Friday, February 29, 2008

BEAUTY SLEEP











We all need our beauty sleep. I know, I know we have kids, husband, dogs, laundry things that stop that from happening.

But without it the following might happen:

memory loss (Check)

Weakened immune system (Not so much right know. Where is some wood to knock on)

ADHD or Attention deficit Hyperactivity Disorder – OMGoodness I have this, my Doctor actually says I have this. (Lisa be quiet) Never thought it could be associated with not enough sleep!

Some ways to help us sleep better when we finally make it to bed could be the following:

Exercise every day: Even 20 minutes of walking can help keep stress hormones from interfering with your sleep. (Ok I have been running (yeah me) for the past week and I can actually tell a difference in my sleepy time)

Minimize light, noise and temperature extremes:


Temperature:


Your bedroom should be comfortably cool, about 68 degrees. Not a steaming sauna.

Light:


I also chose to paint my room chocolate brown. It feels more like a cave and I can sleep a little better. So if the lights are off how does the paint help you may ask? I don’t know it just does, no really its like this. (clears throat) Light colors reflect light, therefore the lighter the colors in the room the more light it reflects even at night. (eg: alarm clock lights, night light from down the hall) Dark colors absorb the light hence a darker room. (It was also a good excuse to get the room painted the color I wanted. Husband does not like dark colors, but I have managed to get them through the majority of the house. But that’s another post)


Noise:


Lets talk about this for a minute. This is my biggest problem. For example the other night, I finally got LL out of my bed. (Don't be saying anything just because he was still sleeping with us) So I thought finally a night with out being kicked in the head. So I lie down, and then get back up to go tuck LL in again. Then I lie down and realize that I forgot to turn the humidifier on. So I think it will be ok this one time. Boy was I wrong. Big Logan snored so badly last night, and he added a new one to the mix he did some kind of snore that sounded like a car horn. I was in the middle of a dream that a car alarm was going off, only to wake up and realize it was him! So I hit him, told him to turn over and tried to go back to sleep, he immediately starts snoring again. You see the humidifier is this wonderful thing in my life that was missing last night. It helps Big Logan not snore. It also gives off this wonderful white noise that lulls you into a deeper sleep.
(Update: last night turned the humidifier on and slept much better.
There was alot less snoring going on)


Get some good sheets:

Go find you some 600-thread count or higher bed sheets. You can find them at Marshalls and TJ Maxx for cheap. I used to would never spend money on something like this, until I slept on some and I was instantly in love. Go get some right now. You will not regret it.





So Bottom Line is:

Get some exercise

Go Paint your room a dark color or minimize the light in there somehow

Get a humidifier if your husband snores or I guess ear plugs might do.

Get some good sheets.

Let me know how you get your beauty sleep or lack of.

That is all for now.

Photobucket

11 comments:

Texasholly said...

I couldn't agree with you more. I love it when the room is pitch black which is not possible with a light colored wall. And the sheets...the sheets are essential. You spend (hopefully) 8 hours a day there! It is worth the investment. I find really nice sheets at Tuesday Morning for a little bit of nothing.

Anonymous said...

It is so true. I'm a completely different person when I get enough sleep.

Lisa said...

I know what you don't want me to say! LOL!

mzzterry said...

ALL very good tips....the humidifier helps a lot in the winter when the heat is on! And sheets as well as a good pillow are important. Thanks for this.

Valarie said...

It wasn't that hard, but it deleted all of my links lists that I had made. So I had to go back and redo my blog list and I still need to add my other links lists.

~ Val

Anonymous said...

Aahhh, the bliss of sleep. I am trying to get all I can in preparation for a newborn coming in a month. Ack.

Daisy said...

OMG - good sheets!!! Is there anything better than super soft egyptian cotton sheets?? You are spot-on we all need to get enough sleep!!! I mentioned that too in my frump fighting post this week as it relates to healthy skin! GMTA!!

Connie said...

Great Tips!!

I have many of the symptoms of sleep deprivation.

I will be so happy when the little one sleeps through the night and I can get rid of the monitor.

Or...I am thinking of moving to the guest room!!

Anonymous said...

Ah, sleep. i remember sleeping through the night. Maybe my 1 year old will sleep through the night someday.

PhotoChick said...

What a wonderful post!!! Such great information... and even some insight into my own life. Does that mean I need to get off the internet and into bed immediately? ...yeah, it does! You gave some REALLY awesome ideas too - fabulous! :o)

j said...

I was going to say something but I forgot what it was.........
OH YEAH! I am lack of sleep personified! Too much late night blogging makes for a forgetful Jen.