How To Have Sound Sleep - The Natural Way: Simple ideas that effectively induce sleep

Chapter 1

Sleep

Sleep is one of the most important necessities of life. We spend nearly one-third of our life sleeping. Shakespeare has said, Sleep is the balm of the hurt minds; great nature’s second course; chief nourisher in life’s feast.

In the words of Napoleon, What a delightful thing rest is! The bed has become a place of luxury to me. I would not exchange it for all the thrones in the world.

It has been said, Blessing on him who first invented sleep. It covers a man all over, thoughts and all, like a cloak. It is meat for the hungry, drink for the thirsty, heat for the cold and cold for the hot.

The importance of sleep should not be underestimated. It is a tired nature’s sweet restorer or the most important gift of God.

Why Do We Need Sleep?

There are countless cells in our body which require rest for relaxation and vitality. If not given enough rest, these cells, will tire themselves out and become less functional and erratic. Proper and sound sleep is essential for rejuvenation of heart muscles that get fatigued during the day. The better the quality of sleep, the more rest these cells and tissues get and perform better by making our body carry out the daily routine effectively.

In essence, sleep is a tonic for our physical and mental health. It removes exertion, and imparts our body and mind with freshness, energy and strength. It reinvigorates strained muscles and nerves.

Benefits of Sound Sleep

The benefits desired from a sound sleep are:

1. It gives rest to strained muscles and nerves.

2. It soothes the body, the mind and the soul.

3. It conserves the energy of our body.

4. It enables proper growth in children since the maximum secretion of growth hormone occurs at night.

5. It helps repair the cells and tissues that are damaged due to various illnesses.

6. Regular sleep gives rest to our facial muscles as well as the skin, thus keeping it free from wrinkles.

7. It helps in boosting the immune system which is responsible for defence of the body against illnesses; and their speedy recovery.

8. A sound sleep reduces the day-long fatigue of our body.

9. The physical and mental energy lost during the day is regained during the night.

10. It rejuvenates our body, helping us to face the new day fresh.

11. Medical research has shown that the people who have a regular and adequate sleep do not suffer from heart diseases and hypertension.

12. Sound sleep for at least 6 to 8 hours daily helps to prolong the lifespan of the individuals.

13. Studies have also shown that regular sleeping patterns help in the prevention of many infections and even cancer.

Adverse Effects of Lack of Sleep/ Disturbed Sleep

Modernisation of lifestyle and civilization controls our sleep to a large extent. Inadequate or disturbed sleep can give rise to a number of problems. These problems may be mild when sleep is disturbed only for a day or two but aggravate if disturbed continuously for many nights.

Following problems may arise due to lack of adequate sleep:

1. The person becomes irritable and loses his temper over trivial matters.

2. He may feel restless while sitting, standing or even lying down.

3. He complains of a constant headache especially involving the forehead and eyes.

4. A person with disturbed sleep feels as if his body is aching and fnds it uneasy to move around.

5. The most common effect of lack of sleep is fatigue. The person feels tired and complains of lack of energy.

6. The person shows diminished interest in his work and surroundings.

7. It may lead to repeated yawning, dozing off and drowsiness.

8. Depression, anxiety, giddiness and even fits (convulsions) may set in, especially in the people, who are prone to mental illnesses.

9. Many individuals report changes in heartbeat or pulse rate and blood pressure.

10. Researchers have observed that when people don’t get enough sleep, their ability to think suffers.

11. Chronic insomnia can impair orientation to time and place, i.e. person is not aware of the time and place where he is present.

12. Some individuals develop dark circles under the eyes and a greyish tinge of skin.

13. People with prolonged sleep disorders cannot put forth their best efforts and their performance at work is unsatisfactory.

14. Major industrial and road accidents are usually caused by individuals with sleep disorder.

15. It has been found that those, who have been deprived of adequate sleep for a long time, may develop heart diseases, hypertension, certain infections and even cancer.

The adverse effects of lack of sleep on an individual may be summarised as under:

1. Irritability

2. Restlessness

3. Constant headache

4. Heaviness in the body

5. Fatigue

6. Lack of interest in work

7. Lethargy with yawning, drowsiness, dozing off

8. Depression/anxiety

9. Giddiness

10. Fits

11. Changes in heartbeat and blood pressure

12. Poor memory/forgetfulness

13. Poor orientation to time and place

14. Dark circles under the eyes

15. Greyish tinge of skin

16. Poor work performance

17. Proneness to industrial/road accidents

18. Development of hypertension, heart diseases and even cancer

19. Poor growth in children

20. Proneness to infection and delayed healing.

Chapter 2

Physiology of Sleep

What is Sleep?

Sleep is a state of subconsciousness, which occurs in the night or sometimes during the daytime and usually lasts for some hours. When conscious or awake, an individual is able to perform all activities like eating, drinking, learning, procreating etc. When asleep, an individual is not aware of the surroundings, does not move or respond to when spoken to or touched and is unable to perform routine activities.

Coma: A Prolonged Sleep

Coma is a prolonged state of deep sleep due to some disease or injury to the brain. In this state, the individual cannot be aroused or awakened even by strong stimuli unlike in sleep. Oxygen consumption by the brain is reduced in coma unlike in normal sleep where there is no change.

Other Sleep Like Unconsciousness

1. Syncope or fainting is a temporary loss of consciousness due to some abnormal changes in the body.

2. Stupor is a state of reduced or suspended consciousness, caused due to the shock, daze, intoxicants etc.

3. Brain death is said to occur when the regulatory mechanisms of the body controlling blood pressure, respiration etc. collapse due to some injury to the brain or reduced blood supply to the brain. Brain death is said to occur when such a state lasts for more than 6-12 hours and the EEG (electro-encephalograph) shows no recording of brain waves.

How Long Can You Sleep?

The duration of sleep varies according to the age. Newborn babies sleep for up to 16 hours daily with several short intervals of wakefulness. As the child grows up there is a gradual diminution in the duration of sleep, to 7-8 hours, in adulthood. This also depends to some extent on the amount of manual work performed. In old age, about 5-6 hours of sleep supplemented by short naps in the daytime is observed.

How is Sleep Induced?

In spite of immense research work, the exact mechanism by which sleep is induced has not been discovered. In different parts of the brain there are nerve fibres (neurons), which form a network called the Ascending Reticular Activating System (A.R.A.S.). It has been postulated that when these fibres are electrically activated or stimulated, the person enters the state of wakefulness. In the absence of stimulation of the A.R.A.S., it is believed that the person goes to sleep.

Besides the A.R.A.S., there are two sleep centres made of nerve fibres which are responsible for producing the Slow-Wave Sleep (S.W.S.) and Rapid-Eye Movement (R.E.M.) Sleep, respectively. The sleep centre for S.W.S. is located in the medulla of the brain and uses a chemical substance called serotonin as the neurotransmitter for inducing S.W.S.

The R.E.M. sleep centre is located in pons—a part of the brain—and uses neuropinephrine as the neuro-transmitter for inducing R.E.M. sleep.

The Sleeping State

In a typical night of sleep, an adult enters two types of states, i.e. Slow-Wave Sleep (S.W.S.) or Non-Rapid Eye-Movement Sleep (N.R.E.M.) and Fast-Wave Sleep (F.W.S.) or Rapid-Eye Movement (R.E.M.) sleep.

Initially, the person enters into the state of S.W.S., which progresses