How did you sleep last night?
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How often do you give a truthful answer to the question “how did you sleep last night?
Just as asking “how are you” isn’t the green light to begin downloading your innermost emotions to that work colleague you ran into on the subway, the same goes for “how did you slept last night?” Most of the time when I ask a patient about their sleep, they will respond with the typical “good” or “ok.”
But really, how did you sleep last night?
If you were truthful about the hours you spend sprawled out on your bed what would you say? Would you blissfully recount drifting off to dreamland without a care in the world? Or would you, like so many others, recount hours of struggle, anxiety and stress in an attempt to make your way through the sleep cycle?
Whether it involves problems falling asleep, staying asleep, or somewhere in-between, sleep disturbances are a common health issue, one that affects all aspects of men’s physical and mental health [7].
Did you know that sleep encourages healing and physical repair? When we sleep our body’s parasympathic nervous system dominates, encouraging an anabolic (renewal) state. Tissue injury and insult requires this anabolic state in order to deliver essential nutrients, white blood cells and pro-inflammatory cytokines (molecules to stimulate healing) [1].
Or were you aware that sleep promotes mental recovery? Poor sleep has a negative impact on mood and if you’ve ever been sleep deprived you’re probably more than familiar with the cardinal signs of sleep deprivation including a decrease in alertness, cognitive performance and decision making abilities [5, 12, 14].
Not to mention the importance it has on hormones. When there are impairments in our sleep and circadian rhythms this can result in numerous hormonal imbalances, including cortisol, thyroid hormone and insulin, as well as the release of the neurotransmitters serotonin, dopamine, and melatonin (our sleep hormone) [1, 6, 9, 10, 11, 13].
The daily release of Testosterone occurs primarily during sleep and is thus an important moderator for this important male hormone. In fact a study looking at sleep deprivation showed that male participant’s Testosterone levels decreased by 10-15% after just one week of reduced sleep, and further study has shown that lower levels of testosterone are observed when sleep is restricted in the first half of the night [2, 8, 15].
So while you might be tempted to hit the continue button on Netflix for one more episode, ensuring that you’re getting enough sleep so you feel rested and ready to take on the world is essential to your good health. And don’t forget, quality may be more important than quantity! Establishing healthy sleep hygiene (an environment conducive to sleep) is the key to maximizing sleep, helping you achieve all the benefits that come with some much-needed shut-eye!
Here are my 5 healthy sleep hygiene habits to help you get a more restful night of sleep tonight for a better, healthier, tomorrow!
- Resolve your issues: Whether it’s a disagreement with your spouse, conflict with a colleague or you are being hard on yourself again, resolve it in whatever way possible. If you can’t resolve the issue face-to-face, go a little deeper and see if you can’t identify what about the conflict bothers you. Do you feel angry, sad, betrayed, guilty or manipulated? Is this a common theme in many of your relationships? If so, this may be a chance for you to do some personal reflection.
- Darkness and Silence: Light and noise pollution can make it difficult to fall and stay asleep. Not to mention that melatonin is produced when there is a lack of light stimulation [11]. Try turning off all lights, covering your digital clock and using black out blinds.
If you sleep with a partner who snores, is a restless shifter or goes to bed after you, make sure they are mindful of not disturbing you. The same goes for you if you are the night owl.
You may need to change to a non-spring mattress, convince your partner to alter their sleep patterns, or try wearing eye masks and earplugs as they have shown to significantly improve sleep quality [16].
- It’s time to turn off: While many of us tend to settle into bed with our cell phones and devices glowing, being “plugged in” before bed can be detrimental to our sleep. Unplug all the electronics in your bedroom before going to sleep (or just keep them out of the room), including cell phones, wifi devices, televisions and radio transmitters [3, 4]. Some people report a high sensitivity to radiofrequency (RF) and electromagnetic fields (EMF). Despite inconclusive findings concerning the negative effects of chronic low frequency EMF exposure, I’d recommend minimizing your intake and avoiding long-term close contact with your devices, such as sleeping with your cell phone beside your head [3].
Make bed a place for physical intimacy and sleep, ONLY. It’s time to start creating a psychological association of bed to sleep.
- Relax before going to bed: We are creatures of habit and finding a relaxing routine that helps us wind down before bed may make getting to sleep a little easier. Here are a few suggestions to help you wind down:
- Have a luke-warm bath
- Use lavender candles or relaxing essential oils on your pillow
- Listen to calming music or meditation
- Have some chamomile tea
- Avoid stimulants after 4pm. While you might be tempted to pour yourself a coffee after a busy day at home or the office, it’s best to avoid caffeine, sugar, or herbal stimulants after 4:00pm to ensure you aren’t too wired to be tired come bedtime.
Some stimulants to be aware of include:
- Caffeine: Coffee, green or black tea, yerba, soda, red bull, etc.
- Herbal stimulants: Ginkgo, Ginseng, Glycerrhiza.
- Electronic usage: TV, computer, tablets, video games (especially violent or emotionally stimulating content), as the use of multiple electronic devices is associated with less sleep at night and increased sleepiness in the day [9].
- High-energy activities: Cardio, weight training and yes, even sex could be potential stimulants.
Although there are many others who find these activities beneficial to fall asleep, studies show that late night exercise significantly lowers nocturnal melatonin [7]. In both cases, I would avoid eating after the activity (unless you are a 300lb body builder needing to refuel your massive swollen muscles).
Sleep is essential to your health and if you’re not getting enough now is the time to start. I challenge you to try my healthy sleep hygiene habits to improve your quality of sleep and see if the number of hours you require to feel optimal actually decreases! You’ll be a lean, mean, sleeping machine… or maybe just a well-rested guy who answers a truthfully “AWESOME” to the question “how did you sleep last night?”.
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Photo: Tinou Bao/Flickr
And thank you for sharing this.
References
- Adam K, Oswald I. Sleep helps healing. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed). 1984 Nov 24;289(6456):1400-1.
- 2. Axelsson J, Ingre M, Akerstedt T, Holmbäck U. Effects of acutely displaced sleep on testosterone. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2005;90(8):4530-4535
- Bogers RP, Bolte JF, Houtveen JH, Lebret E, van Strien RT, Schipper CM, Alkadhimi M, Baliatsas C, van Kamp I. Design of an ecological momentary assessment study of exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields and non-specific physical symptoms. BMJ Open. 2013 Aug 29;3(8):e002933.
- Gajšek P, Ravazzani P, Wiart J, Grellier J, Samaras T, Thuróczy G. Electromagnetic field exposure assessment in Europe radiofrequency fields (10 MHz-6 GHz). J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2015 Jan;25(1):37-44.
- Goulart LI, Delgado Rodrigues RN, Prieto Peres MF. Restless legs syndrome and pain disorders: what’s in common? Curr Pain Headache Rep. 2014 Nov;18(11):46
- Kessler L, Nedeltcheva A, Imperial J, Penev PD. Changes in serum TSH and free T4 during human sleep restriction. Sleep. 2010 Aug;33(8):1115-8.
- Lee H, Kim S, Kim D. Effects of exercise with or without light exposure on sleep quality and hormone reponses. J Exerc Nutrition Biochem. 2014 Sep;18(3):293-9.
- Leproult R, Van Cauter E. Effect of 1 Week of Sleep Restriction on Testosterone Levels in Young Healthy Men.JAMA.2011;305(21):2173-2174.
- Owens J; Adolescent Sleep Working Group; Committee on Adolescence. Insufficient sleep in adolescents and young adults: an update on causes and consequences. Pediatrics. 2014 Sep;134(3):e921-32
- Pereira JC Jr, Andersen ML. The role of thyroid hormone in sleep deprivation. Med Hypotheses. 2014 Mar;82(3):350-5.
- Pierce ME, Besharse JC. Circadian regulation of retinomotor movements. I. Interaction of melatonin and dopamine in the control of cone length. J Gen Physiol. 1985 Nov;86(5):671-89.
- Thomas M, Sing H, Belenky G, Holcomb H, Mayberg H, Dannals R, Wagner H, Thorne D, Popp K, Rowland L, Welsh A, Balwinski S, Redmond D. Neural basis of alertness and cognitive performance impairments during sleepiness. I. Effects of 24 h of sleep deprivation on waking human regional
- Thor PJ, Krolczyk G, Gil K, Zurowski D, Nowak L. Melatonin and serotonin effects on gastrointestinal motility. J Physiol Pharmacol. 2007 Dec;58 Suppl 6:97-103. Review.
- Whitney P, Hinson JM, Jackson ML, Van Dongen HP. Feedback Blunting: Total Sleep Deprivation Impairs Decision Making That Requires Updating Based on Feedback. Sleep. 2014 Nov 3.brain activity. J Sleep Res. 2000 Dec;9(4):335-52.
- Wittert G. The relationship between sleep disorders and testosterone. Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes. 2014 Jun;21(3):239-43.
- Yazdannik AR, Zareie A, Hasanpour M, Kashefi P. The effect of earplugs and eye mask on patients’ perceived sleep quality in intensive care unit. Iran J Nurs Midwifery Res. 2014 Nov;19(6):673-8.