Care For Your Sleep

Our sleep may seem like “switching off” or being quite a steady state, when our mind and body remain dormant and our brain activity is ceased. However, in the middle of the twentieth century it was discovered that every healthy sleep has its special architecture. When we sleep, our mind goes through a sequence of 5 stages, which can be characterized by different brain wave patterns. In 1953, the invention of a device called the electroencephalograph helped the scientists discover two types of sleep:

1. REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, or dreaming stage, which can be characterized with increased brain activity and rapid movement of our eyes under the eyelids.

2. NREM (non-REM) sleep, when our brain activity slows down during sleep.

Adult people spend about 20% of their sleep in REM phase, and infants spend about 50% of their sleep in this phase. This is the stage when we see the brightest and the most vivid dreams that our brain creates from the pieces of information we know and visuals. NREM sleep lasts longer, and during this phase our body works for restoring our tissues and improving the work of all the body systems, recreating bones and muscles, etc. The stages of our sleep include the following 5 phases:

Stage 1. NREM or Slow Wave Sleep (SWS). It is a period of transition between wakefulness and sleep, so the sleep is very light and a person can be woken up easily. The eye movements slow down. On this stage some people experience sudden abrupt movements (so called hypnic myoclonia), and some people may have a sensation of falling down.

Stage 2. NREM or SWS. This is the longest stage which lasts for about 50% of the whole cycle. In this phase we are still in quite light sleep. At that, our body and mind get prepared for entering a deep sleep. Our eye movements stop, the body temperature decreases, and our heart rate and brain activity slows down.

Stage 3. NREM or SWS. This stage is called deep slow-wave sleep. On this stage, very slow brain waves (delta-waves) are generated. It is quite hard to wake up a person during this stage. There are no eye movements or muscle activities.

Stage 4. NREM or SWS. This is the second stage of deep sleep. The brain goes on producing very slow delta-waves. This stage usually lasts for about 30 minutes and possible sleepwalking or bedwetting occurs on this stage. Stages 3 and 4 are the most important stages of our sleep, and if they do not last long enough, the whole sleep will be not satisfying.

Stage 5. REM sleep. The REM period lasts for about 15 minutes and can be characterized with shallow and rapid breathing, increased heart rate and blood pressure, fast movements of the eyes and certain muscle activity. This is the stage when brain activity maximizes and the waves generated can be compared to the ones generated when a person is awake. That is why dreaming occurs, and, if awoken during the REM sleep, a person can remember the dreams very clearly.

Those are the stages of human sleep cycles, which every person, who does not suffer from sleep disorders, experiences every night. Since the whole cycle usually takes 80-90 minutes, during our night seep we go through 4-5 full cycles. The length of the stages aso changes during the course of the night sleep: for example, the REM stages of the later cycles tend to last a little longer, sometimes even up to 40-50 minutes. Therefore, the most vivid and exciting dreams usually come to our mind closer to the morning!

Tags: NREM sleep, phases of sleep, REM sleep, sleep cycle, sleeping patterns, stages of sleep cycle, types of sleep

A great number of people have problems with falling asleep. Many of us got already used to tossing and turning in our beds for long time before getting into sleep mode, however, this is really distressful and sometimes even quite harmful to our body and mind. Lasting stresses, depression and anxiety, a lack of physical activities, various ailments and chronic pains, taking certain medications, as well as other possible reasons of physiological or psychological nature can cause difficulties with falling asleep fast.

If you want to shorten the time of falling asleep and make your sleep more comfortable, you can check out some recommendations and tips for real good sleepers here. If you could not find anything new or interesting for yourself, let me offer some more tips and pieces of advice for those, who have problems with falling asleep, who does not want to abuse sleeping pills and got sickened of staying awake in bed in the middle of the night unable to arrive zzz-land peacefully.

1. Generally, one of the best tips is not going to bed unless you feel at least a little sleepy. No matter, what time it is at the moment, 10 p.m., or midnight, or 4 a.m. If you are having problems with falling asleep and you are forced to go to bed, most likely you will stay awake in bed and get bored of thinking about useless things again. Therefore, if it is possible, go to bed only when you really feel sleepy. What should you do before the bedtime and how to prepare yourself better for falling asleep faster - see below.

2. In order to set yourself on a sleeping mood, do something relaxing and very pleasant before going to bed. Some people recommend writing the events of the day in a dairy, some recommend reading or playing the card game Solitaire. You can watch a light TV show like “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” or a repetition of your favorite sit/com 30-40 minutes before going to bed. Listening to some soft relaxing music can also work well. For example, listening to the albums of Mike Oldfield has been helping me for years to free my mind from all problems and stresses and calm down before going to sleep.

3. Now, if you are already in bed and fighting with the boredom of sleeplessness, try to make your mind busy with something interesting. Such known things as counting, getting focused on clock ticking, self-hypnosis, meditation or praying usually do not work. That is why you should try something, which will make your imagination work and keep you off thinking about your inability to fall asleep. Making up a story is one of the most effective techniques. Imagine that you are a writer and you are about to start writing a huge novel. Create a plot, think about the main characters, about the style and type of language you are going to use, and then start thinking about all little details of the story. This may help you fall asleep soon.

Or, you can create an imaginary companion for yourself and talk to him about everything you want: discuss your daily life, open your feelings, your fears or expectations, and so on. Also, a friend of mine told me recently about one more very interesting technique, which worked for her but made me laugh. She says that she sets on her radio on a foreign station, and a very low-volume chit-chat in a foreign language helps her to fall asleep much faster. You can try this also, it should be fun.

Tags: falling asleep, falling asleep faster

Thousands of people around the world, regardless of where they live or what they do, suffer from various sleep disorders. Specialists argue that women tend to have more problematic sleep than men, and many people are affected by called Sunday night stress syndrome, when thinking about the things that must be done and planning the activities for the next week do not allow people sleep calmly. Sensitive people usually have problems with sleep in autumn, when their chronic illnesses and minor health problems tend to aggravate. Recent studies found out that about 5% of people suffer from regular long-term insomnia.

Certainly, insomnia affects their life quality. Many people know that our bad eating habits (such as eating before going to bed, drinking a lot of coffee or energy drinks, etc.) play an important role in stimulating sleep disorders. But not everyone is aware that the foods we eat and our diet can help us fight off insomnia and have restful sleep all night. Some foods can play a role of good soporific, because they can stimulate production of serotonin and melatonin, the hormones responsible for good sleep. Below, there is a list of top 5 foods that can help us sleep better.

1.    Warm milk. A glass of warm milk is a well-known effective natural remedy for good sleep that works especially great for young children. Milk and dairy foods contain tryptophan, an amino acid with strong sedative properties, which gets converted in our body into serotonin and melatonin and improves our sleep quality to a great extent. In addition, milk is a great source of calcium necessary to our body to digest trytophan.

2.    Natural Honey. Honey is another very effective natural tranquilizer and relaxant, which has been used for many centuries in traditional Chinese medicine for fighting with insomnia and inducing sleep. Honey contains great amounts of glucose, which helps to calm down our nervous system and relax. Add a tablespoon of fresh natural honey into your warm milk or herbal tea, and drink it before going to bed: you will definitely feel the difference and enjoy a long restful sleep till the morning.

3.    Herbal teas with Chamomile, Mint and Melissa. Specialists recommend herbal teas as very effective natural remedies to promote good and restful sleep. Chamomile is a great natural solution, which helps to calm down after stresses, relax, soothe irritations and relieve various chronic aches. Mint is a natural ingredient with excellent calming, relaxing and anti-inflammatory properties, and Melissa has very strong sedative, soothing and calming therapeutic effects. That is why these three medicinal herbs are considered to be the most effective for those who fight with insomnia and other sleep disorders.

4.    Bananas. Bananas are sweet and delicious natural remedies for good sleep. Bananas are also rich with tryptophan and help to stimulate synthesis of melatonin and serotonin,  natural neurotransmitters which promote sleepiness, relaxation and feelings of calm. Besides, banana is a fruit containing a variety of B-group Vitamins, and Vitamin B12 is supposed to be especially useful when combating insomnia. In addition, bananas help our body to produce endorphins, natural chemicals known as “hormones of happiness”. When you feel happy, you always sleep much better, don’t you?

5.    Almonds. Some experts consider almonds and some types of nuts to be the best sleep-indulging food. Just like milk and bananas, almonds are also a great source of tryptophan, which helps to relax and calm down. Besides, almonds contain such element as magnesium, known for its excellent muscle relaxing properties. Therefore, eating a handful of almonds in 1or 2 hours before going to bed can be of a great help to those people, who want to get a good night’s sleep.

It is possible to continue this list and mention other foods containing tryptophan, such as oatmeal, potato or turkey. Remember that in order to achieve long-term positive effects, these products must be incorporated into your diet and consumed in reasonable doses on a regular basis. Do not expect to have a good sleep after drinking 3 pints of warm milk with honey. Also, do not forget that many of these products can cause allergic reactions and must not be overdosed. Develop good eating habits, eat greater amounts of fresh and natural foods, lead a healthy-life style and sleep well every night!

Tags: almonds for good sleep, bananas for good sleep, Chamomlie, foods that help you sleep, herbal tea for good sleep, honey for good sleep, melatonin, Melissa, Mint, serotonin, sleep-indulging foods, tryptophan, warm milk for good sleep

The researchers argue that the way we sleep and the position we usually adopt while sleeping can shed some light on what kind of person we are. A group of specialists from the Sleep Assessment and Advisory Service of the Edinburgh Sleep Centre analyzed six most common sleeping positions with the help of 1,000 volunteers, who took part in the research. It proved to be that every sleeping position is linked to a certain personality type. The results of this study can be summarized as the following:

A. “Fetus” sleeping position is the most common and proved to be adopted by 41% of people. Those, who like curling up while sleeping, are trying to look tough on the outside, but usually are kind-hearted and sensitive underneath. Such people frequently have lack of self-confidence when they meet new people, but soon they start feeling more relaxed and communicate more freely.

B. “Log” sleeping position is preferred by 15% of people. Those, who like lying down on their back or side and placing both arms down by their sides, are open, easy going and communicative people, who can easily find a common language with strangers, but sometimes can be too credulous.

C. “Yearner” sleeping position is adopted by 13% of people, who like sleeping on the side with both arms stretched out in front of them. This type of people are open by their nature, but very frequently they turn into suspicious, hesitant and even cynical individuals. Also, usually they are very slow in making decisions, but once they have made up their mind to do something, they stick to that plan and most likely never tend to change it!

D. “Soldier” is the most comfortable sleeping position for 8% of people. Those, who find comfortable lying on their back with their arms pinned to the sides while sleeping, are calm and reserved people. They hate noise and fussing around. Besides, they always aspire to the better and set high standards for themselves and for those around them.

E. “Freefall” is a sleeping position adopted by 7% of people. Those, who like lying on their front and placing their arms around the pillow, can be described as quite communicative, but harsh and daring people, who hate criticism and unexpected situations. At the same time, they are very sensitive and vulnerable underneath.

F. “Starfish” sleeping position is the best for 5% of people. Those, who lie on their back and place their arms around the pillow, are usually very friendly people, who take pleasure from helping the others and listening to their problems. Such people avoid being a center of general attention and prefer standing in the shadows.

Tags: fetus, freefall, log, personality type, sleeping positions, soldier, starfish, yearner

What was your most pleasant dream ever? You were Agent Smith fighting with Neo, or you were acting like James Bond trying to save the girl you love from bad guys. No, no, no: you were in the bedroom with Paris Hilton or you were playing bass for Avril Lavigne. Now, what was your most disturbing dream ever? By the way, did you know that there is a special Dreambank, created by the specialists of the University of California more than a hundred years ago? You can give those guys a call and tell them what kind of interesting dream you saw tonight. This valuable information gives Dreambank specialists a great opportunity to analyze and study our dreams in order to have a better idea about the nature and function of the dreams.

Sometimes, the findings of such researchers are quite remarkable. For example, Dr. Patricia Garfield, an expert and former president of the Association for the Study of Dreams, found out that there are only 12 universal dream patterns that we all basically see at night. The most popular dreams are the ones about chasing or being chased. Dreams about being trapped or getting lost hold the second place. A lot of people also regularly see dreams about falling down and those ones, where a person feels ashamed for his/her clothes. Finally, dreams about being injured also hold a ranking place.

Another interesting discovery was presented by a group of Canadian and Finnish specialists who found out that our dreams are actually perfect training exercises for our minds. Dreams as a phenomenon emerged on early stages of the development of human race and were considered to be a perfect psychological exercise that could help people to learn how to react on various dangerous or threatening situations. “A dream-production mechanism that tends to select threatening waking events and simulate them over and over again would have been valuable for the development of threat-avoiding skills,” says a Finnish scientist and psychologist Dr. Antti Revonsuo.

In addition to all those exciting findings, presented recently on a conference in Boston, experts argue that the fantasies that our brain generates at night depend on our personality type to a great extent. In particular, calm and conservative people tend to see dreams about being chased or falling down. Moreover, specialists underline that the content of our dreams depends a lot on what we see in the news, what we read during the day or what we worry about. This hypothesis was proposed quite long ago by the experts from Tufts University, and in the beginning of the 21st century new evidence for this thoery has come to light. Many people reported that their dreams have changed after the events of 9/11. Therefore, new fears and new worries can affect our dreams and make our sleep less calm and restful.

Tags: 12 universal dream patterns, Dreambank, dreams