SLEEP GREAT FOR LIFE
By Rich Nilsen
Published by All Star Press at Smashwords
© Copyright 2011 All Star Press
All Rights Reserved
Discover other titles from All Star Press at Smashwords.com
INTRODUCTION
Let me congratulate you. Your purchase of this book is about to change your life in a way that you cannot even put a price tag on.
Classic insomnia and the variations of sleep disorders are taking a serious health toll not just on people here in stressed-out America but worldwide. If you are reading this, then chances are that you know full well what I am talking about. You've dealt personally with the impact that lack of sleep can have on your life. Depending on the severity of the problem, it has, no doubt, negatively influenced your life in one form or another.
The bottom line is that, despite what the pharmaceutical companies would have you believe - you can't buy a good night's sleep. Many people have attempted to do just that in vain. The prescription-drug market for sleep aids is a billion-dollar industry, yet so many people continue to be plagued by sleep disorders. Drugs 'can' be helpful in the short term, but all too often they are simply a band-aid approach masking the real problem. By the time you finish this guide, you will be well on your way to ditching all prescription drugs for insomnia and overcoming your sleep issues for the remainder of your life. Sound good, right? Believe it, because you have started on the path to eliminating this serious issue in your life and putting it behind you – for good.
One caveat: Be patient. We are not going to fix this issue overnight (no pun intended). But I believe that you will overcome your sleep issues, and that aspect of your life will be drastically transformed within the next 28 days. The beautiful thing is that you are going to be able to begin applying the building blocks to a great sleep life starting today!
Sleeping great requires, as the old saying goes, having your "ducks in a row." In this book we are going to lay the proper foundation to get you going in the right direction. Then, we will go over each and every step to overcoming insomnia once and for all. Read this book slowly and soak in all the advice provided.
You will see gradual improvement over the next couple of weeks, and during this process you will expect to succeed and overcome your sleep disorder. You'll know you're almost there, the first night that you go to bed with the expectation of having a great night's sleep. When that expectation is followed up by eight or so hours of uninterrupted, great sleep, you'll also know that you are getting closer to permanently kicking this problem.
How can I be so sure? Well I went through very debilitating insomnia just a few years ago. It started out pretty innocent, but snowballed from there. Pretty soon I was spending all day worrying about what would happen that evening. Would I be able to get to sleep? If it happened again, how would I make it through work the next day? The stress was unbelievable. It led to a deep depression that was hard to 'mask' both at work and in front of friends and family. A domino effect had been created that was wrecking havoc in my life.
My wife couldn't solve the problem. No person could help me. But I found the answers to solving my serious sleep disorder, and I felt it was my responsibility to help as many people as possible by writing this book.
The steps I took to solve my insomnia are all here in this guide. I feel a deep sense of compassion when I hear of someone who is struggling with insomnia. I know full well how serious it can be and what a risk it can present to your overall well-being.
Let's get started.
NOTE: I can personally attest to the effectiveness of the ideas presented in this book. However, this book is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always discuss serious medical conditions with your family doctor.
CHAPTER ONE
Impact of the Lack of Sleep
"So many people are sleep deprived. We're living in a time of unprecedented sleep debt." – Carol Ash, D.O. Sleep For Life Medical Director
Insomnia is one of the most serious health risks that a person can face in their lifetime. Everyone goes through at least a period of having trouble sleeping, and often this is caused by some form of difficulty in that person's life. But others deal with this issue on an every day, on-going basis. It is when insomnia becomes a regular part of life that one has to be very concerned about the subsequent health issues that can follow, and the negative impact it can have on the quality of life.
"There is plenty of compelling evidence that sleep is the most important predictor of how long you will live – perhaps more important than whether you smoke, exercise or have high blood pressure or cholesterol levels." explained William Dement, Stanford University psychiatry professor.(1)
Let's see why by looking at all of the different health and life issues that can result from chronic insomnia.
Anxiety
Restlessness
Depression
Difficulty concentrating
Exasperating fears
Decreased work productivity
Lower quality of life
Poor mood and emotional stability
Short tempered and irritable
Reduced immune system
Risk of physical problems: high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, etc.
Lack of energy to exercise
Lack of energy / motivation to perform everyday tasks
Less energy for sex
Altered metabolism - promotes fat storage
Inflammation and weight gain
Slower reaction time
Impaired metabolism – can lead to depression.
Elevated stress hormones
The ability to handle stress declines exponentially
Developing plaque
That last item may seem strange, but getting one more hour of sleep can reduce calcifications by up to 33 percent.(2) Experts are not sure how or why, but the evidence is rock solid.
A new study has found
that individuals who suffer from insomnia have heightened nighttime
blood pressure, which can lead to cardiac problem.. The
research, published in the journal Sleep,
measured the 24-hour blood pressure of insomniacs compared to sound
sleepers.
"Whereas blood pressure decreases in regular sleepers and gives their heart a rest, insomnia provokes higher nighttime blood pressure that can cause long-term cardiovascular risks and damage the heart," says leading author Paola A. Lanfranchi, a professor at the University of Montreal.(3)
COMPOUNDING EFFECT
Sleep debt works just like financial debt. Before you realize it, you have a serious problem. You build up sleep debt throughout the week. There are numerous medical studies that prove prolonged lack of sleep can lead to many serious problems including heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity, digestive problems, diabetes, sleep apnea, and even stroke.
"Our alertness level is even more impacted by several days of reduced sleep. If we miss 1-2 hours of sleep over 6-7 consecutive nights, our alertness level drops to dangerously low levels. As many as 15-20% of all transportation accidents are fatigue-related." (4)
This creates a destructive cycle that can be difficult to reverse.
SLEEP FACTS
In a 2007 study approximately 64 million Americans regularly suffer from insomnia each year, and it is 1.4 times more common in women than men.(5) There is little doubt that this massive number has grown in the past three years.
Fifty-eight percent of adults in the U.S. experienced symptoms of insomnia a few nights a week or more.(6)
Forty-four percent of U.S. adults are considered "problem sleepers." About one-fifth of those surveyed used drugs to counter-act insomnia at least once per week, and nearly 24 percent "depended" on sleep medication.(7) Consumer Reports magazine found that 38 percent of those who had taken medication in the past month had been doing so for a minimum of two months. Who wants that?
The same leading magazine reported that the most common cause was stress. Respondents worried about issues such as money, health, job security and family.
In 2001, 38 percent of adults were getting a minimum of eight hours sleep each night. Within only seven years this percentage had dropped to an alarming 26 percent.(8)
By 2008 just over one out of every four individuals was getting eight hours of sleep each night. That is a shockingly low percentage of people obtaining
the amount of sleep they need each night to function at their best the next day. Now granted, some people can get by just fine on less sleep, but too many people are not getting the "shut eye" they need.
"Reactions, memory capacity, everything slows down really fast - already after the first night [of insomnia]. Today we know of 88 kinds of sleep disorders. For 50 percent of patients, the disturbance is mental," explained Thomas Penzel of the Charite Hospital in Berlin, Germany.
Consider that statement. Half of all sleep disorder patients can attribute their disturbance to a mental issue. I believe that is a very conservative number, especially if you eliminate the people with proven physical issues such as sleep apnea. If anything, the percentage is much higher.
According to the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board, the leading cause of fatal-to-the-driver heavy truck crashes is fatigue-related. Fatigue and sleep deprivation accounted for 31-percentage of the cases; whereas, alcohol and other drug use accounted for 29 percent.(9)
Sleep deprivation was believed to be a major factor in several, high profile incidents such as the Exxon Valdez oil spill (which killed, no telling, how much wildlife), the Chernobyl nuclear accident, the Three Mile Island nuclear accident, and even the space shuttle Challenger.
Just how many people are affected by sleep issues? A survey in February 2009 by the National Association of Home Builders, which included builders and architects, predicted that over 60 percent of custom-made houses would have dual master bedrooms by the year 2015.(10)
People are trying to "get away" and find a solution to their sleep disorders, even if it means sleeping apart from their significant other.
THE ULTIMATE HEALTH CONSEQUENCE
Oh, and I forgot one item from the list that started this chapter. In a very small percentage of cases, when a sleep disorder gets to a critical stage, it can lead to the ultimate health consequence. Notable high-profile deaths which we have seen recently in the news include actor Heath Ledger and superstar Michael Jackson. Both big name stars were tormented by sleep disorders and died from taking an overdose of insomnia-related medicines.