The Significance of Adequate Sleep

I recently watched a TED Talk about sleep. Scientist, Matt Walker, explained how sleep is your superpower. He states that sleep is our life-support system and mother nature's best effort at immortality, and I WHOLEHEARTEDLY agree with him. Since watching this TED Talk, I have been cognizant of how much sleep I am getting and how I feel the next morning. Those mornings where I have not gotten a full 8 hours of sleep the night before, I wake feeling tired, cranky, and not prepared for my day. When I have gotten the minimum of 8 hours or more of sleep, I wake up feeling ready to take on the day. Carpe diem! I feel prepared for what the day may bring, I feel less anxious, more optimistic, and overall, just healthier.

My sister sent me a text last night at 11:21pm, which I didn't receive because I have my phone set to stop receiving notifications at 9:00pm. She then sent me another text this morning at 6:10am. My response to her was "You aren't getting enough sleep." Her response was, "Tell me about it." Many of us are in this same sleep deprived cycle. We are so busy with the hustle and bustle of life we don't stop to think about what this lack of sleep is actually doing to us. Those of us with children are so focused on getting them to bed at a decent time (because we all know what dealing with a tired kid is like...no thank you!), that we aren't prioritizing our sleep. We get our kids to bed and then we have to make sure that we have straightened up the house, watched our favorite show, have sexy time with the partner, etc. and our sleep is coming last on that list. Those of us with demanding jobs wake up at the crack of dawn and start at it and go to bed with work still on our minds. There are so many reasons(excuses) why we aren't getting the sleep we need.

I want this article to be an eye opener for you. I want you to really think about the consequences of not getting adequate sleep. Many people don't realize the adverse side effects from lack of sleep such as...

1. Anatomical and biological changes in human reproduction organs.

2. Loss of memories/Inability to form new memories.

3. Inability to retain information.

4. Physical changes to the structure of the brain.

5. Higher risk of heart disease.

6. Brain fog and inability to concentrate.

7. Immune system deficiency.

8. Increased risk of cancer.

9. Increased risk of Alzheimer's disease.

10. Alters your genetic code/gene activity.

This is not an exhaustive list, just some of the key factors that Matt Walker lists in his TED talk. On the opposite end of what lack of sleep can do, getting adequate sleep is restorative and does wonders for our bodies. Improves immune system functioning, repairs damaged cells, improves memory, and much more. So please make sure that you are getting enough sleep. Without it, we can never reach optimum health.

*This is not medical advice and all information in this blog comes from research and information retrieved from credible sources.