The Importance of Sleep

Every Thursday and Friday I work 4am-Noon and every Thursday and Friday I remember how important and wonderful sleep is. Thursday is the worst because the day before is my day off and so my sleep schedule is a bit off. Then I work and nap and go to the gym. I hate Thursdays. Well today is a Friday and I'm once again reminded that sleep is vital, especially if you're kicking your own ass at the gym.

According to Harvard, sleep is important because:

1. Learning and memory: Sleep helps the brain commit new information to memory through a process called memory consolidation. In studies, people who’d slept after learning a task did better on tests later.
2. Metabolism and weight: Chronic sleep deprivation may cause weight gain by affecting the way our bodies process and store carbohydrates, and by altering levels of hormones that affect our appetite. (WHAT?!)
   
3. Safety: Sleep debt contributes to a greater tendency to fall asleep during the daytime. These lapses may cause falls and mistakes such as medical errors, air traffic mishaps, and road accidents.
4. Mood: Sleep loss may result in irritability, impatience, inability to concentrate, and moodiness. Too little sleep can also leave you too tired to do the things you like to do.
5. Cardiovascular health: Serious sleep disorders have been linked to hypertension (FFFUUUUU....), increased stress hormone levels, and irregular heartbeat.
6. Disease: Sleep deprivation alters immune function, including the activity of the body’s killer cells. Keeping up with sleep may also help fight cancer.

Damn, sleep is important! I have noticed that I'm a horrid person when I don't get enough. I have a tendency to try to fall asleep while driving if I don't get enough sleep before hand (I pull over and nap).

I found a list from WebMd about the effects on the body from a lack of sleep. Here's the summary:

1. Sleepiness causes accidents. Like I said above, the fact that I get so sleepy
   
2. Sleep loss makes you stupid.
3. Sleep deprivation can lead to serious health problems. One of the listed problems is high blood pressure. Are you for serious?!
4. Lack of sleep kills sex drive.... I'll keep this in mind for when my bf gets back. XD
5. Sleepiness is depressing. I'll say.
6. Lack of sleep ages your skin. :(
7. Sleepiness makes you forgetful.
8. Losing sleep can make you gain weight. I really want to stop reading about that now. It says that a lack of sleep can lead to an increase in appetite, which I can relate to. During my 4am-noon shifts, my body needs more food to keep me awake. When I first started working this shifts, I couldn't stop eating. I've adjusted a bit better, but it still takes food to keep conscious.
9. Lack of sleep may increase risk of death. Well isn't THAT happy.
10. Sleep loss impairs judgement, especially about sleep. "Sleep-deprived people seem to be especially prone to poor judgment when it comes to assessing what lack of sleep is doing to them. In our increasingly fast-paced world, functioning on less sleep has become a kind of badge of honor. But sleep specialists say if you think you’re doing fine on less sleep, you’re probably wrong. And if you work in a profession where it’s important to be able to judge your level of functioning, this can be a big problem." I had to quote that because my sleepless mind just was not comprehending the title of the tenth point.

So there you have it folks. Sleep is extremely important. I am so excited to go to sleep after my shift and to one day never work these hours again.

<3 - CFC