Sleep – the Best Gift You Can Give Yourself
- Stacey-Anne Bistak
- Nov 15, 2024
- 7 min read
Updated: Mar 6
In the Fall and Winter months, in the Northern Hemisphere, we’re more likely to find it harder to wake up in the morning. That’s because the sun rises later than in the summer months. Nature offsets the late sunrises with early sunsets. But that leaves us with less daylight hours. It should give us a clue as to what we should do: go to bed earlier.
However, we are creatures of habit. Our regimented lifestyles and projects at hand do not always allow for early bedtimes. Moreover, our reliance on the lightbulb blinds our reality of nature. (I’m not blaming you, Thomas Edison, for your great and commercially successful invention. Thank you!) When we finally cozy up in bed, sometimes, sleep eludes us. It could be that the activity and stress of the day -- both physical and mental, makes us too wired to fall asleep. For some people, it could be the opposite -- the lack of enough stimulation and physical activity can lead to insomnia. What makes us feel sleepy? Melatonin. It is a hormone that plays a crucial role in regulating our circadian rhythm or the sleep-wake cycle. And, how do we obtain it? Our bodies naturally produce it via a small endocrine organ in the brain called the pineal gland. However, melatonin production can be disrupted by a multitude of factors. A major factor is exposure to artificial light, especially blue light (as from computers, tablets, phones and TV screens). Chronic stress and anxiety can increase cortisol levels, which in turn can interfere with melatonin production. Some medications, and so too caffeine and alcohol can disrupt or reduce melatonin production. Working night shifts or traveling across different time zones can also disrupt the body's circadian rhythm.
Why is sleep important?
Sleep is the golden ticket for overall health and well-being. It plays a key role in various physiological and cognitive functions. Ready, set, go, they’re here below:
Restoration and Healing Sleep is a time of transformation. This is the magic that happens when we sleep: muscle repair, tissue growth, and the release of growth hormone. Besides, the body undergoes a variety of other processes that promote physical restoration and healing.
Memory Consolidation and Learning It is by sleeping that we consolidate memories, make new neuronal connections and integrate and piece together disjointed bits of information. It helps with the transfer of short-term memories to long-term storage. It definitely helps us in absorbing, retaining, and recalling information and in overall cognitive function.
Immune System Function During sleep, melatonin levels are high. Research published in The Journal of Pineal Research indicates that melatonin improves the body’s response to infections. It does this by activating T-cells and enhancing helper lymphocyte function.
But, how is that helpful to the immune system? T cells are a type of white blood cell also called lymphocytes. They help your immune system fight germs and protect you from disease.
There are two main types of T cells:
Cytotoxic T cells get rid of cells that are no longer of use to your body – the ones damaged by infection.
Helper T cells are little commanders. They signal other immune cells to fight the invading pathogen.
During sleep, your body also produces cytokines and other immune system molecules such as antibodies. These are your bodyguards against infections and inflammation. Adequate sleep definitely supports a healthy immune system.
Mood Regulation
Have you experienced or witnessed someone dragging themselves all day long and complaining about every little thing? Most probably, they either did not sleep, slept only a few hours, or did not have the best quality of sleep. Poor quality sleep or the lack of sleep is often associated with mood disturbances, irritability, and increased stress. Sleep plays a showmanship role in emotional regulation and overall mental well-being.
Energy Conservation
When we sleep, we are in a lower gear – we operate at a lower metabolic rate. This helps us conserve energy. It also allows the body to recover from the day's activities. The result: newfound physical and mental stamina and resilience.
Brain Detoxification
Just as every room needs cleaning from time to time, our body and nervous system do too. Our body sweeps up the waste with the help of the lymphatic system. It gets rid of it by bowel elimination, via the kidneys and by sweating and also by breathing.
In a similar way, our brain and CNS (Central Nervous System) uses a wonderful system called the glymphatic system. It is a waste clearance system that becomes more active during sleep. It helps remove toxins, debris and large molecules that accumulate in the brain throughout the day.
This is important to prevent further damage over time. A Science Direct article published in March 2024ii showed the relationship between inflammation, impaired glymphatic system function and neurodegenerative disorders.
Hormonal Balance
You think we are in lower gear during sleep, but all these activities are happening “in the background”. Various hormones, including those that regulate appetite, stress, and growth are released during different stages of sleep.
Pulling all-nighters and staying out late partying, though enjoyable in the moment, can lead to hiccups in hormone production. These imbalances in hormones can affect overall health. So, not getting your full quota of sleep – not allowing your body to go through all the different stages of sleep is bad. But what’s equally devastating is poor quality sleep.
What is meant by sleep quality? The time it takes you to fall asleep as well as how restful your sleep is, that is without frequent interruptions with time spent awake.
Sleep quality determines how well your body produces key hormones during the daytime – hormones that can control appetite, stress, blood sugar levels and more. What a lot to put at stake!
Cognitive Performance
You have a major exam and you stay up the night before, cramming. Come exam time, sure, adrenaline can keep you awake and focused for a while. But, if it’s a fairly long exam, your concentration, memory and energy can take a dive. You almost drift into never-never land.
Lack of sleep can impair cognitive functions such as attention, decision-making, and problem-solving. Adequate sleep to the rescue if you really want to ace your exams! Or, for those of us who have no exams to sweat for -- improve day-to-day cognitive performance.
Physical and Mental Well-being
We know consistent and quality sleep is linked to better mental health and improved mood.
As recently as July 2024, the analysis of longitudinal sleep data as published in Nature stated these facts: better sleep duration, quality, and consistency results in a reduced risk of developing chronic conditions such as obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases. And, as we know, all of these conditions come with additional lifestyle inconveniences. We have to make extra visits to healthcare providers, monitor ourselves constantly, or use contraptions or devices at home and on the go – all things we wish we were free from. This naturally is a mental and emotional burden.
Regulation of Circadian Rhythms
We learned earlier that the circadian rhythm regulates our sleep. But not maintaining consistent sleep routines disrupts our sleep-wake cycle as well. Marinating the circadian rhythm is important as it regulates various physiological processes – all-important for good health.
Knowing how important sleep is to our survival and our thriving, we should do all we can to ensure we get the best sleep for the time that’s right for us. Let’s examine what we can find.
Sleep Aids
These days, we have numerous means at our disposal to help us overcome insomnia and get the deep, restful sleep that we need.
Sleep Hygiene
Sleep hygiene refers to the set of healthy habits that promote better sleep. Some tips for good sleep hygiene include:
Keeping a consistent sleep schedule – get up and go to bed at the same time each day
Avoiding:
caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol before bed
exposure to bright light and blue light before bedtime
exposure to EMFs and radiation
Taking a warm bath or shower before bed or engage in your preferred relaxing routine
Creating a comfortable and quiet bedroom environment.
Relaxation Techniques There are calming strategies that work for some people. These include:
Listening to gentle music
Using a white noise machine
Watching calming videos When you watch videos on your devices such as iPhones, Androids, Macbooks or tablets, make sure you download the video ahead of time. This way you can cut out exposure to EMFs from your internet being summoned into service. Here is a source where you can get such calming videos: The Calming Channel.
Using breathing techniques
Herbs
There are herbs called nervines that can help to calm the nervous system. Valerian and Passionflower are fairly well-known in this category.
Ashwagandha, though known better as an adaptogen is also prized for its sleep-promoting effects.
However, not everyone can take herbs due to possible sensitivities to the herb, reactions with the medications they are on, or other reasons.
Essential Oils
Among the essential oils that are indicated for sleep, Lavender is the most well-known.
However, Lavender alone may not be enough to help you fall asleep. Lavender, along with Rose Geranium, Grapefruit, Tea tree oil, Myrtle, Balsam of Peru, and Myrrh do the trick much more effectively.
This combination, in fact, help your pineal gland naturally release melatonin so you can fall asleep faster.
Supplements
Supplements such as l-theanine and GABA can also help to calm and relax you. So can certain forms of magnesium such as magnesium glycinate.
Adding melatonin to your bedtime routine can be another solution with minimal side effects, if any, compared to pharmaceutical medications. However, before you start using melatonin, make sure you know how to take it the right way. Note: Before adding any herbs or supplements to your regimen, please check with your healthcare practitioner that there are no interactions with other medications or supplements that you are on.
Sometimes, however, no matter what you try, you might feel that nothing works. There could be some little thing that needs to be adjusted in your supplementation or your routine.
In those situations, it is best to reach out to someone who can guide you. Reach out to someone sooner than later. I have helped guide people through subtle changes and mini protocols that enable them to enjoy deep, rejuvenating sleep. I’m just a click away if you’d like my help.
References
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