Sleep Deprivation (02/97)

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0 height="100%"><tr> <td valign="top" width=200 BGCOLOR="#006633" TEXT="#F7F7FF" background="065d6c00ddvuru.jpg"> <div> <B> </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE=" "><U><B>HOME</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id40.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Past Newsletters"><U><B>Past Newsletters</B></U></A><B>   </B></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="09da7a00.png" border=0 width="167" height="160" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>The small is powerful.</B></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id57.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="When to See a Doctor (11/96)"><U><B>Next</B></U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="507" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 33 ><NOBR><div> <B>HOMEOPATHY:  The Small Is Powerful</B></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div> <B> </B><B>     </B></div> <div> <B> </B><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Papyrus" ><B><U>Sleep Deprivation</U></B></FONT></div> <div> <B>(Reprint of 02/1997 Newsletter)</B></div> <div> <B>Dear friends,</B></div> <div> <B>        This month I wanted to talk a bit about the subject of sleep deprivation since quite a few people that I work with seem to be suffering with the symptoms of that condition.  Interestingly, they're often unclear about what's causing their symptoms, although when I suggest that it might be sleep deprivation it makes complete sense to them.  </B></div> <div> <B>        The most well known symptoms of sleep deprivation are fatigue, sleepiness, anxiety, impaired concentration, impaired memory, and irritability.  A person who has lost enough sleep can appear drunk with both staggering and slurring their words.  Because of the mental/emotional symptoms that occur, many people with sleep deprivation feel that they're not handling stress well or not interacting with others well and they're disappointed with their own behavior.  In actuality they're being unfair to themselves, since a sleep-deprived person is bound to have these symptoms no matter how centered they are in other ways.</B></div> <div> <B>        During the course of our lives, we need progressively less and less sleep.  Babies can typically sleep up to 20 hours a day, children under 6 need about 10 hours of sleep a day, and 6-14 year olds need around 9 hours.  People of 35-50 need about 7 hours and those over 50 can often do well on 6 hours of sleep a day or less.  What is not widely recognized is that poor quality sleep can have the same effect on a person a not getting enough hours of sleep.</B></div> <div> <B>        Many things can effect the quality of sleep.  About 33% of the general population is affected by some sort of sleep disorder.  Insomnia is the most common, including inability to fall asleep, poor quality sleep, frequent waking, and waking early.  Sleep apnea, narcolepsy, and restless legs syndrome are other sleep disorders which can lead a person to sleep deprivation.</B></div> <div> <B>        In working with people with sleep deprivation, a large part of my job is to find the common sense causes for why they are sleep-deprived.  Often in talking to them for a while, it becomes clear that there is an "obstacle to a cure" or an obviously causative reason for their exhaustion.  </B></div> <div> <B>         When looking for causes of sleep deprivation, check for:</B></div> <div> <B><U>Use of caffeine in any form</U></B><B>   (One person with sleep deprivation told me that he never drank coffee after lunch so that he could avoid caffeine keeping him awake.  His other beverage of choice?  Coke!) </B></div> <div> <B><U>Lack of exercise</U></B></div> <div> <B><U>A partner that snores or is a restless sleeper themselves</U></B></div> <div> <B><U>Family beds</U></B></div> <div> <B><U>Sleeping with pets</U></B></div> <div> <B><U>Frequent waking for any reason</U></B></div> <div> <B>        Many of these things are logistical problems that are fairly easily solved.  If you suspect any of them, make a change for two full weeks and that should give you an indication as to whether is was a causative factor.  Other things like street noise, nursing babies, unusual work schedules, etc. are not so easy to change.  Short naps of less than one hour should not impair your night's sleep but may give you enough extra sleep to avoid the symptoms of sleep deprivation.</B></div> <div> <B>        Managing any sleep deprivation that you may be experiencing is well worth the effort.  Tests in animals showed that sleep deprivation directly affected the ability of the immune system to function at its fullest.  Frequent minor illnesses such as colds and flus are often a sign that the person is not getting enough rest.</B></div> <div> <B>        Additionally, sleep deprivation is reported to be the most common cause of accidents of any sort year round.  It's blamed for about 200,000 traffic accidents a year.  Traffic accidents increase by about 8% the morning after daylight saving time begins.  Even a one hour loss of sleep can cause a person to have a feeling similar to jet lag since their hormonal systems are effected.  Sleep deprivation was reportedly a causative factor in both the Exxon Valdez and the Three Mile Island catastrophes.</B></div> <div> <B>        Anybody can be at risk for sleep deprivation but teenagers are very regularly affected by it.  While an average teen needs 8-9 hours of sleep a night, they often get much less.  Frequent illness, poor behavior, low grades, and desire for stimulants can all be caused by sleep deprivation.  With so many activities and responsibilities, teens often take the extra time they need out of their sleep time getting as little as 5-6 hours a night on a regular basis.  </B></div> <div> <B>        Since most teens manage their own sleep schedules, parents are often unaware that lack of sleep is what is causing many of their child's problems.  You can't force someone to get enough rest, but you can look over your teen's schedule with them and try to make more time for them to sleep during the years that they are growing so quickly mentally, emotionally, and physically.  If it still seems that there's not enough time in the day for them to get adequate sleep, plan at least one day a week when they can sleep as long as they want to.  Twelve to fourteen hours of straight sleep is not uncommon for a sleep-deprived teen.  </B></div> <div> <B>        In a lifetime of observing animal behavior, I have often been interested to watch animals' sleep patterns.  Every animal I have ever known sleeps intermittently during their waking phase.  Think of the sleep schedule of your pets.  They sleep often and deeply.  Our schedules have gotten us away from that sleep rhythm and our health has paid the price.  Resting for even fifteen minutes during the day can make an enormous difference in your well being.  Master the "power nap", but don't use it to substitute for regular deep sleep.</B></div> <div> <B>        If you think you might be suffering from sleep deprivation, check for causative factors and see if it's realistic for you to make a change that might afford you more rest.  If that fails, give me a call and we'll find the "obstacle to the cure" and a remedy that will set you on a better course.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Good sleep,</B></div> <div> <B>Lydia </B></div> <div> <A HREF="mailto:lbel@aol.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:lbel@aol.com"><U><B>LBel@aol.com</B></U></A></div> </td> </tr></table></body>