Conquer Stress and Master Sleep for a Richer Life

It’s no secret that when someone is tired, motivation and
mood suffer and stress becomes more difficult to cope
with. Feeling stressed may also make it harder for a
person to get a good night’s sleep , which can create a
vicious cycle.
Prioritizing healthy sleep habits and awareness of stress-
management skills can help propel people to succeed in
multiple ways, whether their goals are in business,
academics or even fitness.
Staying well-rested not only can improve mood but can
also keep people healthier, improve performance and
cognition and boost coping and problem solving.
Keep reading to learn how to achieve balance and
cultivate success by prioritizing sleep and dealing with
stress more effectively.
Related: 3 TED Talks That Will Convince You to Get
More Sleep
Why sleep should be a top priority
Sleep often gets pushed aside by busy people. Dealing
with a stressful schedule can make it harder to receive
enough quality rest.
It might feel sometimes like those extra two hours could
be better spent working toward goals than wasted in
dreamland, but the truth is that long-term sleep
deprivation can result in significant cognitive and
physical impairment.
An adult needs on average seven to nine hours of sleep
each night. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease
Control, however, 30 percent of American workers
receive only six hours a night or less.
For a Surrey University study exploring mild sleep
deprivation, researchers allowed participants about six
hours of sleep a night for one week. After just seven
days, they found more than 700 instances of changes in
genes related to circadian rhythms and metabolism in
addition to suppressed immune response and increased
inflammation.
According to the Sleep Disorders and Sleep Deprivation
book by the National Institutes of Health, a lack of sleep
affects motivation and moods, decision-making abilities,
cognition, attention, creativity and analytical
thinking, memory and learning. It increases
the likelihood of errors and accidents as well as the risk
of obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. It also
impairs the immune system.
When all these effects are considered, sleep deprivation
clearly has a significant impact on people's ability to
work toward their goals and perform at their best.
Personally, I've found that staying healthy and keeping
sleep and work in balance helps me avoid mental
burnout. A reduced risk for illness also means
perhaps less time will be taken away from achieving
goals.
Related: 8 Ways to Drive Entrepreneurial Stress Out
From Your Life
Strategies for managing stress
For many people stress and anxiety serve as sleep
stealers. Many individuals experience temporary
insomnia before a big meeting or when dealing with a
pressing issue.
When it becomes habitual for someone to
experience stress at night, though, this can create bigger
sleep problems. And the lack of sleep can make it more
difficult for the person to manage the stressors that can
lead to frustration, anger, lack of motivation and more
stress.
One of the best ways I've found to avoid stress-related
sleep problems is to practice techniques for calming
down and tuning out before bed.
A few stress-management strategies that have been
found effective include deep breathing, visualization,
music relaxation, progressive muscle relaxation and
regular exercise. Many of these methods can be used at
any time of the day and can also be helpful for falling
asleep.
Deep breathing is a way to invoke physical relaxation
and calm the body’s stress response. The Harvard
Medical School’s Family Health Guide website suggests
sitting or lying down in a comfortable place with the
eyes closed. Start breathing in slowly through the nose,
letting the abdomen fully expand. Then breathe out
slowly through the mouth or nose. The breaths should
become progressively deeper. Focus attention on the
very process of breathing or a calming image or phrase.
Visualization or using guided imagery is a proven
technique that involves immersing one’s self into an
imagined scene. Self-help books, online videos,
recordings and therapists can help people practice this
technique. It involves lying in a comfortable place with
closed eyes and imagining a relaxing scene. The
person is guided to see, hear, feel and smell the
surroundings while keeping his or her thoughts on the
image and continuing to relax. An Oxford University
study found visualization helped people fall asleep
faster, as well.
Music relaxation involves tuning in to calming music
while in a relaxed state. As with the other techniques,
the person begins by lying or sitting in a comfortable
space with eyes closed and breathing calmly. A
University of Nevada, Reno, counseling website says
that slow-tempo music with about 60 beats a minute
helps stimulate relaxing brain waves. The website
provides a few samples of appropriate music:
Recommended types include Native American and Celtic
music, light jazz, classical or easy listening music --
whatever can induces a calm and relaxed state in a
listener.
Progressive muscle relaxation involves gradually
relaxing each part of the body. As the American Holistic
Nurses Association website explains in detail, this
technique involves tensing a specific group of muscles
for several seconds while breathing in, then relaxing
these muscles while breathing out. The person works
on each major muscle group progressively, from the feet
to the head, while focusing fully on releasing tension and
anxiety.
Regular exercise and activity releases mood-boosting
chemicals that help fight stress. According to the
American Psychological Association, people who
exercise regularly report less anxiety and depression.
The release of norepinephrine potentially helps the brain
moderate stress responses. Endorphins also provide a
short-term mood boost. Another benefit of regular
exercise is that it may improve sleep efficiency and
sleep duration, according to the National Sleep
Foundation .
Additional possible ways to relax include practicing yoga,
doing meditation or praying, journaling, writing down
tomorrow’s to-do list or reading -- things that help a
person wind down and clear stressful thoughts.
Things to avoid in the hours before bed include doing
work, writing emails, messaging on social networks,
checking bank accounts or paying bills (or any other
activity that might induce stress).
Also avoid stressing about not getting enough sleep.
Keep thoughts positive at night. Rather than saying, “I
can’t believe it’s already midnight ! I’m going to be so
tired tomorrow,” start an internal dialogue with
something that's more like “I will fall asleep and wake
up well-rested tomorrow!”
Pairing an emphasis on healthy sleep with effective
stress-management techniques helps prevent emotional
and physical exhaustion and keep the mind in top shape
to tackle challenges. By taking care of yourself and
keeping sleep, stress and work balanced, it's possible to
achieve goals and be more successful.
What helps you balance work and health? How do you
reduce stress? Share your experiences below.
Related: 6 Secrets to Surviving on Little or No Sleep