Not Feeling Festive? Get Your Zzzzzzzzzzzs

I am re-posting a timely blog in hopes it may help you if you missed it 5 years ago...

Good sleep is not only important to your physical health, it is also key to a good mood. Getting plenty of sleep during this busy season is difficult, for sure.  However, it is essential. The holidays put extra emotional and physical demands on us, and sleep helps us bounce back, maintain perspective, and stay healthy.

Not only is the quantity of your sleep important, the quality of your sleep is, too. Sleep quality can be enhanced in many ways: a cool but not cold room temperature, a very dark bedroom, a comfortable bed without pets or children hogging the bed. Those of us who have reached - ahem - "middle age" have biological factors that make our sleep less sound than it used to be, and may need to take extra steps to insure a good night's sleep.

The first suggestions I make to clients who are frustrated by poor sleep are:

• eliminate afternoon caffeine
• limit alcohol to one (women) or two  (men) drinks
• try deep breathing or alternate nostril breathing* when you can't sleep
• turn off all electronics, including the TV, an hour before bed
• keep a small journal or pad near your bed, and write down any thoughts or chores that are nagging at you
• no vigorous exercise closer than three hours to bed time

If you have made these changes and are still having problems falling asleep or staying asleep, or usually feel grouchy or tired in the morning, it is probably time to get some help. I find clients often hesitate to see an internist or psychiatrist to discuss medical interventions for insomnia. However, I urge them to do so, as I have witnessed tremendous improvement in mood and stamina in those who have sought treatment.

Sleep can make the difference between a good day and a bad one

There are natural sleep remedies that are effective for many people. There are also several sleep medications that have been developed in the last decade that at the right dose do not leave people feeling groggy or "hungover".  I  prefer environmental and natural sleep interventions. However, the effect of sleep on quality of life is so profound that medication should be considered if other interventions fail to help.

If the shopping and wrapping are feeling more like torture than fun, crawl into bed early tonight and take a long winter's nap.

Wishing you more "ho ho ho's" and less stress;  good health, and peace this holiday season.

Be well,

Laura

For more information on alternate nostril breathing, go to: http://www.holisticonline.com/yoga/hol_yoga_breathing-ex-nadisodh.htm

GOT GOALS? HOW TO STAY ON TRACK DURING THE HOLIDAYS

Many of my clients  struggle to meet long-term goals, often saying: "I should have had more willpower, I shouldn't have had that cookie/third beer/binge of Homeland".  I have never found the concept of "willpower" to be a helpful lens through which to support clients, so I was grateful to read the NY Times Sunday Review opinion piece: Your So Self-Controlling, by Maria Konnikova (11.18.13) because it sheds new, helpful light on human behavior and goals. 

Konnikova cites research that attributes falling short of reaching goals not to a lack of willpower, but to a very rational (and I believe evolutionarily sound) response based on our often faulty perception of time. She uses some new and some famous old psychology studies to argue that the more uncertainty about time involved in waiting for a "reward" or attaining a goal, the more difficult it becomes to reach that goal. One study found that when we wait for a long time to meet a goal or get a reward, rather than believing we will meet our goal soon, we actually think we will have to wait longer! This thinking may have been life-saving for hunters in Paleolithic times when deciding whether to pursue a different wild animal for food, but in modern society it is often not helpful. 

The article may be interesting to you if you are a research geeks like me, but in case you're not, I will net it out for you: in general, the more uncertainty involved in the length of time required to meet a goal, the worse we are at waiting for a reward or continuing to work towards that goal. That uncertainty of a reward makes waiting and goal setting difficult. It's not about willpower as much as it is about a complex combination of life experience, rational calculations, style of thinking, temperment,  and evolutionary biology.

Want to make the best use of this information? Be compassionate with yourself AND  get educated about realistic timing regarding your particular goal. Ask a wise friend, coach, nutritionist, therapist or personal trainer for examples of time frames that have successfully worked for others who are similar to you in age, personality, and lifestyle. 

 The least helpful approach is to get down on yourself by perceiving yourself as "weak" or lacking "willpower".  Be realistic. Trying to cut back your alcohol intake? Watching your diet? Be more patient with your kids?  Set your goals to maintain between Thanksgiving and New Year's. This approach is wise. Why? You will probably get upset with yourself if you don't make progress, which will make it more likely that you will give up altogether. However, you will be encouraged and continue to be motivated if you make gains.

 Happy Holidays!

Goal-setting 101
1. Make your goals specific
2. Make your goals challenging 
and exciting, not excruciatingly difficult
3. Set long-term goals and break them down into short-term steps
4. Be realistic about time by doing research regarding your goal and time frames 
5. Build in buffers for the unexpected- illness, family drama, work demands