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Concentration and Sleep an Important Combination

Written by: Stephanie Calahan

Article Overview: Do you ever have a day where you find that you find you are staring into space more than actually getting things done? Or, maybe you have to read a sentence over and over and it still does not make sense. Or, maybe you have headaches or debilitating migraines that make it difficult for you to think. If you experience any kind of concentration or productivity challenges, you may have issues with your sleep. If you don't get the right amount and kind of sleep, you can suffer from a number issues.

Concentration and Sleep an Important Combination

Do you ever have a day where you find that you find you are staring into space more than actually getting things done?

Or, maybe you have to read a sentence over and over and it still does not make sense.

Or, maybe you have headaches or debilitating migraines that make it difficult for you to think.

If you experience any kind of concentration or productivity challenges, you may have issues with your sleep. If you don't get the right amount and kind of sleep, you can suffer from a number issues.

You Need Good Sleep!

We've all heard it. You need to get sleep! Yet, many of us do not get the kind of restorative sleep that we really need. In January of 2007 we learned that sleep pattern issues can even cause a heart attack - my husband learned it first hand. After his heart attack, he did another sleep study and it was confirmed. His sleep apnea had not been regulated correctly and he needed a new CPAP machine and a different kind of mask.

You May Not Know You Have an Issue!

I have always been a night person. I'll say it is much easier for me to stay up until 4 in the morning than to get up at 4 in the morning! I've adjusted my schedule around this fact for a number of years. I make sure that I get the right amount of sleep. I would frequently feel sleepy, but I blamed it on my husband's apnea. His snoring would wake me up, I would say. I experienced all of those items identified above.

Then, this past December, I ended up in the ER. I won't bore you with the details, but it turned out that I had been having multiple different kinds of migraines at the same time. The neurologist suggested a sleep study for me. I thought it was kind of goofy, but I did it anyway.

I was Surprised by the Results!

When the tests were analyzed, they told me that I too had sleep apnea! I was quite shocked. They fit me with a CPAP machine in February of this year. After only about 2 weeks of using this new apparatus (let me assure you, my husband and I are now a cute couple at night!) I was already seeing a difference. Now, I would not go to sleep without the machine. Oh, and all of those problems that I mentioned at the beginning of this post -- they are basically gone!

What if You Don't Have a Sleep Disorder?

While there are more and more people that are donning on CPAP masks at night, not everyone suffers from a medical condition that impacts their sleep and concentration.

Improving Your Sleep Improves Your Waking Hours

So many of my clients will tell me that their bedroom is stressful. Is that what it should be? Of course not! Here are some things you can do to set yourself up for success:

Reserve your bedroom for sleep and intimacy only
If you have any of the following in your bedroom -- put them somewhere else in your home.

* computer
* work reading
* technical reading
* piles of papers
* piles of anything!
* toys
* etc.

If you only have one place in your home that you feel relaxed, let it be your bedroom.

Keep it dark, quiet and cool
Experts will tell you that these three elements will aid in your sleep success. Recently, my husband installed a room darkening shade to our large bedroom window and we have both felt that our sleep has been much better.

Schedule continuous sleep
Sleeping in patches is not as good for you as sleeping in 6-8 continuous hours of sleep every night. Your body needs to go through numerous different stages of sleep. If you don't have time for your body to go through those stages, you are not getting as restorative of a sleep pattern as you can.

What do You Think?

What have you done to change your environment to benefit from better sleep? Do you think these things will make a difference? Have you experienced the benefits of better sleep?

Related Articles
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  Getting a Good Night's Sleep

Article Tags: amount of sleep, concentration, cpap machine, different kinds, good sleep, headaches, heart attack, mask, migraines, neurologist, night person, productivity challenges, sleep, sleep study, snoring, staring into space



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