14. GET A GOOD NIGHT SLEEP

Fact: The “natural alarm clock” which enables some people to wake up more or less when they want to is caused by a burst of the stress hormone adrenocorticotropin. Researchers say this reflects an unconscious anticipation of the stress of waking up.

It is hard to believe, but over 50% of people suffer from sleep disorders of some kind. Sleep constitutes at least 1/3 of our life. That 1/3^rd of time spent in sleep creates a lot of neurophysiological reactions in the body. If we do not sleep well, our cortisol hormone which is also the stress hormone, rises rapidly. This in turn leads to weight gain and multiple other health and mental issues. Poor sleep creates imbalance in our neurotransmitters (dopamine and serotonin) in brain leading to mood disorders, anxiety and depression.

A few ways to improve sleep are

a. Sleep on time: Stop watching late night TV shows and movies for few days and get to bed at a decent time.

b. Sleep at least 7-8 hours: We all need to balance out life if we want a healthy mind and body. It is not the money that makes us wealthy, it’s our mind, body, thoughts and actions which make us rich.

c. Read a book or listen to calming music before going to bed.

d. Drink a glass of warm milk.

e. Take a shower if you like. That would be icing on the cake.

f. Change your bed sheets: A lot of times we do not change the bed sheets periodically, i.e., at least once a week, which leads to build up of certain allergens and bacteria which may cause skin irritation, sinus congestion, etc which lead to poor sleep.

g. Put your cell phone to silent mode: You do not need to get disturbed by the beeping of your phone every time you get an email which are usually useless emails telling you about some promotional deals or stuff like that.

h. If you snore, get early morning headaches or feel tired and sleepy during the day, then you would need to be evaluated for Sleep Apnea which is a very common problem especially in overweight people and smokers.