Sleep Health
by Betty Mitchell RN BSN
Parish Nurse, Emmanuel Bethel Church, Royal Oak, Michigan
Being unable to sleep at night may be causing more harm to our health than once thought. Studies indicate getting a good night’s rest is an essential part of our health and helps prevent chronic disease.
Both quantity and quality of sleep are important. If sleep is interrupted or cut short, certain stages of sleep are interrupted. Sleep helps us the next day to be able to think clearly and react quickly, all while creating memories. During our sleep time, our brains are actively processing, sorting and storing all of the information the brain received while awake. Insufficient sleep does not allow the brain to fully complete these tasks.
Sleep deprivation is associated with high blood pressure, heart problems and other medical and mental health conditions.
If you are tired during the day, it is easy to avoid your regular exercise routine and grab fast food meals. Doing this too often will increase your weight and bring on other associated problems.
Certain hormones are produced as you sleep. Growth hormone for childhood growth and repair of cells and tissues in both adults and children are produced at night. Hormones released at night help fight off infections and help during recovery if you become ill.
It is believed lack of sleep is associated with many motor vehicle accidents and machinery-related injuries. Loss of as little as one hour of sleep can adversely affect our decision-making the next day. Poor decision-making can lead to risk-taking and accidents.
Some tips to getting a good night’s rest include going to bed and waking up at the same time every day, not exercising too late in the day, avoiding caffeine, nicotine, alcohol and large meals at night, no naps after 3 pm and having a quiet sleep environment — no TV or computer in the bedroom.
Having a healthy pastor is important to any congregation. If your pastor seems to have frequent colds, has difficulty with other activities that at one time were not a problem, you may want to consider if your pastor is getting enough rest. Sleep is an important part of our lives. Some ways to help your pastor get enough sleep so he can function better to serve his congregation are to make home or hospital visits, consider the length and frequency of meetings.
I lie down and sleep; I wake again, for the Lord sustains me. (Psalm 3:5)
