Soliloquy

Ooohhh my sweet precious, how have I taken you for granted. The sweet suspended time I have with you lulls me further in; not wanting to wake to the noise around, of birds chirping, cars screeching and phones ringing. I seek your warm embrace of beautiful dreams you promise; which leaves me yearning for more, more of wondrous places, faces and scenes I have yet to reach in my subliminal state and can only imagine.

In case you might be wondering what the cryptic message may be alluding to… I am referring to “SLEEP” (aka as zzzZZ).  According to the National Sleep Foundation (NSF), sleep is essential for a person’s health and wellbeing. It plays a huge part in the way our bodies function, so big in fact, that if we (or any animal) are totally deprived of sleep for an extended period of time, we will actually die.

[S]leep is the golden chain that ties health and our bodies together.  ~Thomas Dekker

Sleep has always been something that I have taken for granted except for periods where I was on overnight duties (during my NSF days). However, this concept revisited itself when I returned for my reservist (yes, this was typed out during my off-days in reservist). It was during this period that I have come to be reminded of how precious sleep can be. In the past, I enjoyed my reservist as it meant that I will be away from work engaging in training sessions and also conversing with friends I have not met for eons. However, my unit decided to take on a different approach in changing the structure to our reservist duties. Compared to the good ole days where I was able to book out at the end of the day to return home for a good night rest under the amended scheme.

  I am now required to stay-in camp and be ‘operationally’ prepared. This time round, it will be my second round of in-camp training of this nature. Basically, I am slated to work on a “one-day on and one-day off “schedule. Loosely translated, I report for duty at 0800 hrs (8 am) and only finish my tour the following morning at 0800 hrs – yep that’s right a full 24 hours tour of duty. I have only been in camp for the first week and am already feeling the toil of sleep disruption and deprivation. Could it be my age that is catching up with me? Or am I simply not fit enough to stay up for 24 hours. I remember days where I had gone out partying and clubbing till the wee hours of the morning and was still be able to push through the rest of my day (albeit that I needed my caffeine boost). But for some reason my body is no longer keeping up with me, I find my memory worsening as I struggle to remember the dates which have come to a blur, my eating rituals disrupted and weight gaining as I feast on fried foods, chips and snacks to keep myself alert, lowered moods and being more irritable to people around me. I can feel my body weakening (as I lean over to draw another tissue to wipe away the sneeze and am in search of another Panadol to cure the migraine headache as I am typing my blog entry). I could seriously feel the strain and find myself slump over the keyboard the minute I allow myself to rest.

I gather that by the end of the week, my sleep cycle would be so de-synchronised that I would need another 2 weeks of proper rest to recuperate before I could restore a proper sleep cycle. Yet, that is still another 1.5 weeks away. In the meantime, I am most likely to be caught with my eyes closed. Should that happen, I have a few quotes prepared as a quick retort to my superior.

1. “I wasn’t really asleep I was just meditating on unconsciousness” – Anonymous
2. "Living is a disease from which sleep gives us relief eight hours a day." – S. R. N. Chamfort
3. "There is a time for many words, and there is also a time for sleep." – Homer
4. "To achieve the impossible dream, try going to sleep." -- Joan Klempner
5. Sleep is a symptom of caffeine deprivation.  ~Author Unknown (this is for all my coffee friends who yearn for a Nespresso in the office)

I can now finally relate to the many clients I have encountered in my line of work as they shared with me their sleep problems, and in some cases, sleep disorders. Those with sleep disorders are associated with a wide range of health problems, including an increased risk of hypertension, diabetes, obesity, depression, myocardial infarction and stroke. As the author, F. Scott Fitzgerald aptly summed it up, “The worst thing in the world is to try to sleep and not to”.

So do learn to cherish the importance of proper and good sleep hygiene as I have cherished it even more in the past few days.

The Harvard Women’s Health Watch suggests six reasons to get enough sleep:

1.  Learning and memory: Sleep helps the brain commit new information to memory through a process called memory consolidation. In studies, people who’d slept after learning a task did better on tests later.
2. Metabolism and weight: Chronic sleep deprivation may cause weight gain by affecting the way our bodies process and store carbohydrates, and by altering levels of hormones that affect our appetite.
3. Safety: Sleep debt contributes to a greater tendency to fall asleep during the daytime. These lapses may cause falls and mistakes such as medical errors, air traffic mishaps, and road accidents.
4. Mood: Sleep loss may result in irritability, impatience, inability to concentrate, and moodiness. Too little sleep can also leave you too tired to do the things you like to do.
5. Cardiovascular health: Serious sleep disorders have been linked to hypertension, increased stress hormone levels, and irregular heartbeat.
6. Disease: Sleep deprivation alters immune function, including the activity of the body’s killer cells. Keeping up with sleep may also help fight cancer.

Extracted from http://www.health.harvard.edu/press_releases/importance_of_sleep_and_health

Notes: Should you notice yourself having difficulties with sleep, it could be related to certain stressors faced, lifestyle changes, environmental stressors or physical problems. Do take the initiative to talk to someone and seek professional help should sleep problems persist and are prolonged.