SLEEP
your body’s HEALING SYSTEM
Mom was right! Sleep is a very important part of your health and healing. A good nights sleep can not only effect your ability to function during the day, but also can effect how your body functions as it attempts to battle the stresses presented every day.
Most of us understant that our body goes through different cycles and our sleep cycle is one of the very important cycles that helps us stay alert and aware. If we are not getting the proper amount of sleep during our nights, we can be setting ourselves up for problems in the future.
But people often ask –
HOW MUCH SLEEP IS ENOUGH?
I would love to give you a hard and fast rule that we can all follow, and for many years, the standard answer is 8 hours of sleep is the magic number. But over time and through research studies the answer has become….
IT DEPENDS…
Each person is different and for many people, 8 hours is the optimal amount of time that they need to sleep to achieve maximum benefit from the sleep cycle, but there are people who are able to function at optimal levels with only 5 hours of sleep per day.
And there may be a reason that people are able to maintain an optimal level of recovery with only 5 hours of sleep per night.
Let me explain.
WHY IS
that ENOUGH?
As we touched on earlier, the body goes through cycles and a normal sleep cycle can occur within a 5 hour time period. There are 3 primary phases of sleep, Stage 1 is getting to sleep which is when we go from awake to a sleep state. We then transition to Stage 2 or Light Sleeping and there are 2 primary stages to light sleep. We then transition to Stage 3 or Deep Sleep. This is the time our body goes in to a repair mode and we see significant changes in brain and body chemistry. As we progress through this stage, we move into Stage 4 or REM sleep. This is our dream state. Again we see significant changes in body and brain chemistry. These stages continue to cycle as we sleep and we are able to go through several stages throughout our nightime sleep routine.
The more we study sleep and it’s patterns, the more we see that deep sleep and REM sleep are important for the body to function properly. If we are deprived of these levels of sleep for any significant period of time, we start to see breakdown in body function and as it progresses we see issues with mental clairity and focus. There are countless studies showing how sleep deprevation affects a persons ability to function in society.
That means that not only is it important to get the proper amount of sleep, but to make sure that we are progressing through the normal cycles of sleep. This is another reason why people who go through 8-12 hours of sleep still feel exhausted or tired. This is often seen when people are not going through the deep and REM cycles of sleep. So it’s iimportant to make sure you are getting the proper sleep for your specific needs.
If you are tired and hurting, then it’s time to make sure that sleep is not part of the problem. If you don’t know why you’re not healing, it may be time to discuss you sleep with your doctor.
– Dr. Clifton Mays | Director
WANT TO LEARN MORE?
We’ve put together a FREE 10 Day E-Course to better sleep, and we’ve also included access to our E-Book – SIREN’S SLEEP SOLUTION. Just click the link and you’ll be given access right away!
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3755 Admiral Dr. #106, High Point, NC 27265
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