4 effective ways to manage your work and sleep schedules for better well-being and mental health.

With the popular start-up culture on a rise, every small and mid-sized organization is trying to make its mark in the industry. At the same time, Norway and other Scandinavian regions face issues of limited daylight during winters. The extreme weather conditions can account for a lousy work routine in gloomy weathers. With that being said, low daylight can significantly impact one’s mental state making it difficult to start our day early and having a fixed sleep time during the night. This in turn can affect work productivity, and often we end up in a cycle of late bedtime and late rising. Whether you are a start-up entrepreneur, a banker or an engineer in a large organization, keeping up with your business goals can be highly challenging. In order to keep up with the demands of our workplaces and institutions, we are determined to stay ahead of the competition. We are constantly researching, innovating and working round-the-clock towards our objectives. Flowing through this multi-dimensional journey, we seldom realize that we are neglecting our mental health. As much as extreme weather affects one’s emotions and mental health it also impacts and interferes with one’s sleep routine. We believe, it can be wise to start our workday earlier and avoid late sleep schedules which can have a disturbing effect on our biological clocks. This view on the association between sleep and mental health is supported by research showing that people with late sleeping habits, compared to early risers, may be at higher risk of developing mental health issues.

A large-scale genetics study led by Professor Mike Weedon at the University of Exeter found that being biologically programmed to wake up early is linked to greater happiness and a lower risk of mental illnesses. On the other hand, long lasting sleep disturbances and staying awake throughout the night, is associated with a higher risk of mental disorders such as depression and schizophrenia. Disorders, affecting emotional, behavioural and cognitive behaviours. The study highlights the potential risk a person is exposed to due to a prolonged bed time. Genetic and lifestyle factors, including diet and exercise, also influence our biological clock. Furthermore, exposure to stressful work environments and artificial lighting can also negatively affect our hormones and disturb our sleep routine. Every individual has a biological clock tuned according to nature, thus disturbing your sleep routine means disturbing your natural biological clock potentially resulting in reduced level of mental well-being. (Weedon, 2019)

As mental health advocates, we strongly believe that a healthy sleeping routine is one of the essential factors governing mental well-being. Below are some key advice on how to manage the conflict between ambitions and mental well-being.

Early start

As stated earlier, we tend to give into the impact of gloomy weather, resulting in a lousy start to our day. This in turn forms a cycle of late rising and late sleeping. Studies have shown that starting your day early signals your brain to start producing sleep-inducing melatonin 12-14 hours later. Further, we recognize insomnia as a risk factor for both depression (including major depressive disorder). In fact, people with insomnia are twice as likely to develop depression compared to people who do not suffer from sleep disorders. Attempting an early start can be a good beginning towards a healthy body and mind cycle. As they rightly say “be willing to be a beginner every single morning”.

Schedule your day ahead

Because we are unable to finish our tasks during the official hours, work often tends to follow us from the office and into our home. Planning your day ahead of time will give you more flexibility and increase your chances of accomplishing your tasks at your own convenience. This will also help you stop procrastinating. Establishing a routine helps one focus well and function with greater efficiency. 

Deciding on a "bed-time"

The average adult needs a minimum of 7 to 9 hours of sound sleep. Sleep deprivation (not getting enough sleep) can lead to loss of concentration, headaches, digestion difficulties and stress. Furthermore, it can increase the risk of serious medical conditions, including obesity, heart disease and diabetes. Also, it may shorten your life expectancy. As cliché as it may sound, deciding on and establishing a fixed bed-time is the most crucial factor for maintaining our mental health.

Relaxation techniques

It’s highly essential that your body is calm and relaxed before concluding and ending your day. Various relaxation techniques like meditation, yoga, and progressive muscle relaxation (alternately tensing and releasing muscles) and breathing exercises calm and soothe your mind and can counter anxiety and racing thoughts. However, it is also important to review your priorities and workload, perhaps something beyond your control is causing you high stress levels and sleep disturbances and needs to be changed?

Give sound sleep it's due.

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Source: Weedon, 2019. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-018-08259-7

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Lifekeys is an online mental health services company. We work with businesses and individuals in improving lives by providing effective psychological solutions. Our vision is to lower the threshold to seek help by offering quality online mental health services. For more information regarding our services please visit us at - https://lifekeys.no/ or get in touch at [email protected]