Sleep is one of the most important things you can do to improve your brain health. As a software developer, if I can’t sleep or get fewer hours of sleep than normal, I have a harder time focusing, getting in the flow and coming up with good solutions to whatever task I might be working on. It’s just a lot harder to get through the day.
As you sleep, cerebrospinal fluid flows through the brain and cleans it of toxins. It removes amyloid beta and tau proteins. These are plaques that can build up over time and are associated with Alzheimer’s and dementia.
Lack of sleep is associated with increased levels of the stress hormone cortisol, increased insulin production and increased cravings for junk/sugary foods. Lack of sleep is also associated with weight gain.
The average amount of sleep to aim for is between 7 and 8 hours per night. I usually shoot for between 7 and 7 1/2hours. Less than that leads to headaches. More than that, I have a hard time fitting into my schedule.
In order to improve the quality of sleep, it’s important to go to bed and get up about the same time, even on weekends. Getting off schedule on the weekends definitely makes for tougher Mondays.
It’s also a good idea to set up a bedtime routine. I usually brush my teeth, work on blog posts or an online course, meditate, read for a bit and then go to sleep.
On the rare occasions I have a hard time sleeping, some of the things I try are:
– a drop of lavender on a paper towel or in a diffuser
– drink a cup of milk, along with eating half a banana and 100 mg of magnesium
– read
– meditate
Some other sleep tips:
– do exercise during the day. It really does help you sleep better.
– do keep your bedroom temperature around 65, give or take a couple of degrees
– do make sure to drink water during the day. Being dehydrated may make it harder to turn your mind off.
– do make sure to use blue light filter glasses or an app on your device, if you use a screen before bed. Windows 10 has blue light functionality built in with a system setting called Night Light.
– do sleep with your mouth closed. If you can’t, try using a piece of surgical tape to lightly keep it closed. Nose breathing is so much better for you than mouth breathing. It filters out dust and germs, increases oxygen flow, and produces nitric oxide which helps increase blood flow and decrease blood pressure.
– do use a diffuser if the air is dry, so you don’t wake up with a dry mouth.
– do make sure your bed is comfortable and cozy.
– do keep your bedroom dark. This will help promote the production of melatonin which is a sleep hormone.
– do talk with your doctor about taking a magnesium supplement. Magnesium helps the body relax and many people are deficient in it.
– don’t eat close to bedtime, stop eating a few hours before bedtime
– don’t drink alcohol to sleep. It might knock you out for a few hours, but you’ll wake up groggy and have a hard time getting back to sleep. I quit drinking years ago and sleep so much better without it.
Fact: During sleep, the brain stays active. There are 4 stages of sleep: Stage 1 is the transition from being awake to sleeping and only lasts 5 – 10 minutes. During Stage 2, body temperature lowers and heart rate slows. It lasts about 20 minutes. During Stage 3, muscles relax and is a deeper state of sleep. During Stage 4, the REM stage, the brain becomes active, eyes move rapidly and dreaming occurs. Stage 2 repeats before entering Stage 4.
Challenge: Go to bed 10 – 15 minutes earlier every night for a week and see if you notice a difference in how you feel.
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