We all know how good it feels after a good night’s sleep, and how bad it feels to be sleep deprived. Unfortunately, many people tend to sacrifice the precious hours of sleep in order to work more, spend more time on social networks or watch an interesting movie, without even thinking that it is harmful to their health and quality of life. Here are 5 signs that you are not getting enough sleep!
1. Wake up without sleeping
During sleep, a person renews and recharges, so when you get up in the morning, you should feel alert and full of energy, and you should feel tired only in the evening. If you wake up in the morning groggy and the only thing on your mind is to go back to bed or drink several cups of coffee as soon as possible to get ready for the day, this is a sign that you haven’t slept enough. In such cases, the fatigue does not go away even during the day, so you console yourself that you will go to bed on time in the evening, but… The evening drags on and in the morning you wake up again tired and without sleep. If this happens only a few times a year, there is no reason to worry, but if morning fatigue has been well known to you for a long time, you should look for a way to improve your night’s sleep and sleep properly.
2. Appetite and craving for unhealthy snacks increases
Lack of sleep can also be the reason why you gain weight without realizing it. A sleep-deprived person is tired all the time, so he looks for a way to “recharge” himself, and the easiest way to do this is by eating high-calorie foods, such as sweets or fast food. When studying sleep and eating habits, scientists have discovered several regularities, for example, due to lack of sleep, the level of the hormone leptin decreases (it is responsible for the feeling of satiety), while the level of the hormone ghrelin increases (it increases appetite and signals hunger). As a result, hunger torments all the time and the feeling of safety disappears. Lack of sleep also increases the level of stress in the body, which in turn contributes to the rise of the hormone cortisol. Cortisol increases the amount of glucose in the blood, so not getting enough sleep also contributes to the fact that the body is less sensitive to insulin, which converts food into energy. Over time, this leads to fat accumulation in the body and weight gain.
3. No sleep, no peace
Lack of sleep is evidenced not only by physical fatigue, but also by emotional exhaustion, sharp mood swings and easy irritability and even aggressiveness. Often people go to yoga classes, learning breathing exercises to become more balanced and calm, but do not think that in reality they should only improve their sleeping regime and get a good night’s sleep. A sleep-deprived person also tends to make spontaneous, erroneous decisions, which he later regrets. Also, he loses alertness, becomes distracted and his reactions decrease, so it is dangerous to sit behind the wheel of a car in this position.
4. Libido will decrease
Lack of sleep puts the body and mind in constant survival mode, causing other natural instincts to decline, including libido. A person who hasn’t slept is tired, so he doesn’t feel lust or arousal, moreover, a partner full of energy, eager for fun, does not seem attractive, but on the contrary – drives you crazy, because you are not on the same page with him.
5. Bad memory
Deterioration of memory and forgetfulness is one of the most frequent signs of lack of sleep, because during sleep the brain works to remember what it has learned or learned during the day. If there is not enough sleep, the process of memory formation is disrupted in the brain, so the memory deteriorates. It is not for nothing that before important exams or presentations, it is a tradition to leave a textbook or notebook under the pillow to remember everything during the night.
What to do?
It’s easy to say – you need to sleep more, but it’s much harder to do. It is very important to implement bedtime rituals that prepare you for sleep and follow them carefully, because they will help you fall asleep faster, sleep sweeter and wake up refreshed and energetic.
* One hour before going to bed, you should turn off the TV and put away your tablet and phone. The blue light emitted by their screens is known to inhibit forgetfulness and impair sleep quality. You can also notice disturbing information in them that will disturb your sleep.
* It is best to sleep in a dark and cool room, so you should take care of curtains that do not let the light shine through or wear a sleep mask. Before going to bed, you should properly ventilate the bedroom so that there is fresh air in the room.
* If you can’t fall asleep in the evening because different thoughts about the work to be done tomorrow are running through your head, you should get in the habit of planning what to do tomorrow at the end of the working day. Then it will be clearly known what needs to be done and there will be no chaos and anxiety in the brain.
* Going to bed should be treated as seriously as any other duty – if you plan to go to bed at ten and get up at seven, then you should sleep at ten, and not just lie in bed with the TV remote in your hand.
* To improve the quality of sleep, you can use nutritional supplements, such as “Good Sleep Spray” or “Good Sleep Caps “.
* It is good to read a book before going to bed , because it will help you to calm down and distract your thoughts from the stressful everyday life.
Melatonin for good sleep
Good Sleep Spray is the first sublingual sleeping aid whose melatonin content helps to reduce the time required to fall asleep¹ and ease the feelings associated with disruption of the circadian rhythm², while the passionflower plant has a sedative effect and helps maintain mental relaxation and healthy sleep.
Good Sleep Caps capsules for sleep also contain melatonin¹, passion flower and other plant extracts. Valerian promotes mental health. Hops have a calming effect.
¹ The beneficial effect is achieved by taking at least 1 mg of melatonin shortly before bedtime.
² The beneficial effect is achieved by taking at least 0.5 mg of melatonin on the first day of the trip shortly before going to bed and for the first few days after arriving at the destination.