Many People Are Exhausted. Fatigue is widespread. Studies by American, British and Australian Traffic Safety Agencies report that 20%-30% of traffic fatalities involve a fatigued driver. Fatigue may be due to lack of sleep, or to illness, nutritional imbalances or other causes. If you need coffee, soda pop, chocolate, anger, worry or other stimulants to get going in the morning or keep going, you are not getting enough sleep.
Prolonged fatigue contributes to nutritional imbalances that may not be so easily undone by just sleeping. However, rest and sleep are still important steps as part of a total program including nutritional balancing and sauna therapy to recover from chronic fatigue syndrome and many other conditions with fatigue as one of the symptoms.
If you skimp on regenerative activity by not sleeping enough, physical and mental performance suffers, as well as one’s work and relationships. Illness develops because there is not enough time to repair damaged tissues in the body. If you have a chronic illness, you definitely need extra rest and sleep.
You may envy those who seem to have lots of energy yet get by on little sleep. Let go of this envy. Those individuals are either:
* Burning themselves out. Many of them don’t know it, or they know it and don’t care, or they care but do not know what to do about it.
* Using stimulants. Their energy is false. One of these days it will catch up with them and they will become ill.
Cleansing and Rebuilding the Body Require Energy. Elimination of toxins, an issue for everyone, occurs primarily at night while the body rests. The removal process requires energy and one’s energy is finite. If you use most or all of your energy running around all day, you will not detoxify well.
POOR EXCUSES FOR NOT SLEEPING
There are many excuses why more sleep is impossible. Here are some common ones:
1) I don’t have time. If this is really the case, then it is time to restructure your life. Schedule naps, nap with your children after lunch or even after all meals, get help so that you are freed up, take on fewer projects or otherwise restructure.
2) Sleep is a waste of time. I hope I have demolished this excuse . Sleep is an absolute necessity.
3) I could sleep for days and sleeping more doesn’t make me feel better, so why bother. Most likely your body chemistry is out of balance . However, not sleeping will only make the problem worse. Get at least 9-10 hours of sleep.
4) I’ll miss my favorite television programs, movies, parties, etc. It is possible to leave parties earlier, schedule parties and movies earlier and record late television programs.
5) I can’t go to sleep earlier. If I do, I’ll be up at 3 AM. This is a common excuse. The section below regarding sleep difficulties may be helpful. Many people are stimulated by toxic substances in the body that prevent them from relaxing thoroughly. Blood sugar imbalances may also prevent one from sleeping through the night.
6) I have loads of energy. Occasionally, this is the case. A few people are healthy enough to get along on less sleep. Most often, however, one is out of touch, stimulated by toxic metals in the body or using stimulants that irritate the nervous system. It only appears one has loads of energy. If this is the case, you will eventually become exhausted. You might as well slow down now, before complete burnout occurs.
7) I just love staying up. Many people are night owls. They enjoy the peaceful feeling at night when activities slow down. It is a pleasure for many sensitive souls. Sometimes creative work is easier to do at night.
However, depriving yourself of sleep is not the answer. You may need to live in a quieter environment so you can experience peace during the day. Otherwise, arrange your schedule so that if you stay up, you can sleep in the morning or nap so you get enough sleep.
HANDLING SLEEP DIFFICULTIES
Sleep problems can be related to diet, lifestyle, the sleeping environment, biochemical imbalances, ones temperament and other factors. Here are suggestions for improving your sleep.
1) Reduce your salt intake, if you are eating a lot of salt. Salt, even good quality sea salt such as Himalayan salt or Celtic salt, can be very stimulating. This is why many people love chips, dips and a lot of junk foods such as French fries, pickles, relish, ketchup and more.
2) Eat dinner early. Eating late may leave undigested food in the stomach that interferes with sleep, especially if the food quantity is excessive or you have gas or other symptoms of indigestion.
Page 2 of 5 | Previous page | Next page
