Most of us realise that sleep is important, but that doesn’t mean we are getting consistent, good quality sleep.

If your sleep isn’t as good as it could be, you are not alone, and the 2020 and 2021 lockdowns and disruption to our lives has made sleep an issue for even more of us.

Research carried out by NHS Digital in 2021 found that children and young people have had a particular increase in sleep problems since the pandemic. More than a third of 11-16 year olds reported difficulty sleeping at the time of the research.

The good news is that even if you are not sleeping well at the moment, there are some simple things you can do to improve your sleep.

In this post I’ll be explaining why sleep is so important. I’ll also be looking at how we sleep and in turn, some of the things that contribute to poor sleep.

I hope that by understanding more about how your body helps you to sleep, you’ll be encouraged to make some small changes to your lifestyle to improve your own sleep.

The benefits of good sleep

You probably know that sleep has many health benefits, but did you know it helps with all these different aspects of your health and wellbeing?

• Immunity
• Appetite and weight
• Long term physical health
• Mental health

Immunity

Your immune system is divided into two parts: the innate and the adaptive immune systems.

The innate immune system is the part of your immunity that you were born with. It’s your first response to any form of injury or illness.

The adaptive immune system learns and develops from the different illnesses and threats that you are exposed to during your lifetime. As such it is also known as the acquired immune system. It provides specific defences to specific infections.

Both parts of the immune system benefit during good quality sleep.

Your body carries out repair and maintenance of your immune system during sleep and also actively fights any infection or injury that your body is dealing with at the time.

Research has shown that a lack of good quality sleep means your body is less effective at fighting off infection. This means you are more likely to pick up repeated infections.

It has also been found that a consistent lack of good quality sleep before or after having a vaccine can impact the effectiveness of that vaccine.

Long term health

Good quality sleep has been directly linked to having a lower risk of developing chronic health problems such as type 2 diabetes. It has also been shown to reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.

Sleep has a direct effect on your blood pressure too.

Your blood pressure rises and falls during its 24-hour cycle with a natural period of low-pressure period during the night.

If your blood pressure is high too much of the time it puts more pressure on your blood vessels, heart and other organs. Long-term high blood pressure, or hypertension, increases your risk of heart attacks, strokes and many other health conditions.

Appetite and weight

I’m sure you know that being overweight has a detrimental affect on your health, but did you know that sleep plays a part in your ability to manage your weight too?

Ghrelin, the hormone that stimulates our feeling of hunger is one reason for this.

Research has shown that even one bad night of sleep increases your levels of ghrelin which makes you want to eat more food.

Ongoing sleep-deprivation therefore means feeling hungry more of the time, making it more difficult to make healthy food choices.

I don’t know about you, but I can guarantee I’ll have a craving for toast if I don’t get enough sleep!

To makes things worse, less sleep also reduces the level of the hormone leptin. This is the hormone that tells us when we’ve had enough to eat.

So poor quality sleep means you feel hungrier AND you have more difficulty knowing when you have eaten enough.

As if that’s not enough, sleep deprivation also increases your insulin resistance which in turn increases your risk of becoming overweight and developing type 2 diabetes.

Mental health

I expect you know first-hand that a lack of sleep can leave you feeling irritable, lacking in motivation and less able to deal with difficult situations the next day.

Continued lack of sleep can increase the likelihood of more serious mental health problems such as anxiety and depression.

Deep restorative sleep allows your body to activate it’s parasympthic nervous system. This is where your body needs to be to support your immune system, digest your food properly and generally function effectively. [read a related post here]

It’s a two-way process, as the more you’re relaxed, the more your parasympathetic nervous system is activated, the easier it is for you to sleep well. And when you sleep well the more you can manage your stress levels, relax and so it goes on.

The charity Mind gives more information about this cyclical link between sleep and mental health.

What controls your sleep?

Now we’ve looked at the benefits of good sleep, let’s look at how you sleep and some of the things that can disrupt your sleep.

Your circadian rhythm

The circadian rhythm is your body’s in-built clock. It runs on a  24-hour cycle (almost) and it’s responsible for regulating your sleep.

Light – and the lack of light –  is the key to controlling your circadian rhythm. It needs light each morning to ‘reset’ itself for the day and a lack of light each evening to support sleep.

The cycle is assisted by the release of the hormones melatonin and cortisol.

Here’s how it all fits together.

Light, melatonin and cortisol – how the circadian rhythm should work

Melatonin makes you feel sleepy. Melatonin increases in the evening, stays high during the night to help keep you asleep and then decreases in the early morning.

The rise and fall of melatonin is linked to light.

When your eyes sense a lack of light each evening, a message is sent to your pineal gland to say that it’s dark. The dark triggers your pineal gland to release melatonin to help you prepare for sleep.

Each morning when your eyes are exposed to light, the pineal gland receives the message to stop releasing melatonin. This helps you to be alert during the day.

Cortisol is the opposite of melatonin as it helps you to stay awake and alert. You should have a peak in cortisol about an hour after waking up and then it will gradually decrease during the day.

Light seen by your eyes in the morning stimulates this release of cortisol each day.

You may already know about cortisol as a stress hormone. A feeling of stress can also trigger the release of cortisol. This is key as it is one reason that your circadian rhythm may not be working as effectively as it should be and will be mentioned again in the next section!

When these things work together like this, your circadian rhythm is in harmony with your body. You will be alert during the day and sleep well at night.

What can go wrong?

Problems with sleep can happen when the circadian rhythm is disturbed.

This rhythm evolved hundreds of thousands of years ago for our hunter-gatherer ancestors. Given the difference in our lifestyle today and the lifestyle of a hunter-gatherer, it’s not surprising that so many of us are having problems sleeping.

However, with a bit more awareness of what causes the circadian rhythm to be disturbed, it’s not difficult to introduce some new habits to help get better sleep.

In this post I will just mention some of the key things that can disturb your circadian rhythm and sleep.

If you want a more detailed understanding there are many sources of information available that explain things in more detail. One of my favourites is the book The 4 Pillar Plan by Dr Rangan Chatterjee. I wish all GPs gave their patients’ this information!

Light

As we’ve already seen, light is a crucial trigger for your circadian rhythm.

Humans evolved to be active in the daylight hours and rest, relax and sleep during the hours of darkness.

It’s only since the first world war (1914-18) that electric lights found their way into most people’s homes.

Although humans had access to fire, candles and then gaslights, the effect of their light on our circadian rhythm was less disruptive than electric light.

Electric lights, television screens, computer and laptop screens along with tablets and mobile phones all expose our eyes to blue light.

Sunlight is also a form of blue light.

This means that every time you look at any type of screen, your eyes are sending the message to your pineal gland to suppress melatonin release as it’s not time to sleep.

If you check your phone or have one last look on social media before bed you are disrupting the release of the melatonin that you need to sleep well.

Dark

We know that your brain needs to be exposed to darkness to stimulate melatonin and suppress cortisol.

This means that you need a dark bedroom to get good quality sleep all night, as well as less light during the evenings to encourage the release of melatonin.

Unfortunately there are many ways that light creeps into our bedrooms these days.

Electrical devices often have a standby light that stays on all night and electric alarm clocks might have the time illuminated.

What about the windows? Security lights, street lamps and even the moonlight can seep into your bedroom and disturb your sleep.

Our ancestors just had the light of the fire and then complete darkness to help them sleep so we need to try and replicate this in our own bedrooms.

Cortisol and stress

We know that cortisol causes us to feel alert. That’s why there is a natural decrease in our cortisol levels during the day.

We also established that cortisol is known as the stress hormone.

This means that as well as being stimulated by light, cortisol is also released when you feel stressed.

Our hunter-gatherer ancestors experienced stress in a very different way to us. For them it literally was life or death.

They needed cortisol to help them fight or flee from a dangerous situation. The stress response, which you probably know as the fight-flight response, was powerful but short-lived.

Unfortunately, your brains still interprets every type of stress in your life as though it is a life or death situation.

And there are so many things in our modern life that the human brain considers a stress. A ringing phone, a text or email notification, running late for an appointment, an argument or disagreement. And so the list goes on.

Every time you experience one of these stress triggers your body releases cortisol.

Given that our cortisol should be gradually decreasing during the day you can see the problem.

What can you do to improve your sleep?

You hopefully now have a better understanding of what your body needs to get better sleep.

I’m sure you’ll already have come up with some ideas about how you can make some changes each day to help improve your sleep.

Small changes, every day can have a huge and positive impact on your sleep patterns.

If you would like some more guidance then you can read this post on A few ideas for better sleep.

Sometimes there are underlying health problems that can cause bad sleep. If you are concerned that this may be the case it’s important to speak to your GP to rule this out.

If you would like to find out how I can support you to improve your sleep then please get in touch or book a free Discovery Call.

Take care,

Sarah x

The post What sleep can do for you appeared first on Homeopathy With Sarah.

his post gives some ideas to help you:

• feel more in control;
• be more productive;
• and give your immune system a boost.

I was inspired to write this post after reading the article 5 Ways to Simplify Today.

The author gives you five different ways you could try and simplify your day/week/life.

What I really like is that he suggests you pick only one of these ideas, run with it for a day and see how it goes.

It demonstrates an understanding that real people – you and me – can’t change everything all at once.

It’s something that takes time and effort and is a whole lot easier if we can do it a little bit at a time.

It’s about more than just being organised

Feeling in control isn’t a superficial thing.

Having too much on without enough down time has consequences.

It can affect your immunity, your hormones and your sleep.

Here are some of the ways that I try and keep in control and focused.

I hope that you will be inspired to try one of these things. Or perhaps it will be a reminder to get back to  something that you used to do but have drifted away from recently.

​Keep focused – do one thing at a time

​Keeping my focus is something I always have to work on.

Things that I find help with focus:

• First thing in the morning (or before you go to bed), plan out your day. I use my bullet journal for this but anything will do.
• I try and have two lists on the go. One for the whole week, and then a new one for every day. I include work and personal tasks and tick off as I go along.
• When you know everything that you need to do it’s easier to make sure you don’t miss anything. You just have to remember to check in with your list during the day.
• You could turn this into a big family planner for the week if you need to keep track of more than just yourself!
• By having a written list of my tasks it means my mind doesn’t have to keep a mental note of everything. In turn, this means I can focus on the task at hand.

​

Screen time – take back control (and improve your sleep)

I love my iPhone. My life is pretty much on my iPhone.

I can transfer money. I can check my emails. I can access my work documents. I can check what school work my children have. Not to mention taking pictures of the dogs on our walk every day. I could go on.

Smart phones are fantastic things that can make our lives so much easier in so many ways.

But if we’re not careful, they can take over.

More than that, they can have a detrimental effect on your health and stress levels too.

You can read my related blog post The rest & digest response and why it’s so important if you want to find out more.

Try these things to make sure your phone is not taking control of your life! ​

​1. Turn off the notifications on your phone

I no longer have email, news or social media notifications popping up every few minutes. This will have a huge impact on your focus and your stress levels.

I still have notifications for my text messages. I have a personalised alert tone for the important people in my life. So it’s only when I hear my son or daughter’s sound (and sometimes my husband!) that I will check my phone. I’ve trained myself not to look at my phone for any other messages until I’m ready to do so.

I also have notifications off on my laptop. I now check emails at various points during the day instead of as they arrive.

This means I am in control of when I see them and deal with them. This helps me to stay focused and be more productive.

​2. Have some screen-free time

I try and have some screen-free time every day.

This isn’t generally too difficult for me. When I try and get the whole family to join me it can be more difficult.

I endeavour to make meal-times a phone-free zone. Also family game times or if we’re out together or watching a film together.

I also encourage my children to leave their phones outside their room when they are working.

Encouragingly, they will often do this without me asking them too – they know how much it helps them to focus.

Not only does finding screen-free time help you to focus. It also helps you to ‘be in the moment’ with the important people in your life.

3. Introduce a bed-time routine that doesn’t involve your phone

You are probably familiar with the benefits of some ‘quiet time’ before bedtime – especially if you have children!

In our house when the children were little, this would mean bath-time and then story-time.

Inevitably on some days this wouldn’t happen. That was such a mistake! Trying to put over-excited children to bed is a stressful experience.

I think it’s the same with adults and grown up children too.

If I have my own version of bath-time and story-time before I go to bed, I will generally have a much better sleep.

Not letting my phone be a part of this bed-time routine is half the battle.

Try this –  use an alarm clock so you can put your phone outside of your bedroom at night.

I started doing this a few years ago. It seemed a big step at the time but now it’s just what I do. It’s very liberating once you get used to it.

My children have always had to do this too.

While we’re on the subject of bed-time routines, here are some other things to try:

• avoid the news for a few hours before bed (or anything that is upsetting or scary!)
• if you watch something on TV before going to bed, try and do something mundane afterwards. This could be clearing up the kitchen or writing your to-do list for the next day. It will help your brain and body start to wind-down ready for sleep.
• a warm shower or bath before bed is wonderful way to prepare your body for sleep. Especially if you use some relaxing and calming essential oils.
• have a good stretch or do a short bedtime yoga routine (this is my favourite one)
• Make sure your room is quiet, dark and cool. An eye mask is a great investment – I use one nearly every night.

One step at a time

Small changes can have a surprisingly big impact on your life.

Why not pick one thing, try it for one day and see how you feel?

Perhaps you can talk about this with the whole family and decide on something that you can all try.

If it works for you, try committing to it for a week. And then longer.

Having some ‘rules’ in place will make a big difference and will soon become a routine.

It doesn’t matter if you don’t manage it every day, but if you have the rules in place it will be easier to find your way back to them.

I hope there is something here that will inspire you to keep things simple and in turn improve your focus. If you manage a few of the ideas then hopefully a more restful sleep and a boosted immune system will follow.
​
Sarah

Ps. Struggling to stay in control and a lack of good quality sleep are issues that often come up for my clients. Anxiety and stress are likely to be there too.

If these are things that you struggle with, why not book a free Discovery Call with me and find out how I can help?

I’d love to hear from you.

​

The post The benefits of keeping things simple appeared first on Homeopathy With Sarah.

Coronavirus and lockdown has served to highlight what I believe is a real problem – how we are taught to look after our health.

A symptom in one part of your mind or body does not happen in isolation​

Boris’s message during the current coronavirus pandemic ignores the holistic approach 

It might be different, but it’s not difficult

Over to you

Interested in finding out more?

The post How to improve your health with a 360-degree approach appeared first on Homeopathy With Sarah.

The sympathetic nervous system (or fight-flight)

The parasympathetic nervous system (or rest & digest)

Introducing adrenaline the fight-flight hormone

Introducing cortisol the stress hormone

Introducing the rest and digest phase

Why does this matter to me?

Why is that a problem?

Simple ways you can help

The post The rest & digest response and why it’s so important appeared first on Homeopathy With Sarah.

I think most of us accept the importance of sleep.

However, when it comes to prioritising sleep and doing what we can to aid good quality sleep, most of us could do better.

Here are a few ideas you might like to try to improve your sleep.

Look forward to it!

Set aside a bit of time to clean and declutter your bathroom and bedroom.

Having a clean, clear space around your bed and in your bathroom make getting ready for bed a much more appealing experience.

In turn, getting good quality sleep is so much easier.

Step away from your screens!

Decide on a time to say ‘goodnight’ to your phone, laptop, tablet etc. (I aim for 9:30pm every night – it doesn’t always happen but having something to aim for really helps).

Cortisol is the hormone our body uses to regulate our sleeping patterns. Looking at your phone, and laptop and being literally attached to your smartwatch can play havoc with your cortisol levels.

Having at least an hour of screen-free time before trying to sleep does make a difference.

Reduce your blue-light intake.

As well as having screen-free time before bed, the build-up of blue-light exposure during the evening also disrupts your cortisol levels.

Try using the ‘night-shift’ function on all your screens to help reduce this.

Go old-school.

Get an alarm clock, and make your bedroom a screen-free zone at night.

If you get yourself an alarm clock, there’s no need to have your phone in your bedroom.

It really does aid better sleep and, once you get used to it, allows your brain to ‘turn-off’ as it knows it can’t be disturbed during the night.

If you need to have your phone in your room then set up the do not disturb function and turn off wifi overnight.

Introduce aromatherapy into your bedroom. 

Essential oils can be very effective at helping you relax when used properly.

You can use them in so many ways, for example skincare products, aromatherapy diffusers, pillow sprays and roll-ons.

If you want some recommendations let me know!

Avoid caffeine and alcohol after dinner.

Find a more relaxing drink for the evening to aid sleep and help keep your body hydrated.

My favourites at the moment are the Pukka Night-time blend and After-Dinner blend.

Get an eye mask!

If you share a bed and your routine isn’t the same as you partner’s, then invest in a sleep mask and earplugs if necessary. They really can make a difference.

Having a dark and quiet room is so important to good sleep.

Prepare yourself for sleep.

As well as the tips above, try a short guided meditation or wind-down yoga routine before bed to help your mind prepare for sleep.

I can recommend Yoga with Adriene which is free on YouTube.

Why not pick a few of these tips that you like the sound of and create a sleep routine? Stick to it for a week and see how you feel.

Still not sleeping well?

​I work with many people who have issues with their sleep. If you’d like to have a chat to discuss your sleep problems I’d love to hear from you. Book in for a free Discovery Call now.

​Sarah x

The post A few ideas for better sleep appeared first on Homeopathy With Sarah.