Not Getting Enough Sleep? Always feeling tired?
Hi everyone:
I just came up with these two articles that I find are helpful for people who suffer from insomnia, or feel tired throughout the day.
The first one is called 'The Power of Napping'. It talks about how napping can help to increase your concentration, alertness, and even improve your mood throughout the day.
The second one talks about Fibromyalgia. If you or someone you know suffer from extreme fatigue throughout the day even though you've had a full night's sleep, then it may be time to pay a visit to the doctor to rule out the common conditions causing fatigue, and to see if you may be suffering from Fibromyalgia.
I'm going to give a brief overview of both articles:
1. Power Napping:
I came from Taiwan where all the students (up to high school) are required to nap at noontime. One reason for this is because most students have to go for after-school classes, until 10pm or even later due to the highly competitive exams that they are faced with. It is almost like a national 'habit'; to 'nap'. Most Western countries do not have such a habit and it is fine, until the stress levels have become too much, or the sleep-deprived have accumulated too much sleep debt, then depression, poor performance, and bad moods start to settle in. All is fine and dandy when you are young and healthy, but once you pass that threshold, your health starts to deteriorate incrementally, and no amount of coffee or Red Bull will do it for you anymore.
If you feel like you are starting to suffer from depression, brain fog, and decreased productivity, then perhaps you should try to take a power nap. A power nap is a way your body makes up for your sleep deficit, and that 15 -30 minutes a day can make the world of a difference. It's like breaking up your working hours into half, with you taking a proper rest in between.
The article talks about 'Even NASA likes to nap'; where napping helps to achieve optimal performance. The pilots would take turns to rest for 40 minutes. They found that they would sleep for 26 minutes, which boosted their performance by 34% and their alertness by 54%. It then talks about how to prepare yourself for the power nap: make the environment friendly for napping; develop a routine for napping (just as you would before going to bed at night); be mentally prepared that some days you may wake up feeling groggy (in that case, adjust your nap time); find a place where you will not be interrupted; and set your alarm so that you can sleep safe and sound without worrying that you'll oversleep. It also talks about napping on a regular basis so that you body's internal clock will adjust to napping, and maintaining a good night's rest.
Other points to note is not to nap too late during the day since that may prevent you from falling asleep at night; don't drink caffeinated drinks too late during the day, and don't nap for too long. When you nap for too long (don't nap for more than an hour) and you enter into deep sleep, but don't get to go through the full cycle, then you will end up feeling more tired when you're forced to wake up and go back to work.
2. Fibromyalgia:
The second article talks about Fibromyalgia.
Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition that affects about 5 million Americans. It doesn't damamge the joints, muscles, or internal organs. However, it may cause intense, real pain to the patients, due to a malfunctioning in the way the body perceives pain. It mostly affects women between the ages of 25 and 60, and women are 10 times more likely to be affected than men.
The hallmark of fibromyalgia is muscle pain throughout the body, typically accompanied by:
Fatigue: patients experience a lingering feeling of exhaustion, even after hours spent in be
I just came up with these two articles that I find are helpful for people who suffer from insomnia, or feel tired throughout the day.
The first one is called 'The Power of Napping'. It talks about how napping can help to increase your concentration, alertness, and even improve your mood throughout the day.
The second one talks about Fibromyalgia. If you or someone you know suffer from extreme fatigue throughout the day even though you've had a full night's sleep, then it may be time to pay a visit to the doctor to rule out the common conditions causing fatigue, and to see if you may be suffering from Fibromyalgia.
I'm going to give a brief overview of both articles:
1. Power Napping:
I came from Taiwan where all the students (up to high school) are required to nap at noontime. One reason for this is because most students have to go for after-school classes, until 10pm or even later due to the highly competitive exams that they are faced with. It is almost like a national 'habit'; to 'nap'. Most Western countries do not have such a habit and it is fine, until the stress levels have become too much, or the sleep-deprived have accumulated too much sleep debt, then depression, poor performance, and bad moods start to settle in. All is fine and dandy when you are young and healthy, but once you pass that threshold, your health starts to deteriorate incrementally, and no amount of coffee or Red Bull will do it for you anymore.
If you feel like you are starting to suffer from depression, brain fog, and decreased productivity, then perhaps you should try to take a power nap. A power nap is a way your body makes up for your sleep deficit, and that 15 -30 minutes a day can make the world of a difference. It's like breaking up your working hours into half, with you taking a proper rest in between.
The article talks about 'Even NASA likes to nap'; where napping helps to achieve optimal performance. The pilots would take turns to rest for 40 minutes. They found that they would sleep for 26 minutes, which boosted their performance by 34% and their alertness by 54%. It then talks about how to prepare yourself for the power nap: make the environment friendly for napping; develop a routine for napping (just as you would before going to bed at night); be mentally prepared that some days you may wake up feeling groggy (in that case, adjust your nap time); find a place where you will not be interrupted; and set your alarm so that you can sleep safe and sound without worrying that you'll oversleep. It also talks about napping on a regular basis so that you body's internal clock will adjust to napping, and maintaining a good night's rest.
Other points to note is not to nap too late during the day since that may prevent you from falling asleep at night; don't drink caffeinated drinks too late during the day, and don't nap for too long. When you nap for too long (don't nap for more than an hour) and you enter into deep sleep, but don't get to go through the full cycle, then you will end up feeling more tired when you're forced to wake up and go back to work.
2. Fibromyalgia:
The second article talks about Fibromyalgia.
Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition that affects about 5 million Americans. It doesn't damamge the joints, muscles, or internal organs. However, it may cause intense, real pain to the patients, due to a malfunctioning in the way the body perceives pain. It mostly affects women between the ages of 25 and 60, and women are 10 times more likely to be affected than men.
The hallmark of fibromyalgia is muscle pain throughout the body, typically accompanied by:
Fatigue: patients experience a lingering feeling of exhaustion, even after hours spent in be
5/6/2010 7:18:59 PM
Written by Helen S Chang Chen
Helen S Chang Chen is a California Licensed Acupuncturist & Herbalist.
Helen’s clinic is located in Thousand Oaks, CA, US.
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