Happiness Happens: A Good Sleep

Ah! I just love it when I wake up in the morning after a full night of good sleep! This sleeping lady cross-stitch that my Mom made is one of the first things I see when I wake up and it's just like looking in the mirror! (Until I look in the real mirror.)

I've discovered that sleep is one of the what I'm labeling "Big 5" (Sleep, Food, Exercise, Learn, Socialize) keys to a healthy brain.

I feel pretty good about the other 4, but my history of insomnia has created a bit of an "uh oh - I better improve my sleep" feeling.  

Since I haven't been working, my sleep has improved quite a bit.  It's so nice to not need an alarm clock any more or have all the stress that comes along with work and trying to fit too much into every day.

I even discovered this nifty free function on my Fitbit that has months worth of data with details about my sleep quality.

Last night's sleep got a sleep score of 80, which is labeled as "Good" with:

• Wakefulness: 13% or 1h 9m
• REM: 22% or 1h 54m
• Light Sleep: 53% or 4h 39m
• Deep Sleep: 12% or 1h 4m

Even though there's a lot of room for improvement here, it is better than my usual tossing-and-turning can't-get-back-to-sleep wakefulness that I often struggle with around 2am.  And if I feel this good with a sleep score of 80, just imagine how refreshed I'd feel with a score in the 90's!

Unfortunately, sleep is a lot harder for me to control than any of the other things on the Big 5 list. Often the more I try to sleep, the more difficulty I have with it.

However, over the years, I have discovered some techniques that seem to be helping.

The biggest culprit for me is my overactive brain. I have always been one who "overthinks"..  Instead of just making a decision about something, I want to consider every angle and then I worry about risks or reactions or I think about all the research I might want to do before making a decision.

I suppose that's why they say meditation (and focusing on breath rather than thinking) is so good for your brain.  Like sleep, it is giving your brain a chance to rest and rejuvenate.  

Too bad not thinking is so boring for me.  But nice that I'm getting a little better at it and improving my sleep!