what’s the correlation between quality sleep and improved mental wellbeing?
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Less than 5 hours of sleep a night for an extended period of time is a symptom of hypomania which if carried on for weeks and months can lead to psychosis.
Lack of quality sleep (insomnia, apnea, epilepsy, low deep and REM minutes; frequent waking for any reason including bathroom, pets, and temperature) increases cortisol levels and [shortens telomeres](https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/sleep-newzzz/202107/how-sleep-affects-your-telomeres), physically aging and shortening life.
A lack of quality sleep will induce exhaustion which leads to slowed thinking, worse memory, inattentiveness and irritability. It can also exacerbate the effect of depressant substances including anti-histamines, alcohol, opioids and more. A lack of quality sleep often leads to increased caffeine consumption which can create a vicious cycle of poor sleep.
The general advice for good sleep is to stop eating and drinking anything that isn’t water at least 3 hours before bedtime. Learn how much water you need and how much will make you wake up to pee, drink what you need and use a drymouth mouthwash if you have issues with mouth thirst, please don’t dehydrate yourself.
Wind down at least an hour before bed. Use your devices’ night mode setting to tint the screen orange-ish at night, dim the brightness.
GO TO BED AT THE SAME TIME. GET OUT OF BED AT THE SAME TIME. Set your alarm for at least 7h15m after your bedtime (15m to account for falling asleep). Do that for a few nights and if still tired, add more time.
Most drugs won’t do sleep any favors, unless its CBD for yours seizures – you know what I mean. Caffeine drinking should end 8-12 hours before your bedtime. I know people who find caffeine sedating, it’s still not great for sleep. Alcohol and THC are not your sleep friends at all neurological level, even if you’re unconscious. Use that information at your discretion, people are defensive of their substances and I’m not their poppa.
In bed, sleep in as dark a room as possible. Use sleep mask if needed. If you need light to relax, as dim and warm colored as possible. Koreans beware, sleep in a cool temperature room with a fan if needed. White noise like fans may relax you, but if your room is too loud I suggest some form of noise cancellation like earplugs or earbuds with “ANC” like Airpods Pro. Don’t swallow them in your sleep.
In your dark cool and quiet bedroom at bedtime, breath in l o n g s l o w r e l a x e d breaths. At least one with as big of an inhale as you can, and as slow of an exhale as you can. Your heart should slow down. Get comfortable. If you need new bedding like sheets, blankets, pillow, mattress, try to use what you have and let it go tonight, but put those on the list to save up for.
Once comfortable in your adequate bedding, just relax and let your mind wander along a moonlit river. Thoughts you have are just leaves in the river. Slimy thoughts about regrets and anxiety can just float on by, no need to hold on to them. Just put the thought back in the moonlit river and get comfortable. If you need a sip of water, take it, but get as comfortable and relaxed as possible and eventually you’ll fall sleep.
I’m sorry if you have babies, pets, or neighbors that wake you up. Good luck.
If you can do this on a regular basis, you just age faster, feel more tired stressed and irritable, and will die sooner on average but hey you were awake longer on average so no judgement. If sleep is what you’re after, it’s just a way to feel happier and a little less mental.
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