In the book Grain Brain, by Dr David Perlmutter, the author argues that the three fundamental keys that make up a healthy brain are a clean diet, practicing a physical activity regularly and quality sleep. In regards to sleeping, he claims that almost every body part and particularly our brain are affected by the quantity and quality of our sleep. Sleep impacts the food quantity we ingest, the speed at which our organism operates, our silhouette, our organism’s ability to fight infections, our creativity and perspicacity, the way we manage stress, the speed at which we process and learn new information, and the way we organize and stock memories. An uninterrupted seven-hour sleep also has an influence on our genes. Research has showed that being sleep deprived for a week disturbs the functioning of 711 genes involved in stress, inflammation, immunity and metabolism. Chronic sleep deprivation can lead to disorientation, memory loss, encephalopathy, obesity, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and depression. The author also argues that only restorative sleep is helpful and that we should prioritize sleep quality over quantity, although the ideal number of hours we should sleep per nigh is at least seven.
Are you a good sleeper or do you suffer from (chronic) insomnia? I’ve been on both sides of the spectrum and wanted to share more of what I have learned in the past weeks that could help you if you have sleep issues.
Have you ever heard of a sleeping ritual? I was first introduced to this technique in a book on productivity I read and, while I disregarded it for a while because in all honesty, I like to do much of my creative thinking at night and wasn’t ready to give up this habit, I have had to come to terms with the fact that it was essential for me to start a sleeping ritual.
I’ve never liked sleeping. As a baby, my mom told me it was nearly impossible to put me to sleep. I have never napped as a kid and would find every possible excuse to avoid going to bed at night: “Mooooom, I’m hungry”, “I have a headache”, “My tummy hurts”.
During my teenage years, I started suffering from insomnia. I could stay awake until the wee hours of the morning lying in bed, turning left and right desperately trying to fall asleep in vain, and then have to go school at 8 am. It took me years to overcome this problem, but I finally managed to make peace with my sleep. A couple weeks ago though, the insomnia creeped back in as I started getting really excited about a couple projects. Simultaneously, I kept reading books on productivity and all of them seemed to agree on one thing: a good, seven-hour night sleep was crucial for the brain to function optimally, to increase our ability to concentrate and be attentive. I was on a mission to take my productivity to the next level, so I decided to give the sleeping ritual a try.
A sleeping ritual is entirely up to you to create. It may vary from one person to another and quite simply consists in a routine you set up hours prior to going to bed, to indicate to your brain that it is time to go to bed. You can choose routine that you want, provided it relaxes you and doesn’t stimulate your brain: taking a bath, drinking a cup of tea, reading a book, doing Yoga, etc.
Research shows that nothing compares to a sleeping ritual to prepare yourself for a night of deep sleep. Before you decide to come up with your own sleeping ritual, here are pieces of advice that may help:
– Try to identify and avoid all the things that could be detrimental to your sleep.
– Make sure you have dinner about three hours before going to bed, and try to stay away from foods that you have a hard time digesting.
– Try to eat at the same time everyday, as it helps you keep control over hunger hormones. If you push back dinner time, your hormonal system goes on panic mode and stimulates your nervous system which has a negative impact on your sleep.
– Have a snack before going to bed. Decrease of blood sugar during the night can cause insomnia.
– Create an environment conducive to sleep. Anything that stimulates the brain and tires the eyes is a bad idea.
– And never go to bed upset.
This is my sleeping ritual, which involves two things:
– At 8 pm on weekdays, I stop using my phone until the next morning. I don’t look at notifications, I don’t check the time, I completely stop using it.
– I force myself to be present. Disconnecting from work has proved very efficient in calming my inner monologue that is constantly trying to find new ideas. Being focused on the veggies that I cut when I cook instead of using this repetitive action that does not need much concentration as an excuse to let my mind wander. Being fully absorbed when I watch a movie instead of thinking about what I have to do the next day. Doing things that have absolutely nothing to do with work and being entirely present in doing so.
