The Effects of Sleeping Less Than Eight Hours
It is very common for people to undermine how important it is to get a good night’s sleep. While we may be able to survive on just a few hours of sleep a night, it does not mean that we will be able to get by life like that. By learning about the health consequences of not getting a good night’s sleep every night, this will encourage you to make it a goal to sleep seven to eight hours a night.
Mental Health Issues
Having a short amount of sleep every night can lead to you having depressive and anxiety symptoms. Not having enough sleep every night increases your risk of engaging in risky behaviors like substance abuse and social isolation. This makes your head not clear and not having the energy to doing things that you love to do. To prevent feeling this way, you should make a journal of how much sleep you get every night and tracking down your mental whenever you wake up and how your day is going. Once you determine how much sleep you need, set alarm clocks for when to fall asleep. Remember, it takes fifteen minutes to fall asleep. By improving your sleep, your mind will grow stronger and your mental illness symptoms will further lessen.
Being Dehydrated
Nurse practitioner and spokesperson for Better Sleep Council Ellen Wermter says that the less you sleep, the more dehydrated you are compared to those who get plenty of sleep. Sleep deprivation can disrupt the release of hormones that regulate dehydration. Not getting enough sleep can put you at risk for kidney disease in which the kidneys play an important role in hydration. Not drinking enough water can lead to eye strain, fogginess, and an impact on skin health effects. The more water you drink can also lead to better health for your kidneys. When you are constantly depriving yourself of sleep, your skin has less elasticity and collagen. If you are someone who does not get enough sleep during the day, drink plenty of water during the day. This can mean making sure that you have a water bottle by your nightstand or a cup with a lid that you can bring with you to bed so that you do not have to get up to get a drink.
Inflammation
Another problem with not getting enough sleep is that your body enters an inflammatory state that makes your body prone to mutation, growth, and the metastasis of your body’s cells. This can mean deal with body changes like hair loss and swollen ankles. If you experience inflammation for a long period of time, this can be very dangerous for your body in that you can be at an increased risk at developing cancer. If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, your doctor will suggest that you try to get plenty of sleep to avoid these symptoms growing worse.
Relationship Problems
Not getting enough sleep can cause a strain with your romantic partner. The less time you spend sleeping, you could be spending the rest of your day in a bad mood. You could be constantly feeling on edge where everything your partner does becomes an annoyance and a cause for a fight. It can also be stressful to have your partner have to sleep in bed alone without their partner there to keep them company in the night. It is best to try to go to sleep at the same time. If you notice your partner is in a better mood than you are during the day, it could be because they sleep for a longer amount of time than you. Your partner can encourage you to come into bed to help you avoid sleep deprivation.
Strained Brain Function
It could be possible that you are having trouble focusing whether it is in school, at work, or in your own household. This could mean that you were trying so hard to shut your eyes and go to sleep, but it just was not happening. Cognition can play a factor in sleep deprivation such as with memory, learning, information processing, decision-making, and judgment impairment. For example, if someone who is sleep-deprived is driving and a pedestrian walks in front of their car, it will take the driver a longer time to process that a pedestrian is in front of their car. What they are seeing is slowing down the driver’s overtired brain. In order to avoid this state of not being able to pay attention on a daily basis, you should eat a melatonin-rich snack like walnuts and cucumbers to help you sleep more easily.
Weak Immune System
When you are sleeping, you are not only growing but you are also repairing your body and replenishing it. If you are not sleeping enough, that means that your immune system is not fully repairing itself. This can mean that you have a higher chance of getting an infection and your body will create fewer antibodies to fight viruses like the flu. You could be having a hard time sleeping because your bedroom is too cold. Wear an eye mask to block any light from distracting you and wear warm, fuzzy socks to keep your feet warm. Sleeping is very important for the body and the mind. By sleeping for seven to eight hours a night, you will wake up feeling happy and full of energy.
Located on the shore of Southern New Jersey, Enlightened Solutions has been a recovery center using evidence-based therapies and holistic healing to treat addiction and mental illness. With the opportunity to learn about therapies that are keyed in to healing the human spirit and learning about new stress reducing techniques centered around a 12 step network, you will be ensure a lasting recovery. For more information, please call us at 833-801-LIVE as we are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
