Sleep: How Important Is It?
Patricia Spens, M.Sc., M.Ed.,
Registered Psychologist
We live in a fast-paced environment. Trying to balance
work and home can cause anyone to feel as if there
is not enough time in
the day. In an effort
to fit everything into
the day, many people
will sacrifice the one
thing that their body
needs the most – sleep.
It is estimated that 70
million North Americans
suffer some symptoms
associated with lack
of sleep: daytime
sleepiness, irritability,
performance problems
at work, impaired
memory, and impaired
reflexes which can,
among other things,
impact your driving.
Lack of sleep can also weaken your immune system.
This can impact how often you are getting sick and
picking up things like the common cold. Also, people
who get an insufficient amount of sleep tend to weigh
more and have a greater tendency towards depression.
It is estimated that only less than 10 % of the North
American population require less than eight hours of
sleep a night; however, many people only get seven
hours or less. Many times, people who think they are
getting enough hours of sleep do not understand why
they feel tired or irritable during the day. People can
be waking several times during the night for different
reasons, sometimes they
are aware of this and
other times they are not.
For sleep to be effective,
it must be continuous
and not broken up into
segments.
For children and
adolescents, lack of sleep
for extended periods of
time can cause many
problems. Sleep is
essential for learning and
development. If children
and adolescents do not
get the required amount
of sleep, they will be
more prone to behavioral
problems, learning problems, attention problems, and
relationship problems. There have been cases where
kids have been misdiagnosed with Bipolar Disorder and
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder while the real
cause of their symptoms was simply lack of sleep.
The chart below, which was compiled by the National
Sleep Foundation (www.sleepfoundation.org), indicates
the amount of sleep your body needs by age:
While there are some people who have medical issues that
cause sleep problems, for many of us it is simply the fastpaced environment that causes these issues with sleep. If
this sounds like you, don’t worry; it is never too late to get
back on track. The first thing to do is to make sure you
treat sleep as one of the most important things in your life.
The following are some tips to help you.
- Set an established bed time for yourself, just like
you would for your child.
- At least one hour before your bed time, make sure
you are engaged in low energy activities such as
watching T.V or reading; or anything that you
know will put you in the relaxed state.
- Try not to eat or drink anything a couple of hours
before bedtime; this will reduce any need to get up
in the middle of the night to use the bathroom;
- Refrain from drinking any sugar or caffeinated
beverage several hours before you go to sleep.
- If you have trouble falling asleep, then try using
some basic relaxation techniques about 30 minutes
before you go to bed.
Remember, that no matter what, a good sleep program will
improve your life.
Also, the above are just suggestions; if you continue to
struggle with ongoing sleep issues it is important that
you seek assistance from a health care professional. There
are many sleep disorders that do require the assistance of
a doctor, and there are various interventions that can be
provided to you in order to help you with this issue.
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