Your quality of sleep can have a tremendous impact on your mental health and general well-being. For as long as I can remember, I have always been told, and not just by my parents, to get a good night’s sleep by going to bed by a certain time and even waking up at a certain time. As I got older and had kids of my own, I came to realise how important this advice is for children, grown-ups and the elderly.
This blog post will shed some light on why sleep is so important to your mental health and how it may be affecting your life in ways you might never have been aware of.
Have you ever had one terrible night where you haven’t been able to sleep properly and spent most of the night tossing and turning? The following day that terrible night is likely to fuel feelings of exhaustion at the very least. However, sleeping poorly can lead to many things other than excessive tiredness.
For instance, you may experience:
Now that you understand a bit more about the importance of sleep, let’s look at some possible reasons why you or your loved ones might be struggling to get a good night’s sleep:
It is so important, especially as we get older, to have a regular sleep routine and schedule. Even if you do not always get a consistent amount of sleep, that’s totally fine and is quite normal. But our bodies like rhythms and routines so by at least following your schedule you are always giving yourself that allocated time to rest your mind and body.
Being conscious of your sleep patterns, both at night and during the day, can help you maintain a healthy lifestyle and develop good, long term habits. If you experience changes in your sleep schedule or do have a bad night’s sleep, it is good to track these changes and be aware of them. It is also perfectly OK to have a lie in sometimes! But if you feel these irregularities are turning into a consistent pattern, then speak to a healthcare professional such as your doctor or caregiver so that they can help you get back to a regular routine.
Remember that different people need different amounts of sleep, or they struggle with sleep for one or many reasons. Therefore, just make sure you set yourself an achievable routine that will allow you to get the sleep that you need.