Sleep is a key part of a healthy lifestyle. Like eating right and exercising, sleeping well is essential to
feeling your best during the day. It affects how you feel, your relationships, your productivity and your
quality of life. While you sleep, your brain goes to work, consolidating the day's learning into memory
and reenergizing the body.
A few key things should help. Try going to bed and getting up at the same time every day – even
on the weekends. This will help keep your biological clock in sync. Develop a sleep ritual by doing the
same things each night just before bed. Parents often establish a routine for their kids, but it can help
adults, too. A routine cues the body to settle down for the night. Another hint: Unwind early in the
evening so that worries and distractions don't keep you from getting a good night's sleep. Finally, create
a restful sleep environment – sleep in a cool, quiet, dark room on a comfortable, supportive mattress
and foundation – to get your best night's rest. If you're sleeping as much as you need, but still find
that you're sleepy during the day, you should consult your doctor to see if you might have a medical
condition interfering with your sleep
It differs for every person. Some people may need as much as 10 hours a night and others need
much less. The average person needs 7-8 hours a night. If you find yourself sleepy during the day, you
probably need more sleep at night. Or if you sleep longer on the weekends than during the week, you
probably need more sleep during the week.
If you regularly fall asleep on your sofa, you may not be getting as much sleep as you need at night
in your bed. Or maybe your sofa is more comfortable than your bed! In either case, you should make
sure to practice good sleep habits – from sleeping on a comfortable, supportive mattress to not drinking
alcohol too close to bedtime. And try to get more sleep – it may change how you feel during the day.
Check out the
Better Sleep Guide for tips on how to get a better night's sleep.
Sleep needs to be a health priority. It affects every aspect of your day-to-day living. Your waking
function is directly impacted by your sleep quality and quantity. Sleep deprivation as a result of not
allowing enough time for sleep, is like functioning in a drunken state. In the end the hours you think
you are saving by not sleeping, are rarely productive. Your are far better off getting at least 7- 8 hours
of sleep. Your daytime productivity and efficiency will far outweigh any loss of time because you where
sleeping.
No. If you sleep more on the weekends than during the week – and many of us do – this indicates
that you have a "sleep debt." A sleep debt accumulates when you don't get enough sleep. The only way
to reduce the debt is to sleep as much as your body needs every night. Make sure you're getting the
right quality of sleep as well. Sleep in a cool, dark, quiet room on a comfortable, supportive mattress to
get your best night's sleep.
Treatment options for sleep apnea, include CPAP, oral appliances and surgery. The most common
treatment is CPAP, which requires a CPAP device that sits on your nightstand, that is attached to tubing
and an interface that fits over your nose or mouth, pushing air into you lungs. Oral appliances are
dental devices that are custom made that help keep the airway open. Surgery is complex but works for
patients that are not able to tolerate CPAP.