Sleep and relaxation

Okay, so hi everybody!

My name is Annie and I'm a health adviser based in London and we're going to have a little look today at sleep.

So what we'll see is: what sleep is, what are the guidelines and what could be affecting our sleep and we'll also have a look at how we might be able to improve our sleep hygiene.

Well, first of all, what is sleep?

Sleep is a temporary state of unconsciousness What is sleep which you can be woken up from and it's divided into two main phases: NREM, which is non-rapid eye movement, and REM, which is rapid eye movement.

Now in the first stage, NREM, there are actually three phases within that.

N1 is a relatively light form of sleep.

It lasts about five to ten minutes.

During this stage, heart and breathing rates begin to slow.

Eye movements also slow and muscles relax.

Your body temperature decreases and so do your brainwave.

A person can easily be awakened from N1 sleep and that individual may not think he or she had been asleep and is the first stage entered when taking a nap.

It's also very normal for person to experience hypnic jerks - also known as sleep starts - during this first N1 sleep.

Next we've got the N2 sleep.

So during the stage, eye movement stops, heart rate slows, brainwaves become even slower and muscles relax even further.

As sleep cycles repeat throughout the night, a person spends more time in stage N2 than any other sleep stage.

Next we have N3 and it's a period of deep sleep, so that's what's needed for an individual to feel refreshed for the next day.

A person typically spends more time in N3 during the first half of sleep than the second, usually lasting about 20 to 40 minutes.

N3 sleep is when the brain becomes less responsive to external stimuli and as a result it's most difficult to wake someone up from this stage.

Now after that, we go into the REM and the first REM cycle of the night typically lasts about 10 minutes, but each subsequent cycle gets progressively longer as the night goes on, making you a lot more relaxed with your heart rate and breathing slowing down.

It is worth mentioning, that at this time we're all Why is sleep important feeling a little bit worried and there's uncertainties ahead, we might find that our sleep is more disturbed than usual and it's completely normal - it is just about finding a routine that works for you so we will go to some tips later on in the slides.

Now the reason behind sleep being so Effects of sleep deprivation important is that lack of sleep can contribute to certain factors, such as high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and also being overweight.

Also studies have confirmed that sleep can be affected if an individual is suffering with mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression.

A Bupa survey showed in February 2017 that on average we're getting around 6 hours and 18 minutes of sleep per night and 1 in 3 people have trouble sleeping, or have interrupted sleep.

Now, sleep can also affect other areas, such as mental health and wellbeing, and risk of heart disease if we have long-standing sleep deprivation.

It might also be associated with, if you're sleeping less than seven hours and impaired immune function, increased pain, impaired performance and increase errors are greater risk of accidents.

Now, we've mentioned things that affected by sleep.

Let's look into it in a little bit more detail.

So sleep can improve your attention and concentration.

It's no surprise that getting a good night's sleep can help you to keep your energy levels up, but plenty of rest can also help you to keep your mind from wandering and maintain your attention throughout the day.

Not sleeping properly can mean that both your body and brain don't function properly the next day.

It could impair your attention span, concentration and strategic thinking and reaction times.

And this is particularly even more important if you have a big decision to make, are driving, or operate in heavy machinery.

So getting plenty of sleep can help you to stay sharp and focused all day long.

It can also help us to learn and make memories.

Not only does sleep allow your body to the time it needs to rest but it does the same for your mind as well.

As you sleep, your brain begins to organize and process all the information you've taken on during the day.

It converts your short-term memories into long-term memories and this helps you to learn and means that when you wake up you can often see things more clearly.

It can help to keep your heart healthy: a lack of sleep can increase your risk of developing high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and coronary heart disease.

So waking up too often is thought to stimulate your sympathetic nervous system and this is the system responsible for your body's fight or flight response.

Now this response is how your body physically reacts when it senses danger.

Your sympathetic nervous system also activates your cardiovascular system and increases your blood pressure to prepare you for waking up, but if you're being kept awake too often, your body can't compensate for this rise in blood pressure and your level might remain higher than expected.

Having a high blood pressure is also a major risk factor for heart attacks and coronary heart disease.

Now not only that, but poor sleep has also been linked for insulin regulation.

Insulin is a hormone that controls your blood sugar and if you're not getting enough sleep your body's ability to regulate your blood sugar becomes disrupted and the levels of sugar in your blood can increase.

Now getting enough sleep can actually also help to keep your immune system strong which is particularly important right now.

Getting a good night's sleep can help to keep your immune system fighting fight and keep germs at bay.

Now, sleep gives your body the time it needs to rest and repair which is one of the reasons you feel tired and you want to sleep more when you're unwell.

It supports the proteins and cells of your immune system to help detect and destroy any foreign invaders your body might come into contact with.

It also helps these cells to remember these invaders so if you come across the same bugs and germs again you prepare to fight them off.

So a good night's sleep helps to strengthen your body's immune response and it's essential to allow yourself time to rest and recover when you're not feeling well.

Not getting enough sleep can also make it more difficult to control your appetite and might cause you to gain weight.

If you're not sleeping properly your body will need more energy because it's awake for longer.

Some research has even suggested that being sleep-deprived changes the level of hormones that signal hunger and fullness in your body which is called leptin.

This can make you more likely to choose unhealthy foods like those high in sugar and to overeat, particularly later in the day - so sleep plays a key role in regulating how your body uses food for energy.

As well as our physical body, our mental health is as important as mentioned in previous slides.

If we aren't sleeping, it makes us more at risk to suffer from ill mental health.

If you've got a lot on your mind and are struggling with emotions, going over things in your head can often keep you awake at night, so if you are up all night worried and you might be able to see a change in your mood, a lack of sleep can leave you feeling low.

This could cause you to feel anxious and create more negative thoughts about not sleeping - this might keep you awake even longer and then can turn into a vicious cycle of worry and poor sleep.

I know that at the moment is a lot going on.

Whether you're at home alone or with family, each can have its struggles.

Try mindfulness to help you sleep and take care of your emotional wellbeing, or try putting pen to paper and writing your concerns in a diary before bed.

A bad night's sleep can also leave you feeling grumpy, so making sure you to get enough good sleep can help you to put you in a more positive headspace.

And when you're feeling good it's likely to be felt by the people around you.

Also the amount of sleep you get can affect your language, reasoning and communication skills which are all key factors when building relationships with others.

There are many things that can cause you to feel stress and how you personally deal with stress can vary from person to person.

When stressed your body releases stress hormones, for example cortisol, which can keep you awake.

On the other hand, a good night's sleep can have the opposite effect and relax the systems in your body that are responsible for this stress response.

Now some of you might have heard the term Sleep hygiene 'sleep hygiene' before and others maybe not.

It aims to help us look at different factors that can aid us in getting a good night's sleep.

There is actually insufficient evidence to assess the effectiveness of sleep hygiene as a single intervention, however its use is widely supported by expert opinion in current literature and guidelines.

We are currently experience a period of uncertainty and potentially increased stress or anxiety.

This can have an impact on our sleep patterns and the quality of it.

We therefore want to try and find a way to minimise this impact and some of these tips might give you an idea how.

So the first thing to mention is caffeine.

Drinking tea, coffee, energy drinks can affect you getting to sleep at night due to it being a stimulant.

It's been recommended to avoid caffeine after around 3 pm.

and to substitute in the evening a hot caffeinated beverage for a decaf or herbal tea.

Everyone has got slightly different tolerances for caffeine, however those are the current recommendations.

I know, for example, that I can't have tea after about 1pm during the week, otherwise I found it really difficult to nod off.

We want to be aware of our alcohol consumption as well.

Alcohol might ease us getting to sleep as it can make you feel sleepy and reduce the time it takes to fall asleep, however sleeping with alcohol in your system changes the composition of sleep stages, so that once the alcohol wears off you'll spend more time sleeping in the lighter, non-restorative stages of sleep.

Alcohol-induced sleep can thus not only leave you feeling more vulnerable to sleep disturbance but prevent you from feeling refreshed in the morning.

You might also have sort of vivid or bizarre dreams as they're more common during alcohol induced sleep.

Increasing physical activity levels is also known to be a great way to aid in your sleep.

It's been proven to help relieve stress and anxiety through producing endorphins in your brain.

However, occasionally strenuous exercise later in the evening can stop us going to sleep.

As we are now not going up outside as often ,it'd be good to look at your exercise routine and see how you can make it work for your sleep pattern.

It might mean taking the time that you'd usually spend commuting in the morning to make that to be your exercise time either in the front room or use your once a day slot outside - just to avoid working out late at night.

Now as you'll most likely know our bedroom environment has a big impact on sleep quality.

Try to make sure you've got a blacked-out room, for example: dark curtains, electronic devices on night mode, possibly an eye mask.

Look at your pillows; your mattresses and we usually should suggest replacing your mattress after about 10 years and picking the pillow variety that works for you - whether it's memory foam or feathered and try and keep the temperature of your room ideally between 18 and 24 degrees.

You might also benefit from having some winding down time - it's different for everybody.

Having a warm bath can help; writing a to-do list for the next day you can organise your thoughts and clear your mind of any distractions, or even relaxation exercises - so things like mindfulness techniques or you could even try the six steps to relax your muscles technique, which is available on the Bupa health blog.

You can use apps or CDs to help relax, such as Headspace or Sleepy, and also reducing screen time for at least 30 minutes before going to bed is beneficial and this is because the blue light it gives affects you producing melatonin, which is something that helps us fall asleep.

So at the moment, now many of us have got sort of office and home blended into one, we might be more tempted to look at our emails later at night - try to avoid it if possible.

I know sometimes it's not possible, but a lot of phones nowadays have a function we can actually put a blue light filter on it which might be slightly more soothing for our eyes.

Now in the past, sleeping tablets have been prescribed to help patients and help get the good quality and quantity of sleep, however there can be side effects from these drugs - so things like clumsiness, dizziness and drug tolerance.

In some cases, sleeping tablets can be prescribed for a short course - around a week - but you probably be encouraged to only use them for about two to three nights.

Each person is different and if you did want to investigate this more, you'd need to speak to a GP and they'd be able to assess your individual needs.

And if you do require a further support, your GP or practice nurse might be able to refer you to a specialist to help in areas like cognitive behavioural therapy, sleep restrictions and possibly into things like progressive muscle relaxation techniques.

Now if you are struggling to Sleep diary sleep, or want to keep track of your sleep, it might be a good idea to complete a sleep diary.

It can help you to monitor your routine throughout a period of time and alongside this it might be beneficial to take note the mood and how you feel in maybe in the morning our afternoon.

We can find that where we've got a lot on our minds, our moods can change and sleep becomes more disturbed.

Now if you do feel overwhelmed or anxious then speaking to someone can help.

It might help you feel a bit more relaxed and potentially lead on to a better sleep.

So there's many options of who you could speak to - so either someone you know, or a stranger if that's more comfortable - you could get contact with Mind or the Samaritans.

On this slide there's also some links for a bit more further support the top link there is the Bupa coronavirus hub and it's updated regularly, so if you do want to get any more information then feel free to have a look at that.

There's also the health blog underneath there.

So that's the end of the talk, today.

I hope there's been some useful information for you.

Just a quick summary and we've had a look at: sleep, problems relating to poor sleep, benefits of a good night's sleep and how to improve our sleep hygiene.

Thanks for listening!