POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY: Getting that beauty sleep you really need
MOST adults will occasionally have a sleepless night, or go through periods where their sleep is disturbed.
In clinical practice, we meet many people who are experiencing sleep disturbance as part of a picture of stress/anxiety or depression. For many people, periods of sleep disturbance only happen occasionally and do not become a cause of major concern.
However, for a significant number of people, sleep disruption becomes an ongoing pattern which can have a negative impact on both psychological and physical wellbeing.
In the last few decades, thanks largely to sleep clinic research, we now understand much more about sleep and the factors which contribute to a pattern of restful sleep.
In this article, we will provide a snapshot of some of the now well-researched strategies and best practice guidelines for good sleep.
Basically, in normal sleep we move through several stages during a repeating 90-minute cycle, from wakefulness to light sleep, to deeper sleep, to REM (rapid eye movement) sleep.
Stage 1 is shallow sleep; if awakened during this stage, you would probably not realise you had been asleep.
Stage 2 is the first stage of 'real' sleep although it is a 'light' sleep from which you can be easily awakened.
Stage 3 is the stage of deep sleep, where regeneration of cells, muscles and energy happens.
The last stage in each sleep cycle is REM sleep, where most, but not all dreaming occurs.
During this stage, the brain is actively consolidating what we have learned during the day and processing emotional material.
In the first part of the night, we experience more deep sleeps while REM sleep increases during the second half of the night.
Ideally, we should go through four to six of the above cycles in an unbroken night of sleep. The amount of sleep required varies. The idea that we all need eight hours every night is a myth.
Most adults need seven to seven and a half hours sleep per night and total sleep time tends to decrease as we get older.
Some people may need more than eight hours sleep per night, while others may function perfectly well while getting only four or five hours a night.
The best gauge as to whether we are getting enough sleep is whether we awaken feeling refreshed and enough energy to get through the day without feeling drowsy until bedtime.
Much research on sleep in recent years has provided us with good practice guidelines to help establish or re-establish a good sleep routine which is likely to lead to a better more restful night’s sleep.
Here is a snapshot of these guidelines.
Take at least an hour to relax and unwind before bedtime. Taking a hot bath, reading a relaxing book and having a hot (non-caffeinated) drink can all be helpful.
Practising relaxation (such as progressive muscular relaxation) or meditating can also help the brain slow down in readiness for restful sleep.
Ideally, the hour before going to bed should be screen-free, as much research now shows that the light in phones, tablets and so on, disrupt the production of melatonin, which helps us feel drowsy.
Try to go to bed and get up at roughly the same time every day, including weekends. When we sleep late on days off, this does not actually serve as 'catch up' for the brain, but it does disrupt the body’s internal clock and circadian rhythm.
Use your bedroom only for relaxing, pleasurable activities and sleep. Ideally, this means keeping televisions and electronic devices out of the bedroom, especially if sleep has been disrupted for a while.
For those who work full-time or part-time from home, the bedroom may be the only available space for working on a laptop.
In this situation, ideally do not work actually on the bed, use a table or desk and move the laptop out of the bedroom at night time. The aim is to associate bed with relaxation and sleep only.
When you are in bed, if you are finding it hard to get to sleep (perhaps because your mind is overactive), it is preferable not to lie in bed tossing and turning as this will only increase nervous system agitation and make it even harder to go asleep.
So as a rule of thumb, if you are still wide awake after 20 minutes in bed, it is better to get out of bed and go to another room to engage in a quiet relaxing activity such as reading or listening to soft music.
Continue doing this until your feel drowsy, at which point return to bed with the intention of going to sleep.
You may have to repeat this several times, but it is worth noting that even if you do not go to sleep, you will feel more rested next day if you have spent a few hours relaxing than if you remained in bed tossing and turning and becoming increasingly frustrated.
If you wake in the middle of the night and can’t get back to sleep, leaving the room as described above is a good idea.
Or alternatively, we often recommend listening to a sleep meditation (there are many of these available on meditation apps or YouTube) or else practising exercises which will relax the nervous system, such as deep breathing or progressive muscular relaxation.
Again, even if you don’t get back to sleep, relaxing is of far more benefit than getting frustrated at being awake at 3am.
A final yet important point is that in many cases, an ongoing disturbed sleep pattern may be linked with anxiety or stress or even clinical depression.
Where this is the case, it is important to address the underlying issue. Taking regular vigorous aerobic exercise is helpful for stress, anxiety and mood management as well as contributing to better sleep.
Where the pattern persists, it is advisable to reach out for professional help, for example to a family doctor, a psychologist or qualified therapist.
Imelda Ferguson and Julie O'Flaherty are chartered clinical psychologists, both based in private practice in Tullamore. Through Mind Your Self Midlands, they run courses on Positive Psychology and Mindfulness through the year. They can be contacted through the Psychological Society of Ireland www.psychologicalsociety.ie (Find a Psychologist section) or on their Facebook page, Mind Your Self Midlands.