Easier Awakening

Thu, Sep 25, 2008

Alternative Medicine, Archives, Midlife Crisis, Natural Herbs & Foods, Sleep Disorder

By Irwan Lee

Are you a morning person, or a night owl? If you’re one of those who can spring out of bed each morning feeling ready to conquer the world, then we’ll excuse you from reading this article. But please read on if you or someone you know could use a little help in shaking that morning grogginess and feeling more alert, alive, and productive. ;

The most common reason for difficulty in awakening is simply not getting enough good quality sleep. Health Watch Weekly Most adults require 6 to 8 hours, and adolescents and teens can need up to 10 hours per night, although it’s not easy to convince a teenager that sleeping is more important than late-night computer gaming or text messaging with friends!

If you’re having difficulty awakening in the morning, there can be consequences. Feeling rushed in the morning increases your body’s production of stress hormones. Abnormal overproduction of stress hormones is thought to be the cause of many diseases, including obesity, heart disease, and high blood pressure.

Hurried late risers tend to skip breakfast, the most important meal of the day. Without proper nutrition to fuel your brain and body, your productivity at work or at school will suffer. And you may be surprised to learn that morning “brain fog” is one of the leading causes of automobile accidents.

If you have trouble awakening, you can even injure your back. While you sleep, your spinal discs fill with fluid, and that’s why you’re actually taller when you first wake up. But your back is also unstable until you have been awake and moving enough to squeeze out the excess fluid. If you’re rushing in the morning, you run a much greater risk of hurting your back.

Lastly, you can hurt your relationships. Nobody likes a grouch, and if you’re unpleasant in the morning, you’ll be avoided by friends, co-workers, and loved ones.

There is a chance that your difficulty in awakening might have a medical cause.

You’ll want to speak with your doctor if you suffer from one of the following, which are more prevalent than you might think:

Sleep apnea. This is a treatable disorder in which breathing is disrupted during sleep. Symptoms of sleep apnea include snoring, waking up with a headache, and waking up during the night.

Depression. Some individuals, particularly children and adolescents, deal with depression by sleeping a lot more than they actually need to.

Periodic Limb Movements. These are movements of the arms and legs during sleep, and the effect can be like getting a tiring workout instead of a good night’s rest.

If your problem is not medical in origin, here are some helpful tips that can make your mornings a lot easier:

Adopt a regular sleep schedule. If you develop the habit of going to bed at the same reasonable time every night, you’ll find it much easier to awaken on schedule, too.
Use a dawn simulator. This is a special alarm clock that uses a gradually brightening light instead of a nerve-jangling buzzer. The increasing intensity of light simulates the rising sun, triggering the release of brain chemicals to awaken you gently and naturally.
Don’t eat late at night. Eating before bedtime is guaranteed to make you sleep poorly. Your body needs to be resting, not digesting.
Sleep under comfortable conditions. You spend one-third of your life in bed, so make sure that your sleeping environment is ideal. Trade in that creaky mattress and lumpy pillow, and make sure that your bedroom is cool, dark, and noise-free.
Banish the brain fog. In Asia, millions of people engage in daily morning meditation or tai chi. This helps their brains to focus, and gets them ready for their busy day, so it would be wise to do what the Asians do!