I’ll sleep when I’m dead!
You really think an attitude like that is going to help you live longer, that is if you actually want to live longer?
I still can’t believe that people think sleeping less and doing more activities is either healthy or it gives them more time and enjoyment in life!
It really makes me laugh and the phrase “ignorance is bliss” truly is a blessing in disguise.
But did you know that an adequate amount of sleep WILL make you live longer and that most humans would die in a few days without sleep as compare to food or water.
Go 3 days without sleep, water, and food. (no caffeine either)
You can comment below on which one you wanted the most after 3 days.
Here is a quick scoop (starting at age 1): 1-2 year olds, about 11-14 hours. 3-5 year olds, about 10-12.5 hours. 6-10 year olds, about 9-11 hours. 11-13 year olds, about 9-10.5 hours. 14-17 year olds, about 8.5-10 hours. 18-45 year olds, about 7.5-8.5 hours. 46+ year olds, about 6.5-8 hours.
Here are a few reasons on why we would like to share with you on why you need to get your zzz’s.
1. Negative Effects of Lack of Sleep
2. How Much Sleep Do I Need? Quantity vs Quality
3. Positive Effects of Adequate Sleep
How Much Sleep Do I Need Why Sleeping Is The #1 Human Need
We all sleep everyday yet many of us don’t realize that sleep can affect everything in our lives.
Jobs, attitude, relationship, business, family, and everything can be affected by sleep alone.
7.5-8 hours of sleep per night is my ideal length and I just couldn’t simple function well without it.
Life just seems better and worth living when I am well rested.
As an insomnia sufferer for almost 10 years; I’ve develop depression, stress, social anxiety, tiredness, headache all simply due to the fact that I was lacking rest.
I hope this practical guide will educated and enhance your sleep life.
1. Negative Effects of Lack of Sleep
If you type in “US life expectancy” in google, you get ~79 years.
Many are contempt with that, living life to the fullest as opposed to living long and miserable (which is your state of mind but that’s another topic).
Now of course this is different for A VERY FEW people.
But the majority of us need more sleep than we actually think.
Let’s assume you’re over 25 years old and sleep 6 hours a night.
That gives you about 1.5-2 extra hours a day compare to the average which is about 640 hours extra a year.
Sounds wonderful doesn’t it!
However, here are the negative effects of inadequate sleep which can impact life expectancy negatively.
Accidents, yep.
More accidents just means more opportunity for death to strike.
Karyn O’Keefe works for the Sleep/Wake Research Centre in New Zealand cites that,
“Lack of sleep has been shown to increase our risk of having a motor vehicle accident”.
She also explains that having between 4-5 hours of sleep made you four times more likely to have a motor accident, vs 8 hours of sleep.
6,000,000 car accidents happen a year with 40,000 being fatal, in the US alone.
Do one think lack of sleep is one of the causes?
I’m lucky to be alive today because I almost had a fatal accident due to being extremely tire, and the fact that long distance driving makes me very sleepy at 3am in the morning.
Oh, you don’t drive cars, nice to know but you’re not as lucky as you think.
Do you long for type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease or stroke, an increased risk of depression, anxiety, and obesity?
“Yes, we all want health problems and love living in pain and misery 24/7, it’s just in our DNA,” said No One, a nonexistent professor.
We aren’t done yet, here’s more since you think you’re invincible.
High blood pressure, weak immune system thus not being able to fight certain diseases or illness, make bad choices, problems with all internal and external organs, and even cancer are what you may get from lack of sleep.
I don’t know about you but I’ll take my chances with 7-8 hours of sleep every night.
1.1 Lack of Sleep On Mood
We all know that sleeping well before a tournament, big exam, interview, job, meeting, trip and so on are essential to achieving goals or producing a positive result.
You think people stay up all night just before a big meeting or a final exam?
Backed by years of study has shown that lack of sleep or insomnia (I had insomnia for almost 10 years so I can tell you from personal experience ,no BS) can lead to many symptoms like anxiety, depression, sadness, feeling worthless or meaningless, not being able to fully enjoy life, many things don’t interest you or just seem boring, increase thinking, mood swings, etc.
It could take a few years to a few months but lack of sleep eventually changes brain activity and thought processing.
This can and will lead to the above symptoms that we just mentioned.
The study was done with almost 20,000 participants!
1.2 How To Cure Insomnia or Lack of Sleep
Curing insomnia took me a very long time to overcome, I haven’t exactly cured insomnia but 9/10 nights I sleep better than a dead man.
It’s not going to be easy at first and may take a week or even more to ease your insomnia, the key is to be consistent and stick with your routine as long as possible.
Here are at least 25 simple tips/tricks that I have done to help with insomnia:
- exercise intensely a few times a week
- eat healthy daily
- go to bed and wake up at the same time
- have a comfortable bed
- sleep in cold rooms
- take a warm shower or bath before bed
- drink a glass of warm milk or a slice of turkey before bed
- take melatonin or valerian root
- sleep in a dark room
- no blue light electronics 30-60 minutes before bed
- no protein, vegetables, or high fiber foods 4-5 hours before sleeping
- practice breathing technique
- no alcohol a couple hours before bed
- sleep in silent room or use earplugs
- limit caffeine and only drink in mornings
- meditate
- reduce or eliminate stress at night time
- read a book
- no activities that increase heart rate
- use dim yellow lights
- practice close eye movement
- sleep with a comfortable blanket
- have sex
- stay happy and positive
- sleep with your pets
Just click on the link and all 25 tips will be explained in full.
The guide is about 2700 words so I won’t copy and paste due to this article’s length.
Tips #1, 3, 5, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 19, and 24 are the most effective for me.
Maybe you need to try all 25 but if you follow and practice at least half of these tips then you’re odds of sleeping well each night will be 50% better.
It’s pure math, so I don’t need science or research on this one, I am the research!
2. How Much Sleep Do I Need? Quantity vs Quality
2.1 Quality
Sleeping 8 hours is healthy but not if you are tossing and turning all night.
Plus, did you know that when you go to bed also has an impact on the quality and quantity of sleep!
Yup, as stupid as it sounds, it’s 100% true.
For every hour you sleep before midnight, add one two extra hour of quality sleep.
So if I went to bed at 11pm sharp and woke up at 6am, thenI would actually be getting 9 hours of quality sleep, assuming you don’t toss and turn like a salad mixer.
NonREM is deep, relaxing sleep while REM is lighter and not as deep although both produce dreams.
Any hour before midnight will produce nonREM so that’s why it is better to sleep early.
REM works on a 90 minute cycle throughout the night and becomes less effective as dawn approaches.
Late night workers often report that they feel slightly tired throughout the day.
No wonder I felt sloppy and muggy even though I slept 8 hours a day, but I was going to bed at 2am everyday!
2.1 Quantity
Earlier we stated that each age required a certain number of sleep but why?
Well, for obvious reasons.
For growth, production, organs and bones need to repair and grow, and smaller or younger creatures tend to sleep more than bigger or older ones.
So that is why babies need the most while grandparents need less.
A creature that is still growing needs all the benefits that sleep produces vs grandparents who only need it for rest and to recharge memory.
I think you would agree with me on that.
CEO’s, presidents, hard workers, and people that are constantly on the move whether physically or mentally need to be fully charged and well rested.
Why would anyone want to sleep 5 hours then have to work for 10 hours straight?
Very few people can function and live normally on less than 6 hours of sleep but that’s not the norm.
If you’re really busy and need as much time in life without sacrificing health then sleep at 10pm and wake up at 4am.
That’s 8 hours of quality sleep which is the ideal hours.
Many military personnel do it and trust me, being in the military there is not one moment where one is not busy.
I was in the US Navy so I know for sure.
Also it’s in our DNA for most of us.
Humans have slept 7-8 hours consistently throughout history and the fact that night is about 12 hours long and daytime is also 12 hours long.
The first shift was 3-4 hours after nightfall, then we awoke and did whatever we did back in those times.
The 2nd shift would be just 3-4 hours before sunrise, however as light and electricity became prevalent, we started to sleep later thus the 7-8 straight hours of sleeping became dominate.
Back then like 200 years+ there wasn’t much source of light and even if there was, keeping the light burning was the hard part.
3. Positive Effects of Adequate Sleep
Sleeping is a hobby for some plus it’s one of the best way to fight stress so a win-win scenario.
How do I know, because sleeping improves memory cognition.
Good sleep lowers health pressure, that’s always a good thing.
Puts one in a better mood and helps maintain weight.
My girlfriend needs that for sure… her attitude of course.
Keeps your heart healthy and reduces the risk of certain diabetes.
Eases pain and ache throughout the body if you experience that.
Sleeping refreshes you and can make you smarter!
Sleep keeps you alert, less accidents means less problems.
Keeps you going, recharge your whole body in only 7-8 hours, for free!
Have acne or signs of aging; well there’s no better reason than to get more z’s plus it boost your immune system to fight off those flu and colds.
Sex, yes please; I meant sleep helps improve sex and makes you want to do it more often.
People who lack sleep don’t feel like having sex or can’t perform well.
And most importantly live longer.
Because you will be happier, enjoy life more, be more positive, focus better and clearer, and your overall health and wellness will improve exponentially as compare to those who sleep a few hours a day.
Sleeping is fun and some people love it like me.
Who doesn’t like coming home from work after kicking their boss in the face (with their imagination) and putting up with annoying and useless coworkers to a beautiful, sexy, single, comfy bed made and designed just for you.
If nothing in this world pleases you, then a comfortable warm bed should because there’s no better feeling than being completely exhausted with your face on your clean cold pillow!
Original Article/Work: https://easylifejourney.com/how-much-sleep-do-i-need/
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