Not logging enough zzz\u2019s? Join the club: One in 3 adults doesn\u2019t get adequate sleep, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But before you self-diagnose as an insomniac, there are several sleep myths that need debunking. Read on and get the rest you need to stay on top of your game, physically and mentally.<\/p>\n
Also called \u201crepaying your sleep debt,\u201d this one is tricky because there may be some truth to it. \u201cIf you\u2019re chronically sleep-deprived \u2014 meaning several nights of bad sleep every week for at least 12 weeks \u2014 it is impossible to catch up on the weekends,\u201d says David Brodner, M.D., sleep specialist at the Center for Sinus, Allergy & Sleep Wellness in Florida. However, some studies show that you might be able to make up for a couple of bad nights by sleeping in as long as you can on the weekend. Can\u2019t make it happen? Consider napping between 2 and 5 p.m. for no more than 30 minutes; longer than that and you could mess up your sleep that night, Brodner says.<\/p>\n
\u201cStudies show that people who get too much sleep will have health problems,\u201d Brodner says. In one study, sleeping more than 10 hours per night was associated with an increased risk of metabolic syndrome, elevated triglyceride levels, a higher waist circumference and lower HDL cholesterol in women. If you do tend to sleep too much, your issues might be bigger than fatigue and may be caused by depression, diabetes, chronic pain, hormonal imbalances or sleep apnea, and they may warrant a visit to
\nyour doctor.<\/p>\n
According to data from Ryerson University in Toronto, 40 percent of couples these days are embracing \u201cnight divorce,\u201d in which they sleep in different beds. This often occurs because their sleep patterns don\u2019t match or because one partner snores and keeps the other awake. And though many people believe they sleep better together, the opposite is actually true: When Ryerson researchers monitored brains of couples, they found that many people weren\u2019t getting into the deeper stages of sleep because of sound or movement from their partner. So sleeping apart may actually improve sleep quality and, as a result, relationships.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, the more time you spend lying awake, the more anxious you\u2019ll get about not sleeping. Before you know it, half the night has passed. \u201cSome people might be able to shrug off a bad night of sleep, but for those with insomnia, one night of awful sleep puts more pressure on them the next night to sleep \u2014 which can then make it even tougher to sleep,\u201d Brodner says.<\/p>\n
If you lie awake for 15 minutes or longer, leave the bedroom. Go to a room that\u2019s quiet and dimly lit and read a boring book or listen to dull music. (Note: Do not use any electronics because they have been shown numerous times to disrupt sleep patterns.) When you feel sleepy, return to bed. Continue this cycle until you\u2019re asleep.<\/p>\n
Sleep apnea affects more than 18 million adults, according to the National Sleep Foundation, and it is characterized by breathing that\u2019s interrupted briefly and repeatedly as you sleep. Thought snoring is a telltale sign, you still may not know you have apnea \u2014 largely because it happens while you\u2019re asleep. \u201cSleep apnea is a serious condition that, if left untreated, can cause other health problems like high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease and depression,\u201d says Rita Aouad, M.D., assistant professor of sleep medicine at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.<\/p>\n
Moreover, women are more likely to go undiagnosed, according to the NSF, because often they don\u2019t exhibit the classic symptoms like snoring and\/or breathing pauses. Instead, they may report mood disturbances, morning headaches and fatigue. Get in touch with your doc if you experience these alternate symptoms.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Not logging enough zzz\u2019s? Join the club: One in 3 adults doesn\u2019t get adequate sleep, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But before you self-diagnose as an insomniac, there are several sleep myths that need debunking. Read on and get the rest you need to stay on top of your game, physically and mentally. Myth No. 1: You can\u2019t make up for lost sleep on the weekend. Also called \u201crepaying your sleep debt,\u201d this one is tricky because there may be some truth to it. \u201cIf you\u2019re chronically sleep-deprived \u2014 meaning several nights of bad sleep every […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2546,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[114,204,205,206,203,207],"class_list":["post-2545","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-womens-health","tag-healthy-living","tag-mind-and-body","tag-motivation","tag-style-and-beauty","tag-womens-fitness-personalities","tag-womens-health","post--single"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/high-end-life.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2545","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/high-end-life.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/high-end-life.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/high-end-life.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/high-end-life.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2545"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/high-end-life.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2545\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2986,"href":"https:\/\/high-end-life.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2545\/revisions\/2986"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/high-end-life.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2546"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/high-end-life.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2545"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/high-end-life.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2545"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/high-end-life.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2545"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}