SO YOU SAY TO SLEEP!!

In the 1950s, historical data suggests that most people were getting around eight hours of sleep a night. In today's era, many people are wondering if this was important or just a complete waste of precious time. As the saying goes, time is money. Not many people understand what happens to our bodies when we sleep, apart from the fact that some are snoring, others fairytale dreams or nightmares. Let's delve into it. What happens to our brains or bodies when we are asleep?!

So, at night your brain is busy doing all sorts of important stuff. It processes information, learns new tasks, and even, comes up with creative ideas. It's like a little brain party while you're asleep!

And get this - it's also cleaning out toxins, releasing growth hormones, and being a little janitor for your brain. So, if you're not getting enough sleep, your brain might not function as well. And trust me, you don't want a sleepy brain trying to make important decisions or while trying to learn some new things. So, get your 7 to 9 hours of sleep, or your brain might rebel and lead you to forget where you put your keys or something equally annoying.

So, get this - our brains are like mixologists, taking random ideas, and blending them to create something awesome. And when you wake up with those lightbulb moments, that's your brain working its magic. But at night, it's like a little janitor, cleaning out toxins and making repairs. If you don't get enough sleep, though, you'll be a hot mess - from fuzzy thinking to weight gain to risking diseases like Alzheimer's, Diabetes, or Heart Disease. Crazy, right? So, make sure, to focus on sleep, or your brain will hold a grudge.

So, let's talk more about sleep. Some people in the past didn't think much of it. Thomas Edison called it a waste of time and Margaret Thatcher said it's for weaklings. And don't forget about Gordon Gekko, who believed that money never sleeps. But in reality, sleep is actually, super important for our brains. When we sleep, our brain doesn't just shut off, it's actually, really active in some areas. And sleep isn't controlled by just one part of the brain, it's a team effort of parts of the brain. So, next time you hit the hay, remember that your brain is still hard at work, even if you're not. And no, borrowing someone's brain like in some movie, is probably not a good idea.

Sleep has become a science that ought to be researched, learned, and adapted to. The essential fundamental issue is to make your bedroom as dark or dimmed as it should be expected of it. In essence, decreasing light exposure a few minutes before bed would enhance your sleep latency and ultimately the quality of sleep. Light builds levels of readiness and will postpone rest or bridge toward waking up. Many people have trouble falling asleep before because of a lack of preparation such as being on phones, computers, or standing enormously lit washrooms. Switching off those things that are in like manner going to empower the frontal cortex. Just as reducing light exposure before you go to bed is essential, so is light exposure in the morning at setting the biological clock to the light-dark cycle. Jim Butcher, the fantasy writer, said, "Sleep is God. Go worship." Basically, as a rule of thumb, a normal human needs 7-8 hours of quality sleep. Teenagers need about 9 hours of sleep for optimal brain performance in their school work, sports, and meaningful social connections.

On average in the pre-industrial era, modern men and women can afford to sleep between 3-6 hours a day. Shakespeare once said in a Play, maybe a Scottish Play, it was, “O Sleep O Gentle Sleep, nature’s soft nurse, how have I frightened thee. That thou no more will weigh my eyelids down, And steep my senses in forgetfulness?..”

Lastly, it would be prudent of us to weigh in and grant 'sleep' his due space in our lives before we frighten him from our path because sleep is our only true companion to wellness, health, and greatness.