BellaOnline Forums Beauty and Self Stress Management Stress and Lack of Sleep

I was just reviewing a book on healthy eating and it had a large section on how important it is to sleep well in order to have a healthy body. If you aren't getting ample sleep, your body hangs on to body fat to protect you from the stress in your world. Your body gets into chemical imbalances.

So good sleep isn't just a touchy-feely "nice to have" thing. It's fairly critical for your overall health.

That makes a lot of sense. I know from personal experience. My problem is the trouble going to sleep. My mind is usually going a mile a minute when I lay down.

Right and definitely I have that problem myself sometimes. So all of those steps we've discussed are key to handling that - the quiet hour beforehand, the hot shower, the cool room, block ALL lights (including little glowy power supply lights!!), have herbal tea, journal in bed to release all those thoughts onto paper, keep a notepad by the bed so if you think up an "I have to ..!!!!" you can write it down and know you'll do it in the morning.

Do you meditate at all? That is *awesome* training on quieting your mind and it comes in so, so helpful at night time!

Never relaxing meditation. Always said I was going to try it.

Oh yes... For me, doing some journaling helps before bed. I also like to meditate before bedtime... though, really I think it's more of a visualization exercise.

Yup for me at least a reason my mind will be spinning is that I have things I'm thinking a lot about. So if I write them all down in a journal, it helps to organize them and get them out and documented. My mind seems more free to 'release' them once I have done that.

Another reason my mind will spin is I have something concrete I have to work on the next day and I keep thinking about it. So for example say I have an article I have to write. I'll keep thinking about it. So then I write it on my to-do list and I know it's all documented and set. It makes it easier, each time it comes into my mind, to gently say "It is on the list. I need so sleep now so I can give it my best tomorrow" and gently let it go again. By saying "It is on the list and is set there" I am reassured that it is being handled.

Meditation in general helps with that "gently releasing thoughts" aspect of it - of the acknowledging that something is whirling in your brain, and letting it drift away again. We should talk in the Meditation Forum about ideas to become better at that!

Every since I got my iPod it has really helped me on those nights I can't sleep. I either listen to a book to fall asleep (keeps my mind from racing and keeping me awake by giving me something to focus on) or I have collected about half a dozen relaxing guided meditations that I listen to to help me relax.

Those are *awesome* ideas Joan! The guided meditations sound like a perfect way to draw your mind into a quiet linear path!

Something that I experience a lot is that when the actual Depression (big D) starts rearing up, that I go the opposite direction and sleep way too much. Like all day and all night.

That is always one of my warning signs/clues that i have to take steps to recognize and deal with Depression before it gets worse.

I have a lot of experience when it comes to lack of sleep and the stress that comes with it. I have had 2 back surgeries in the last 4 years, and I have not had a good nights sleep since my back started to hurt originally 6 years ago. The nervous system is a sensitive thing, and sleep helps to regulate that system. When pain or other stimulus causes us to lose sleep, then our body goes on alert and does not perform the same tasks that we are used to.