Healthy Sleep is a Helping Hand

Sleeping. Why doesn’t the human body just go and stop when you need it to? Adjusting to the fact that sleep doesn’t “just happen” means that we all need to be a little more conscious of the decisions we make throughout the day and how they will affect our sleep. Because how we sleep affects the decisions we make throughout the day.?

Work fatigue contributes to a lack of sleep and vice versa.

Research shows that there is a significant connection between sleep and functionality. Brain, body, and spirit can all be affected by continually poor sleep as seen in symptoms ranging from an inability to adapt to changes to a compromised immune system and other health risks, including depression.?

The more ineffective you feel at being able to solve problems that arise in your work, the more hours you will spend restlessly going over these concerns. (Especially for us hopeless control freaks.) The less time you have to adequately rest and reset your system, the less you are able to focus on the issues that come with your job. It is a ruthless cycle and can completely strip individuals of the hope that anything will change for the better.?

How do we break the cycle?

In a recent podcast titled “We’re Tired, AF…FATIGUED That Is!” the presenters discussed the issue of “turning it off” after work and shared solutions from their own experiences. These included scheduling designated hours for sleep and “me time” (a compulsively organized person’s dream,) setting screen and mobile device limitations, and taking advantage of those PTO hours. They also commented on how the societal reception of this idea has changed in recent years. People are celebrated on social media for sharing about their vacation time and personal hobbies. The reason all this is important to a restful night’s sleep is that the human body is not built to go from full speed to a full stop in a matter of minutes. If you do not have the ability to tune out of work for a while, you will slowly become unable to perform your work well.

Sometimes, all it takes is finding your fun to fight the fatigue, inside and outside of work.

Even in your hours “on the clock” during the workday, intentionally focusing on the thing you enjoy within the work that you have to do will release endorphins (as when you sleep or exercise) and reinvigorate you.

Practicing rest (e.g., intentionally setting aside time for sleep, refocusing your mindset about and during work, taking a step back from tasks every now and then) is a proactive answer to the work/sleep dilemma. If getting a better night’s sleep (by extension) means better working days, it seems a practice worth trying out. What has been your story with sleep? Do you bounce back from an all-nighter without batting an eye? Do you power down for your best work?