By: Dr. B.
Getting Rest in 10 Minutes or Less
I often work with students who are on hyper drive.
These students are always on the go, seeking sensory and emotional
feedback from their environments. They are disruptive in the classroom, many often have trauma histories, and they have challenges learning.
Interestingly enough, interviews most commonly reveal that the students who display these behaviors often have poor sleep hygiene.
Many of us struggle with poor sleep hygiene and other sleep related problems. Why is this? Why do we always feel tired, and even more exhausted, even when we sometimes sleep more hours than is typical? In fact, the extra sleep may make us even more tired, so what is the right amount of sleep? How can we tell?
Why do so many of us wake up periodically during the night and then want to take a nap in the afternoon?
Well, if you’re like me you may be part of the super fun club of the chronically sleep deprived! We just never seem to get enough rest. This leads to other problems, like not being able to focus as well as we want to do, and feeling emotionally exhausted, and physically exhausted, as well.
I have two speeds – fast and off. I attended a training that taught me how to force my nervous system into resting, and every time I got into the right position someone was poking me minutes later because my snoring was bothering them. Where’s the balance?
So sorry!
The instructor informed us that only those that are the most chronically sleep deprived have this happen when they are put into the position. Her recommendation – get more sleep! Easier said than done, for many of us.
Well, what if that isn’t an option? What if we are too revved up to sleep? Have medical concerns? Anxiety? Family needs? Or we just don’t have the time to put more sleep into our schedule!
Are there other options? Or do we just have to suffer in our sleepiness? Yawning our days away – trying to keep ourselves awake and choosing activities that don’t involve sitting so we won’t fall asleep?
There just has to be a better way!
Here is what can work:
- Get More Rest! While sleep requirements vary from person to person, most healthy adults need between 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night to function properly. Children and teens need even more. Don’t skimp on rest. It’s the foundation of good health and of being alert and happy during your day.
And you can eat foods that keep you alert during the day.
- Foods that increase arousal:
- Ginger: consuming ginger can help reduce fatigue as it improves blood circulation and blood sugar levels.
- Lemon: lemons are packed with many healthy vitamins and minerals that help to boost metabolism, increase energy, promote better digestion, boost your immune system and reduce the effects of stress.
- High protein/low fat diet: a high protein diet can result in sustained energy. Protein is a vital component of every cell within the body and is used to produce the enzymes that activate metabolism. Many nutritionists recommend that individuals should consume about half a gram of protein per pound of body weight, every day.
- Scents:
- Cinnamon: the scent of cinnamon can help reduce fatigue and make you feel more alert.
- Citrus: the smell of citrus fruits can help boost your body’s production of serotonin and reduce levels of the stress hormone norepinephrine, which will result in feeling awake and calm. Lemon may be the most powerful of the citrus scents, as it has been shown that smelling it can increase mental stimulation.
- Peppermint: smelling peppermint can help you feel more alert, focused, and stimulated. Peppermint also helps you perform better on tasks that require sustained attention.
- Cedar wood: smelling cedar wood can increase mental acuity by 30% or more.
- Engage in exercise: When we exercise, our brain releases endorphins that help us to feel more awake.
- Participate in an inversion: inversions help to push the blood in our body to the brain, which makes us feel more alert. It also helps drain the lactic acid from our extremities, depending on the positioning we are in.
- Get into a restorative pose: restorative poses help our body rest. You can feel the benefits of a restorative pose in just 10 minutes or less.
What is a restorative pose and how do we get into one? Why does it rest the body?
Restorative poses are nurturing physical postures based on yoga. When we practice these poses regularly, they help us to heal the effects of chronic stress in as little as 5 minutes a day. Restorative poses also help to promote the flow of hormones that help to promote relaxation and happiness. This puts the body in charge and relaxes pressure on the mind , so that pressures that arise through the day can be released.
Restorative yoga also helps to push the body into the parasympathetic state, which decreases blood pressure and allows greater nerve flow of the vagus nerve. It helps to stimulate and soothe organs throughout the body. This is beneficial because the body and mind are connected between our psychological processes and nervous/immune systems – this is called psychoneuroimmunology.
To practice restorative yoga, it is important to get the body into the correct alignment to receive the positive benefits that restorative yoga can have for our bodies. To do this you must make sure that the spinal column and extremities are properly aligned in a way that elicits rest for the nervous system.
This is key as this is what allows the body to rest.
When we achieve proper alignment, the body enters a parasympathetic state which allows us to feel rested in a very short period of time. Engaging in these practices several times a day will rest the body and allow our bodies to achieve a more regulated state.
How to engage in Restorative Yoga
When engaging in restorative yoga, it is important to note that this is not a type of yoga that should be done first thing in the morning. You should wait at least two hours from waking to start practicing your restorative yoga poses.
You also need to understand the proper alignment of the tailbone, center back (between blades) and the back of the head (just above the occipital lobes).
It is important to check for tension in your lower back, abdomen, neck, and jaw muscles and to relieve this tension before beginning.
You should also make sure that your chin is lower than your forehead, in most poses that are done on your back.
For those that experience headaches or those who spend a lot of time sitting at a desk, the seated angle pose can help calm mental agitation. This is because muscle contraction headaches are due to poor standing and sitting postures that are held for hours.
There are many props used for restorative yoga. As you start your restorative practice, it may be helpful to acquire the following items: blankets, yoga blocks, bolsters or pillows, yoga mat, belts, eye bags, weighted bags for abdomen or neck. I absolutely love teaching people how to use these positions to support their bodies!!
For More Tips and Strategies check out www.core-methods.com or www.thebehaviorbootcamp.com
References
Breitenwischer, L. (2020). Cinnamon benefits. Retrieved from:
https://balancingenergy.com/cinnamon-dopamine-booster-for-your-brain-other-benefits
Lasater, J.H. (2019). Restorative Yoga. Retrieved from: https://www.judithhansonlasater.com/
The National Sleep Foundation. (2019). Scents to help you wake up and feel energized.
Retrieved from: https://www.sleep.org/articles/scents-to-wake-you-up/
The National Sleep Foundation. (2019). Recommended sleep times. Retrieved from:
https://www.sleepfoundation.org/press-release/national-sleep-foundation-recommends-n
