Month: November 2017

I have been attending yoga classes for a while now and I cannot recommend highly enough the benefits for people of all ages and physique .  I regularly attend on a Monday and Wednesday morning, these classes are taught by Brenda and each class is 90 minutes long.  At the end of each class there is a period of relaxation/meditation, it is during these periods when Brenda might share some philosophy.  She shared an insight the other week and it really had me reflecting.  I thought I would share it and add a little to it.

Brenda’s insight

“Our future is created through our past thoughts, words and actions. Our future is the reaping of the seeds that we have sown in the past, whether those seeds are good or bad. Every sustained thought, every word we utter, and every action we take is a seed we will reap in our future.

To create a beautiful future, make as many of your thoughts as possible good ones, speak good and kind words, and make sure your actions come from kindness.

Your future depends on it. (unknown source).”

I thought about where I am and how I am towards others.  I have always wanted to be a better person, better than I am now.  One of my favourite sayings is ‘there is a gap between my ideal self and actual self’.  I guess most of us have that gap, some recognising it and some not.

Have I created a beautiful enough future for myself?  Have my thoughts always been good ones? Have I always spoken good and kind words, and make sure my actions come from kindness?  That’s an easy answer, NO.

I do try to be kind and helpful but I recognise I am a fallible, inconsistent person.  I have had in the past, some moments where I have acted very poorly towards others.  I don’t believe I am a bad person but I have done some bad things.  Another of my favourite sayings is ‘I try not to judge because I’m pretty fucked up myself’.

Most of us will have moments where we behave poorly towards others, most of us will ‘fall of our wagon’ or have bad days.  That’s ok, we are not perfect beings and with the diversity of culture and people it is hard to act in a way that is deemed to be good.  I think that’s okay, providing we do not make a habit of it, less the poor behaviour towards others defines us.

I believe that most of us will experience events or moments in our life that challenge us, some incredibly so.  We cannot turn back the clock and undo what has been done or even undo the sequence of events that may have led to these moments.  But we can learn from them, grow from them, become better and stronger people as a result of our experiences.

https://youtu.be/-yR-cnsxDUo

To grow from this though we must all do something; We must acknowledge and own our part in any given situation, we must strive to understand our impact on others.  Ownership comes before learning.  Ask ourselves, ‘what part of this do I own’.  Ask ourselves that before we start to attribute blame or ownership to others.  Perhaps striving to understand our own impact on others will lead us to accept that others will behave poorly towards us and become more accepting, more forgiving and more compassionate – the three sisters of an extraordinary life.

It isn’t easy tough.  We are all so different.  Some of us want to be loved, some feared, some revered, some left alone, some understood, and so the list is as endless as there is differences in cultures, personalities, values, beliefs and so on.  It is a real challenge for us to understand the dynamics of behaviour to those closest to us let alone to those more distant.

The two you tube broadcasts that have included in this post gives a really interesting insight to; Acceptance, Forgiveness and Compassion. They are very different but both very powerful.  I hope you enjoy watching them both.

That elusive good nights sleep

I often talk about sleep with people. I spent years not achieving a restful or good nights sleep. There is a lot of advice available on how to achieve a good nights sleep and we all have our own strategies to assist us, although for many of us, that good nights sleep remains elusive and as a result we are constantly tired. But do we actually understand the different phases of sale and how much of each phase we need? I believe it is well know that deep sleep is the phase of sleep that restore and rebuilds our physical and mental needs. That leads me to the question of how much deep sleep do we really need? What about the other phases? Are they important too. Do we all need the conventional eight hours a night?

What Is Deep Sleep?

Psychology Today defines deep sleep as

“… a time of nearly complete disengagement from the environment.” Deep sleep is also known as delta sleep, slow wave sleep or N3. It is a restorative sleep state where dreams do not occur, and still relatively little is known about it.  What we do know is that deep sleep is the third stage of sleep. During this stage, heart rate and breathing slows and your muscles relax to the point where you barely move. Deep sleep is necessary for your body to repair itself and recharge for the next day. Your organs detoxicate, your kidneys clean your blood, and your body replaces cells, heals wounds, and builds muscle tissues as well.  Most deep sleep happens in the first sleep cycle. If someone is awoken during deep sleep, he or she will usually feel disoriented for sometime after waking up. It can be very difficult to wake a person during deep sleep.

Your body goes through several changes while you’re sleeping. The first stage is the non-REM sleep and you then move into stage of REM which stands for “Rapid Eye Movement”. Your eyes move quickly in all directions when you’re in REM sleep. For non-REM stage, your eyes won’t move a lot, and you will go through the following phases.

• The first phase is when you fall asleep, but it is easy to wake you up. The phase usually lasts up to 10 minutes.

• You will be in light sleep in the second stage of a non-REM sleep. Your heart rate will come down and so will your body temperature. You will soon enter “deep sleep” phase.

• You will then enter your deep sleep stage and it’s usually harder to wake you up when you’re in this stage. It’s common to feel disoriented for a few minutes when someone wakes you up from deep sleep. After deep sleep, your brain will become active. This is REM sleep and your brain dreams a lot at that time.

But what is good sleep?

While most of us still think of a solid eight hours as being enough sleep, this doesn’t take into account the number of times you wake up, or how much time is spent in each sleep cycle. We also vary, person to person, in how much sleep we need to feel recovered the next day.

A good night’s sleep consists of around five or six sleep cycles. One cycle consists of the following:

Stage 1 – The drowsy, relaxed state between being awake and nodding off.

Stage 2 – A deeper sleep where your body temperature cools a little and you become disengaged from your surroundings.

Stages 3 and 4 – ‘Deep sleep’. It’s harder to wake up from deep sleep because this is when there is the lowest amount of activity in your body. It’s also the part of sleep where your body rebuilds itself and restores energy, and hormones are released. This is the good stuff!

After deep sleep, we slip back into Stage 2 for a few minutes before entering ‘dream sleep’ – known as REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. Each cycle lasts around 1.5 hours and we need to experience all four stages in order to wake up rested.

Deep sleep plays a big role in lowering your sleep drive that builds gradually over the course of the day. During this stage, your organs detoxicate, your kidneys clean your blood, and your body replaces cells, heals wounds, and builds muscle tissues as well. All this will help recharge your batteries for the next day.

“Many of the body’s cells also show increased production and reduced breakdown of proteins during deep sleep. Since proteins are the building blocks needed for cell growth and for repair of damage from factors like stress and ultraviolet rays, deep sleep may truly be “beauty sleep.” Activity in parts of the brain that control emotions, decision-making processes, and social interactions is drastically reduced during deep sleep, suggesting that this type of sleep may help people maintain optimal emotional and social functioning while they are awake.” (Sleep Association)

Some studies have shown that your deep sleep should at least be 20% of your overall sleep. It means that since most adults need 8-9 hours of sleep, they will need about 1.6-1.8 hours of deep sleep to feel fully functional next day. However, the time of deep sleep is changed and that’s mainly due to the change in the sleep need of different group of people.

As we get older we spend less time in deep sleep. Why? One thought is because deep sleep is where growth hormones are released — it makes sense that we spend less time there as we age. The time we do spend in deep sleep is important in helping repair our bodies and gather energy for the next day. Who doesn’t like feeling rejuvenated after great sleep?

Sleep table

 

So while there’s some variation between individuals, nobody can function on four hours sleep a night and expect to remain fit and healthy forever.

According to Professor Espie,

“there are many small, practical steps you can take to make your day more sleep-friendly, from getting some exercise to cutting down on caffeine after lunch.” But he recommends developing your own “personal wind-down routine”.

Ideally this would consist of “an hour to an hour and a half before you go to bed when you don’t do any work, avoid any ‘stimulating’ activity such as strenuous exercise, turn off any electronic devices and give yourself time to relax.”

Easier said than done, especially if you like a night out and/or box set binges, but enjoying better sleep takes practice.

• As unrealistic as it sounds, try and get to bed by 9:30pm at least twice a week. It will help pay off your sleep debt and make work more productive.

• Avoid the lie-in at weekends as your internal body clock (circadian rhythm) doesn’t stop for Saturdays. Force yourself out of bed and you’ll sleep better during the week. Stanford sleep science expert Dr Zeitzer told us:

“Changing your sleep patterns will indirectly, through differences in light exposure, change your circadian clock, which helps your brain to anticipate ‘normal’ or expected sleep timing. So, this would make falling asleep the next night difficult.”

• Call last orders at the bar at least three hours before bed time to give your body time to process the alcohol. If your blood is clear of alcohol, you’ll sleep better.

9 Tips to Achieve Deep Sleep

Now you have already known the answer to the question “How much deep sleep do you need?” It is equally important to learn how you can achieve deep sleep regularly.

• Follow a transition routine: Make a habit of doing something before going to bed that tells your body it’s time to relax and sleep. It could simply be washing your face, taking a shower, or even brushing your teeth.

• Select the right pillow: Some studies show that using a neck pillow that comes in a rectangle shape with a depression in the middle can enhance your sleep quality. A pillow with two supported cores will also help you fall asleep.

• Eat a banana: End your day by eating a banana. It contains tryptophan, a sleep hormone that can improve your sleep quality when taken before going to bed.

• Take a hot bath: Your body will relax quickly if you take a hot bath, but you need to take it at least 90-120 minutes before you go to sleep. Also, make sure the water temperature is around 40 degree Celsius.

• Wear your pajamas: Instead of sleeping naked, you should wear your pajamas to keep your skin warm, which plays a role in lowering your blood circulation and sending signals to your brain that it’s sleep time. Just don’t wear too much stuff because your body undergoes a few cool-warm cycles throughout the night.

• Don’t sleep with pet in the bed: Pets have a different sleep-wake cycle than humans, so sleeping with your pets will keep you from having enough deep sleep.

• Give yourself a pampering massage: Use your fingertips to massage your eyes in a slow, circular motion. Then move down to your mouth and then your neck. Continue moving down your body until you feel relaxed and ready to sleep.

• Sprinkle lavender water on your bed sheets and pillowcases: The lavender scent makes you feel relax and helps you go to sleep and stay asleep throughout the night.

• Enjoy an audio book: Instead of reading, consider listening to an audio book on tape or your phone. This will soothe your brain and relax your nerves.

 

Prescription drugs that may induce sleep

In some cases, doctors will prescribe drugs for the treatment of insomnia. All insomnia medications should be taken shortly before bed. Do not attempt to drive or perform other activities that require concentration after taking an insomnia drug because it will make you sleepy. Medications should be used in combination with good sleep practices.

 

What is Diazepam used for?

Diazepam is a type of medicine called a benzodiazepine. Benzodiazepines are used for their sedative, anxiety-relieving and muscle-relaxing effects.

How does Diazepam work?

Diazepam is a type of medicine called a benzodiazepine. Benzodiazepines are used for their sedative, anxiety-relieving and muscle-relaxing effects. Diazepam works by acting on receptors in the brain called GABA receptors. This causes the release of a neurotransmitter called GABA in the brain.

Neurotransmitters are chemicals that are stored in nerve cells in the brain and nervous system. They are involved in transmitting messages between the nerve cells. GABA is a neurotransmitter that acts as a natural ‘nerve-calming’ agent. It helps keep the nerve activity in the brain in balance, and is involved in inducing sleepiness, reducing anxiety and relaxing muscles.

As diazepam increases the activity of GABA in the brain, it increases it’s calming effect and results in sleepiness, a decrease in anxiety and relaxation of muscles.

Diazepam has several uses. Firstly, it can be used to calm severe anxiety and agitation. For example, benzodiazepines such as diazepam are effective at quickly reducing the symptoms of anxiety and agitation that occur in a manic episode of the psychiatric illness, bipolar affective disorder. A benzodiazepine may be given as part of the initial treatment of a manic episode, though they are not licensed specifically for this purpose. Benzodiazepines help calm the individual while the main medicines for this condition (mood stabilisers) begin to take effect.

Oral forms of diazepam are also used for short-term treatment of severe anxiety associated with insomnia. Diazepam decreases the time taken to fall asleep and wakings during the night, as well as increasing the total amount of time spent sleeping. However, it is only suitable for short-term treatment of insomnia and anxiety as it has a high potential for dependence and addiction. As diazepam remains active in the body for many hours, drowsiness may also last into the next day.

What is zolpidem (Ambien)?

Brand Names: Ambien, Ambien CR, Edluar, Intermezzo, Zolpimist
Zolpidem is a sedative, also called a hypnotic. It affects chemicals in the brain that may be unbalanced in people with sleep problems (insomnia). Zolpidem is used to treat insomnia. The immediate-release forms are Ambien, Intermezzo, Edluar, and Zolpimist, which are used to help you fall asleep. The extended-release form of zolpidem is Ambien CR, which has a first layer that dissolves quickly to help you fall asleep, and a second layer that dissolves slowly to help you stay asleep.

Ambien, Edluar, and Zolpimist are used to help you fall asleep when you first go to bed. Intermezzo, is used to help you fall back to sleep if you wake up in the middle of the night and then have trouble sleeping.
Your doctor will determine which form of zolpidem is best for you.

Important information

Zolpidem may cause a severe allergic reaction. Stop taking zolpidem and get emergency medical help if you have any of these signs of an allergic reaction: hives; difficulty breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat.

Do not share this medication with another person, even if they have the same symptoms you have. The recommended doses of zolpidem are not the same in men and women, and this drug is not approved for use in children. Misuse of this medication can result in dangerous side effects.

Zolpidem may impair your thinking or reactions. You may still feel sleepy the morning after taking this medicine, especially if you take the extended-release tablet, or if you are a woman. Wait at least 4 hours or until you are fully awake before you do anything that requires you to be awake and alert.

Some people using this medicine have engaged in activity such as driving, eating, walking, making phone calls, or having sex and later having no memory of the activity. If this happens to you, stop taking zolpidem and talk with your doctor about another treatment for your sleep disorder.

Never take this medicine in larger amounts or for longer than prescribed.
Do not take zolpidem if you have consumed alcohol during the day or just before bed.
Some people using this medicine have engaged in activity such as driving, eating, walking, making phone calls, or having sex and later having no memory of the activity.

Side Effects of Sleeping Pills

A sleeping pill may be effective at ending your sleep problems short-term. But it’s important to make sure you understand everything you need to know about sleeping pills.

So what is the answer?

Our needs will differ from person to person, the amount of sleep that refreshes and replenishes me may not be the same amount of other adult of a similar age and of similar characteristics. Differences in lifestyle and life patterns play a massive role in determining not only the amount of sleep we need but also the amount and type of sleep we get.

Explore what works for you but remember, our brains work in patterns, find a pattern that suits you.