Sleep - The basics

It sounds simple, but getting enough sleep is absolutely essential, and really is one of the biggest contributors to good health – it gives our bodies that crucial time they need to grow, heal and repair. Getting enough sleep can be tough if you have a busy life or even just a big day tomorrow. 12 hours one night, then 3 hours the next won't do you good. The focus is to plan out your day around your sleep in order to get a full nights rest and be ready for tomorrow.

The process of sleep: We spend every day going through two processes. The first is called process S – it’s the drive we all have to go to sleep. It works a bit like being hungry then satiating that feeling by eating. From the moment we wake up, we start developing our drive to go to sleep again – it will increase all day, then drop once we sleep. The second is known as process C, which is our natural body clock – the circadian rhythm. It pretty much works on a 24-hour basis. This explains why sleep is so fragile – our internal system is constantly fighting an external world, kind of like jetlag. We’re always a bit behind or a bit ahead, so regular bedtimes and getting into a good routine is really helpful.

Regulating the sleep process:

There are two hormones that are key to the success of our sleep. Melatonin, a natural hormone, helps us get to sleep. It builds up as it gets dark, reaching a peak at around 4am when it starts to decline. On the other hand is cortisol, the stress hormone. It’s got a bit of a bad rep but it allows us to walk, talk, exercise and do what we need to do during the day. It works in the opposite way – we start to produce cortisol in the early hours of the morning to get us ready to wake up. That’s the basics – anything that disrupts either of those processes or the intersection between them is a sleep disorder. So, with all that in mind, let’s go on to what happens when we’re actually asleep, and the repeating cycle we go through every night.

The 90min Sleep Cycle:

This cycle repeats throughout the course of a night:

STAGE ONE – that warm cosy feeling when we get into bed. Our brainwaves start to slow – about five minutes

STAGE TWO – as we drift off, we get progressively deeper and might experience a jolt, like we’re falling off something. This is the ‘hypnagogic jerk’ and one explanation for it is that we no longer need cortisol, so our muscles tense and jerk to excrete excess quickly. We’re at the official onset of sleep – our brainwaves get slower still and more rhythmic, and the majority of our memory consolidation occurs, including black and white dreaming (45–55% of our night)

SLOW WAVE SLEEP – we go into a very deep sleep and it’s hard to wake ourselves (or others!) – our brainwaves have spaced out. This stage is the only sleep period where our immune systems work at 100% – we’re healing, producing anti-cancer cells, anti-allergens and cleaning the body – this is why we sleep a lot when we’re poorly. This is 13–23% of our night

STAGE TWO (AGAIN) – we pop back into stage two, although we don’t wake up, we’re conscious enough to check our environment is safe, then we move on to . . .

REM CYCLE – this sleep stage is really important for our memory and mind, and clears all the toxins in the brain. It only lasts about five minutes in its first iteration, but is 20–25% of our night. If we don’t sleep well, our memory is shot the next day and our problem-solving ability is reduced – good to know. We dream in colour now, and if we don’t remember our dreams it just means we’re consolidating our memory really well.

But how much sleep should we be getting every night? The National Sleep Foundation have published a new report, after a panel of 18 medical scientists and researchers reviewed over 300 sleep studies to determine the amount of time someone should sleep according to their age. They found the following times are ideal:

So how do you measure up? Are you getting enough? Try these tips if you're struggling to get to sleep:

• Stick to a sleep schedule, even on weekends.

• Practice a relaxing bedtime ritual .

• Exercise daily.

• Evaluate your bedroom to ensure ideal temperature, sound and light.

• Sleep on a comfortable mattress and pillows.

• Avoid of drinking alcohol and caffeine before bed.

• Turn off electronics before bed.

Some of my personal favourites are:

• Wear a beanie to bed if it is cold

• Wrap your pillow with a warm blanket

• Listen to your favourite calm music

• Face the wall when you sleep

• Don't have sheets in Summer

That's all for today. I really hope you guys fix you sleeping habits and start sleeping for long enough. I am serious - you will feel amazing!