want more information then here is the TV programme that started it all.

The basic principle of the 5:2 fast is that you eat normally for 5 days of the week and restrict your calorie intake on two (non-consecutive) days of the week. This has proved to be one of the easiest type of fast to follow on a regular basis and, for the long term health benefits of a calorie restricted diet to be achieved, this needs to be a lifestyle change - not a short diet fad.

Since the awareness of this diet I have come across many articles proposing the 5:2 principle applying to other areas of our lives. For me, one of the most interesting was the use of technology for a young family and going without the internet for 2 days out of 5 to promote more family time. I am aware that I use too much technology and am quite nervous at the thought of being technology free for two days a week!

This got me thinking about applying this idea to sleep but following last week's theme of pampering ourselves to sleep, I thought about the 5:2 sleep fest, not fast!

In this fast paced world we are slowly becoming more sleep deprived and this is having a long term impact on our long term health. Alarmingly studies have shown that these effects start when achieving just 6 hours or less sleep a night.
So if you are someone who is aware that they are slightly sleep deprived and would like to refocus on their sleep levels then how about considering a routine where for two evenings a week you make a conscious effort to relax, unwind and go to bed with enough time to get a full 8 hours sleep?
This should help restore your sleep levels and help write off recently accumulated sleep debt.
The other 5 nights would then mean a 'normal' bedtime. Please note the word normal there - this does not mean staying up later than usual, just as on the 5:2 diet a non-fast day means to eat normally, not over indulge!

Really enjoy those two nights and pamper yourself into unwinding and relaxing. Just as when fasting for only 24 hours you can tell your 'Hungry Self' that you will eat tomorrow, you can tell your 'Busy Self' that you will do the chores, the projects etc tomorrow. You will also have the added bonus of being more rested and so be able to perform any tasks or projects more efficiently and quickly.

Setting a target of 2 early nights a week also seems more achievable and focused than a general sweeping statement of 'I must get more sleep.' and using the 5:2 principle you can chose which nights of the week you do this to fit in round your lifestyle.

So why not give it a go and see if you can have a 5:2 Sleep fest too!

Sweet dreams!

Pamper yourself to sleep

I don't know about you but I hate rules and guidelines, I find them very restrictive even if they are trying to help me. When it comes to getting a good night's sleep there seem to be loads of them and they can seem quite strict and very forbidding! Take these for example

- stop drinking caffeine in the afternoons
- set up a bedtime routine
-switch off technology an hour before bed time


One of the tricks that I learnt about sleeping well was to change these round in my head, so that they seemed as if I was pampering myself. And I was, because a good night's sleep is an affordable luxury in this fast paced world!

Mentally rephrasing the above statements I came to these conclusions

Why not try drinking herbal teas instead of tea or coffee? When my doctor told me to come off caffeine I found it really hard and felt deprived, and still allowed myself a morning cup of tea. I explored the world of 'decaffeinated' but just felt as if I was being let down as it didn't taste quite right. After a while I came to realize that as herbal teas tasted nothing like real tea it was just a different taste and not a substitute, this helped me a lot. I then discovered that herbal teas did actually have a lot of health benefits and help my body in more ways than just caffeine elimination. Check this page for more information.  Now when people start to make sympathetic faces when I say 'I don't do caffeine', I have to stop them as I genuinely do not feel deprived but feel as if I am making healthy choices for my body.

How about having a bath before you go to bed? This is a lovely bit of pampering, I add some bath salts or oils, dim the lights/use candles, play soothing music to really help me relax and unwind. Then using lovely creams and oils to moisturise my skin and body afterwards and slipping into clean, fresh smelling pj's all adds to the luxurious, pampering feeling. It also means that I have an easily enforced no screen time before bed too! I have a bath whenever I have to get up really early the next morning and see it as a treat not part of a strict routine.

If you are a couple or family why not start having 'Family Time' together each evening? Yes, this means turning off computers, ipads etc so that you interact together in the the last couple of hours before bedtime. Play games, read books aloud, watch a film together (the TV screen is less stimulating for your eyes and brain than a computer/phone screen.) Quality time with your family or partner is always a great feel good session and this way has so many added health benefits as well.

I hope these ideas have given you food for thought on how to pamper yourself a little each day to enable yourself to relax and unwind before bedtime!

Sweet dreams. 

3 things you can do today to improve your sleep tonight!

It's all well and good to 'think' about things to do that will improve your sleep, but when it comes to actually doing them... well that seems to be another story!
Here are a few simple, quick and easy things to do today to help you get a better nights sleep tonight.

Clear some clutter

Is your bedroom a sanctuary or a store cupboard? It is easy to leave things in your room as there is nowhere else to put them. It may start off with one or two objects but before you know it you have boxes of toys, tool kits, ironing boards etc in your room.
Even if your room seems tidy, what is lurking in the cupboards? Under the bed?
I have written before about clearing the clutter in your bedroom - a clear space makes it easier to sleep.
So today take 15 minutes and clear some clutter! You do not have to do the whole room, start with a cupboard or drawer, or tackle what you have stashed beneath the bed. Even just tidying and dusting will help you feel better and give you a nicer sleep environment.

Go for a walk in daylight

In this modern world it is very easy to spend very little time outside in the fresh air and more importantly in daylight. We can drive to work, to the shops, to our friends. Stay indoors at work or when shopping. Go to the gym to work out. have a sandwich at your desk instead of going out for lunch... they all add up to time spent indoors.
Today make the effort to go out for a 20 to 30 minute walk, the earlier in the day the better. Not only will the gentle exercise help you sleep better but exposing your body to daylight will help rest your body clock which re-enforces the daytime/nighttime message that it needs to have in order to sleep properly.
BTW - another benefit of regular walking is weight loss. My sister-in-law successfully dropped two dress sizes before her wedding by walking during her lunch break three times a week!


Write down tomorrow's to do list

I am not a big fan of to do lists - in fact I hate them but when it comes to distrubed sleep trying to remember everything in your head does not help! It can keep your mind racing in the night so that you do not forget them. So the simple act of writing them on a piece of paper before you go to bed can help calm your mind and enable you to sleep more easily. Even if you feel that night time waking has nothing to do with your to do list, try this for a couple of nights and see what happens. You may not be thinking about tomorrows work but subconscious may be keeping you awake anyway in an effort not to forget.
As an example - if I forget to set my alarm (and it's not a weekend) I can not sleep, I will not be thinking about waking up, or work in fact I could be thinking about anything. Eventually, as it has happened a few times now, I'll think through why I'm not sleep and check my alarm to see if I have set it. After I have set it I then find it easy to drift off to sleep. My subconscious refuses to let me sleep until it knows I will be woken in the morning!  Writing things down has worked for many of my clients, some of whom thought it would not, so do try!

There you have three simple things that you can do today to improve your sleep tonight!

Sweet dreams.

The 10 o'clock happy train

The other day I was reading Marci Shimoff's Happy For No Reason. It's a great book, and highly recommended, all about how to gain inner happiness, a happiness that is not dependent on external circumstances.

In one of the chapters Marci suggested a process called the 10 o'clock happy train and I thought it was such a lovely idea I had to share it with you. It is also a very simple idea, easy to implement and has great benefits.

Marci suggests it as a way of boosting your energy and therefore your happiness levels. It's a two step process

1 - Make the promise to yourself to get to bed by 10 pm for three days in a row

2 - Do it!

That's it. So simple.

Sleep is so low on the list of priorities in this modern world, there is so much to do that skipping half an hour or so of sleep here and there seems the easiest thing to do to enable us to fit more into our lives. It appears to have no immediate effect, we feel fine the next day and, even if a little groggy, we cope well. Over time though these things build up and we get grumpier and less able to cope. Marci's book focuses on happiness and that being tired and grumpy is not going to help your happiness levels, so committing to go to bed earlier will help by restoring some of your sleep debt. After 3 nights of restorative sleep you will have greater energy levels, feel ready to cope with anything and feel happier as well.

So, who wants to try this and see what happens to their energy and happiness levels? It may mean not checking your emails one last time, or recording that late night TV programme you want to catch but the benefits will outweigh the things you 'miss out' on!
I was on holiday last week and burnt the candle at both ends, so will be committing to the 10 o'clock happy train for the next 3 nights. Anyone else want to commit as well?

Sweet dreams.

3 surprising sleep saboteurs!

You have read all the information about 'Sleep Hygiene', you've stopped drinking caffeine after 2 pm, you've turned the computer off an hour before bedtime, but you still can not sleep properly. What is going on?

Here are three things that you may be doing that you think may help you sleep better but in fact can actually affect your sleep.

Nicotine
This is a surprising one as many people associate cigarettes with being a sedative and having a calming and relaxing affect on the body. When you are feeling uptight, then having a cigarette can help calm you. In actual fact although a cigarette can have a calming effect, nicotine is a stimulant and having a last cigarette before bed is actually putting a stimulant into your body. The more you smoke the stronger this affect is and may cause you to either have difficulties falling asleep or contribute towards a disturbed night's sleep.
Is this another reason to help you kick the habit?

Alcohol
Yes, it does seem that I am giving all the guilty pleasures a bad rap, but alcohol is another offender too! A quick 'nightcap' before going to bed, may help you drop off to sleep, however the following processes that your body goes through to metabolize and clear the alcohol from your body is a withdrawal process. It is this process that causes you to wake in the night with the sweats and possible nightmares. If you want a drink, then make sure you allow time for the alcohol to metabolize before going to bed.

Pets
A strange one - any people find that the idea of having their pets sleep with them comforting and therefor a good thing to have around when going to sleep at night - a reassuring presence. First of all their movements on the bed can wake you, or contribute towards a light sleep. I remember my childhood pet cat being able to take up the entire space of a single bed by spreading out in his sleep. Remember cats and dogs do not think about sleeping considerately and allowing you space, unlike a human partner (then again....).
There is also the issues of allergies. You can be mildly allergic to animal hairs, which may not show up in the day time, when there is more 'space' between you, but when sharing the same sleeping space these can show up as coughs, running noses etc which will disturb your sleep.
Try banning your pet from the bedroom for a week and see if this improves your sleep.

I hope these tips help improve your sleep, if you have any questions then do please get in tough via the comments box or via email.

Sweet dreams!

The Powercut

There was a local powercut in my street on Sunday night. This is quite rare and the last time I remember a power cut was several years ago when I was living in London, so I am really grateful that it doesn't happen that often. I am also aware that this blog has quite a global audience, so powercuts maybe more frequent for some people reading this.

However the timing could have been better as it was 15 minutes before an on-line event, I was organising, went live! It was frustrating knowing that it was all happening and I wasn't able to monitor the progress or sort out any blips. It was also frustrating seeing the lights on in the building opposite and having the internal debate with myself about whether I should go to the local bar and log on to their wi-fi.

Aside from all that, it was quite interesting experiencing a black out. The power went at 6.45pm as I was doing the ironing (in fact there is still a huge pile to be tackled, watching me write this!) At first there was the hope the power would come back quickly.
It was still daylight, reading was an option - until it got to dark to do that.
I had one head torch but don't think I've replaced the batteries on that, so didn't want to use it too much as I didn't know if they would run out.
So then it was the candles - which seemed very romantic at first, but were difficult to read by or do anything by, I have to say it was fun at first and quite novel but not something to be repeated too often!

Then I had a bath reasoning that by the time I'd soaked for a bit the power would be back on, it wasn't. This made the internal debate about the local bar even more difficult as I was now in pyjamas and didn't want to get dressed again!

Cooking by torch and candle light is interesting (but fortunately have gas!)
Once the washing up was done - what was there to do?

Yep, the night owl was curled up in bed by 10 pm, almost unheard of!

It made me think a lot about how our sleep problems are quite a modern day phenomenon. I am not for one minute suggesting that insomnia is a modern day problem, there are enough references to it in literature to know it has been around a long time.

It is the other sleep problems that we have that are more modern in making. The fact that we have distractions such as TV and the internet, smart phones, kindles - all of which raise the level of brightness that we expose our eyes too just as we should be doing the opposite and preparing our bodies for the night, the dark and bed.

How modern technology, that is supposed to liberate us and make lives simpler, actually makes it more difficult to have 'down time' as we check our emails one last time before bed, or 'just listen to the news headlines' or 'just watch this one more programme', before switching off.

Computer games (of all sorts) where we think 'Just one more round/level/game etc' before going to bed.

All this is eating into time where we used to be able to unwind and relax. The ultimate result of this relaxing and unwinding was a better quality of sleep for most of the population. No wonder that we are facing a health crisis in the West - with raising rates of stress, diabetes, heart disease, obesity. All these health problems have been linked to people who suffer from sleep deprivation (ranging from insomnia to not allowing enough time to sleep).

So my lesson from the powercut is to really make an effort to unwind and relax in the evenings - dim the lights, switch off the technology and allow time for me.

I hope I can do this long enough so that it becomes a habit!

The drugs don't work.... (well, not in the long term)

Ok, so I have shamelessly taken the title from The Verve classic - please forgive me.

I've know for ages that sleeping tablets don't cure insomnia, at best they help you get some sleep, but will leave you feeling drowsy, foggy, lethargic and not exactly raring to go. After a while your body becomes used to them and they lose their potency, so higher and higher doses are needed, or to change types.

I have used sleeping tablets in the past. Living in the UK these were difficult to get hold of. I'd be lucky to get a fortnight's supply 'to get back into a sleep pattern', however this never seemed to work. After a few years I had this system going with my doctor where he would prescribe me a pack about twice a year, and I would use half a tablet at a time, normally when I'd had a bad run of nights or had something important to do the next day. This didn't really help change my sleep patterns but was enough to stop me going over the edge. This worked well enough for another few years until one day I was in the doctor's surgery, crying my eyes out, absolutely exhausted from sleeping about 2 hours a night for nights on end and being told that he couldn't give me any more tablets as it was against the new Trust policies.
Then, when asking if there was a sleep centre he could refer me to, being told there wasn't and being presented with some leaflets about reducing caffeine and having a bath before going to bed. At this point I hadn't drunk caffeine for about 15 years. I was so angry that my one source of help, the tablets, were being denied me.

Now, when I look at some of the insomnia forums on the web and see people writing up what combinations and doses of drugs they use to go to sleep, I am quite glad that I was never given the option to go down the taking ever increasing amounts of drugs route. It forced me to look into alternative methods to change my sleep patterns.

Last night I was interviewing a friend and colleague of mine, Warren Broad, who is a clinical hypnotherapist, for my upcoming Sleep Summit and he told me why the drugs don't work long term, it was really interesting.

So here comes the science bit -

When going to sleep, your brain slips from being fully conscious into a state of trance, and then into sleep. We often slip into a state of trance during the day without realising it, normally when we are doing something that is repetitive or part of our routine. It is so familiar to us that we don't have to concentrate fully. The example he gave was driving into work. How many times have you got to work and can recall nothing about your journey?

Being in a state of trance is an important part of drifting off to sleep. You have probably been jolted out of this state by a loud noise etc, just as you are drifting off to sleep and have to then take the time to get into that state.

Sleeping tablets work by taking you directly from a state of waking into a state of being comatose, missing out the state of trance. Being comotosed also means that you are unable to dream, which is an important part of sleep. It is the not dreaming that leaves you with this feeling of drowsiness in the mornings, because despite actually sleeping, it has not been a fully restorative sleep. There are also the unpleasant side effects of the drugs themselves such as a dry mouth to contend with as well.

So sleeping tablets can not help long term, as they do not allow the brain to go through the stages needed to drift off to sleep. For most people insomnia is a long term problem and the ability to turn off and drift off has been lost. It is a common complaint for those with sleep problems say they cannot switch of the mental chatter in their brains, and it is the ability to stop this chatter that allows you to go into trance and then into sleep. This is why methods that help you retrain your brain (such as hypnosis and behaviour therapy) have proven to be more effective at helping with long term sleep problems than using sleeping tablets.

If you are interested in learning about methods to help you improve your sleep, then please check out the Sleep Summit here.

At this point I would like to say that there are of course situations where sleeping tablets are the most effective and helpful course of treatment and should be used when prescribed by a doctor. As stated I have used them in the past and been grateful for the sleep they gave me. This article is not intended to replace any medical advice and you must discuss with your doctor first any changes you may wish to make to your prescription. 

Too hot or too cold to sleep?

A sudden dip in the temperatures across Europe and a snowfall last night and it seems like the right time to write this post.

I woke up in the middle of the night the other night and couldn't get back to sleep for a while. I then realised that I was slightly cold. I didn't feel cold in that I was shivering, or my hands and feet were like ice blocks, but just slightly cold. I pulled a blanket on top of my duvet and was asleep within 10 minutes, just that little bit of extra warmth making the difference.

There is a very narrow range for an optimum temperature in the sleep environment for humans, which is between 18 and 22°c (65 - 72°F). The body temperature dips at night to allow sleep and so being in a cooler environment helps the body achieve this. However if it is too cold, then your body is working to warm you up and therefore makes it difficult to sleep.
I was brought up in a home were central heating was sparsely used, so prefer a cooler sleep environment. I find it difficult sleeping in houses were there is 24 hour heating (which happens a lot in Europe with communal heating for a block of flats).
Of course if you were brought up or live in a warmer environment/climate you become used to higher temperatures, but when temperatures fluctuate over the year, you need to try and keep the bedroom temperature as steady as possible.

Here are some good sleep hygiene practices for the different seasons -

In Winter
- keep the thermostat cooler in the bedrooms (radiator thermostats help with this) or turn the temperature down half an hour before going to bed.
- try experimenting with layering - using different tog duvets and blankets as well as warmer bedclothes, pyjamas and bedsocks!
- when your partner has different needs, try using separate duvets or perhaps sharing a duvet and one partner having a light blanket over them as well.

In Summer
- keep the room as cool as possible during the day, closing the curtains to keep out the sun, blackout blinds etc.
- use a fan to keep the air circulating and put a container of frozen water in front of a fan
- avoid memory foam pillows as these can heat up the body.
- turn off or remove all unnecessary equipment, as these can heat up a room, even incandescent lightbulbs can heat up a room!
- if you use it, check the air-con is not too low, as too much of a drop can make it too cold to sleep.

Here in France the temperature can fluctuate between overnight lows of -12°C to overnight highs of 35°C, so over the year I employ many different techniques to try and maintain the best sleeping environment, in winter I have a fleecy undersheet, high tog duvet, blanket and sometimes a hot water bottle. This all gradually reduces to a sheet and fan in the high Summer.

If you're not sleeping too well then take a look at the temperature in your sleep environment and see if there anything you can change to get a better night's sleep.

Sweet dreams!

New year, more sleep?

I never usually make New Year resolutions, mainly because my birthday is at the beginning of January and it's no fun starting a diet on the 1st of Jan when you know that you're going out celebrating in a few days time!
Yep, I was the person who gave up smoking on the 10th January 2000, I still get weird looks from people when asked about that.

However having this slightly more realistic time frame works and makes me far less likely to give up on my new plans after a few days.

The other thing that I have found works well is to have positive resolutions rather than negative one or at least to phrase them in a positive way. Wordplay helps a lot in making it more likely to be a successful resolution.

Telling yourself that you are going on a diet immediately fills your head with images of boring food, no treats, a strict regime etc. Telling yourself that you are going to make healthy food choices gives you a wide range of foods to choose from and more options to think about.

Likewise telling yourself that you are going to get fit, or have a slim body feels so much better than telling yourself you are going to lose weight or go jogging every day.

You can also try positive resolutions such as making 2013 the year you complete a 10k run, or go skydiving, write a book or a blog. It needn't be a big (or even expensive choice) you can resolve to say 'Yes' more often and see where that takes you, or start writing a gratitude diary every evening and see how that puts you in a more positive frame of mind. You could try smiling at passers-by in the street - it makes both you and them feel good, or giving out more compliments.

One of the things that I'm adding to my list is to go to bed a little earlier than I do at the moment! On 'school nights' I tend to get around 7 hours sleep but this is not enough for me, so I need to go to bed a little earlier. I know it will help me both physically and mentally (more energy, stamina, reduced appetite etc), but tend to find myself just checking out 'one more thing' on the internet before going to bed. The worst thing is that I know that I'm doing it and still do nothing about it!
In order to make it easier I'm going to set my alarm to remind me to go to bed! It's something I read about and thought 'Hey that's a great idea' but have never done. So 2013 is going to be the year I do it. I'm also going to make it realistic and aim for 15 minutes extra sleep to start with, I know that if I set for an extra hour I'll still think I have plenty of time for sleep and so ignore it and stay up! I feel I will be more successful if I do gradual increments, well I've got a whole year to get there!

Why not make 2013 the year to improve your sleep? It will reduce your stress levels, improve your health, help you lose weight and give you more energy - all pretty good results from one resolution!

Sweet dreams.