The importance of sleep for healing
I often find myself emphasising to clients how our bodies and minds are part of the same. We cannot expect our mind to function properly, feel calm and anxiety free if our bodies are not getting the care and attention to work at their best.
However, many of us keep driving our bodies on despite lack of sleep, rest and good nutrition. We then wonder why we are struggling mentally.
Of course, we don’t live in an ideal world. Often requirements of our jobs, families and life can be very draining in a way that we can’t always avoid. So, I’m not suggesting that we can all give up our stressful jobs and go off to a retreat to recover, although that might be nice! What I do think we can all manage, is to pay a bit more attention to what our bodies are feeling and communicating to us.
When possible, we can take the opportunity to slow down, and we can prioritise things like sleep and self -care.
Sleep is so important for our recovery after traumatic events, especially. We should be mindful of this, paying attention to getting more than 6 hours sleep whenever possible. The reason I say this is because sleeping too little will especially affect the amount of REM sleep (Rapid Eye Movement or dreaming sleep) that we get, which is essential for processing difficult emotional events we have lived.
All sleep is not the same, our bodies go through numerous cycles made up of different types of sleep during the night. REM sleep is part of those cycles but it seems that as the night goes on it takes up an increasing amount especially after 6 hours. During REM sleep the brain does something very clever and essential for recovery from traumatic events. The front,’ logical’ part of the brain processes, in its wonderful way, the difficult events we have lived. However, the ‘emotional’ part of the brain at the back is ‘switched off’ or at least ‘turned down’ so that the brain can process trauma without us being re-traumatised. Essentially, this is why getting around 8 hours sleep is ideal for most of us.
Until the brain has had the chance to do this sufficiently it is very difficult to get very far with the healing process simply by talking about what happened. In fact ,there is a very real danger that talking or even thinking about the traumatic events can make you feel worse.
Amazing, right? Much of our mental healing happens during sleep and this is why it should be a priority. The saying ‘sleep on it’ when we have an emotional problem, is good advice because a good night’s sleep can help us to see things in a more balanced way in the morning due to this process.
Of course, ironically, emotional trauma often interferes with our ability to sleep and unpleasant memories or flashbacks to events when we are lying in bed, can make it feel impossible. Because of this, I don’t expect clients to go off and immediately achieve more sleep. I understand that expecting that would be unrealistic and probably result in them feeling even more stressed because they can’t! However, I do think it’s important to understand this connection and for all of us to look at our sleep hygiene. We can then give ourselves the best possible chance of getting this valuable sleep as soon and often as possible.
Here are a few ways to help yourself, with compassion and the understanding that change usually takes time. Remember it is normal, under the circumstances, to have setbacks. Every hour extra you sleep is a plus!
Look at your sleep hygiene: Switching off screens at least an hour before you try to sleep, thus avoiding the stimulating blue light can make a huge difference over time. Also, reading something light -hearted in bed for a while can calm your mind. Likewise a warm bath, calming music or guided meditation can all be excellent ways to help your body to wind down ready for sleep.
Going to bed at the same time each night and getting up at the same time each day also really helps our brain to understand that ‘nighttime is for sleep’ . If you don’t get to sleep straight away try not to worry but enjoy resting, knowing that that too is a help for your exhausted body. If your mind drifts to unpleasant thoughts try envisaging a beautiful calming place in lots of detail. Engage your senses as much as possible thinking about what you can see, feel and hear around you. This can help your body and mind to feel calm, as if you were actually there.
Make sure you get exposed to daylight outside whenever you can, especially in the morning. This is important to help reset our natural circadian rhythm. Once upon a time we all had to work during daylight and sleep when it became dark because we were dependent on natural light to see. Nowadays this is not the case, but try to use this natural rhythm as much as possible. Getting natural daylight and being outdoors, especially in green spaces is also a way of lifting your mood.
This doesn’t have to happen overnight! You can start by going to bed 30 mins earlier and build up gradually to an ideal sleep time for you, or if not ideal, a bit better…it’s all helpful.
