Yawning in the office after another sleepless night? Here’s some advice
The days are getting shorter, the nights darker, and we’re all now full-pelt into work mode. But with many workers dealing with stress on a daily basis, few seem to realise how this can affect our sleep, mood, and overall performance.
It is high-time that we valued our need for good restorative, sleep particularly in today’s fast-paced and technologically-driven world.
We need sleep, high in both quality and quantity, to recover from the endeavours of the day, and to give ourselves the resilience to tackle whatever life throws at us.
Research from Silentnight found that 25 per cent of Brits only sleep for five hours or fewer per night – more than two hours less than the national recommended average of 7.5 hours.
A lack of sleep has serious health implications, both physically and mentally, and can result in poor performance during the day. It can even affect our memory and our ability to learn and store new information – crucial in the workplace and for those in education.
So here are four top tips for workers who may be struggling with stress and sleep problems.
Do or diet
A healthy lifestyle matters. Try to prevent getting yourself into a routine of eating unhealthy fatty foods and spending your free time lounging around. This is easier said than done, particularly as the days get shorter, but staying active will help you feel less sluggish at work.
Also avoid commuting on an empty stomach, as this leaves the body running on adrenaline energy, which is one of the main factors that can cause shallow sleep.
When life gives you lemons
If you’re already drinking the recommended two litres of water a day and you want to take it to the next level, try adding a squeeze of lemon and a pinch of sea salt to alkalise the water.
The body functions optimally at an alkaline PH of 7.35, so hydrating with alkaline water helps our body work properly. This enables our physiological processes, which include getting a good night’s sleep.
The power of four
The hours before midnight are a really important part of sleeping well – they are the hours that are deeply restorative, that heal the body, and provide sought-after anti-ageing benefits.
Even if you get a good amount of sleep, going to bed late is likely to ensure a large amount of your sleep is highly inefficient.
So try to get to bed at around 10.30pm four nights a week to allow your body to access to that vital phase of sleep before midnight.
A life half full
We all know that cutting down on caffeine will help with sleep issues, but very few of us think about the half-life of the coffee or tea that we drink.
The half-life of caffeine is five hours, which means if you have a tea or coffee at 5pm, you will still have half that amount in your blood by 10pm.
You probably won’t feel energised by 10pm, but the caffeine is still in your system, and it’s enough to stop you sleeping well.
Putting this to bed
The challenge for many workers is implementing these practices into their everyday life. Anyone who is struggling with sleep problems should make a conscious effort to integrate these into their day, and you won’t have to count sheep again.