Sleepy Head Like Me?
There are several reasons why I sleep long. Here are some of them.
Sleep improves my memory.
At sleep, whatever we learn during we are awake is incorporated in our memory, when we are asleep. We could not remember information if we do not sleep well. Although our brains do not rest entirely when we are asleep, but sleep allows our mind to make our thoughts in order. This means that if one is studying for an exam or particular activity, one should deprive himself or herself of the much needed sleep, not just the day before but sleep should be a prioritized activity.
I can say, I would not top two national licensure examination in nursing and real estate, if I did not learn the science and art of sleeping. I can sleep on and off in one night. I could sleep exactly 1 hour during lunch time. Even during snack time, I could take a nap and function better afterwards. Even at night after eating or at dawn, I could sleep sound in short period of time for me to study well and retain more information as possible.
Sleep allows me detach from reality.
Sleep for me is a form of coping mechanism, especially when my ego is confronted with many stress-provoking events. Although, it may make me forget things for awhile but it does not really solve my problem. After sleep, I usually see the problem at a larger perspective, aiding me to understand it more to craft more efficient solutions to address it. However, this also means that when I have a problem, I could sleep for hours during the day even I did not feel any physical exhaustion.
The psychological benefits of sleep to me is temporary but efficient. I know it is not the best method to cope with problems, but it works for me. I recognize that I only sleep because I want to reduce magnitude of my perception of the problem. This is because sometimes when we are confronted with problem, our emotions cloud our thoughts and this is where sleep could help me. This may sound rude, but when I talk to someone causing me stress, especially in social media, I usually leave them unanswered, logged out and then sleep afterwards. So, I do that to you, I apologize in advance. You just caused me stress that is the reason.
Sleep reduces tension and anxiety.
Rest is the objective of sleep. Our bodies can rest and our muscles attained a relaxed state, which is necessary for its functioning. Sleep is the time that our body repairs worn out tissues during the day. In the process, our neurons transmit impulses more effectively if we attain a regular sleep, making our body feel a less anxious state.
I can remember my first mathematics contest, when I felt too anxious. I know I prepared and studied well, but I anticipated that my anxiety could prevent me from delivering my best in the said competition. I did not allow myself to fail. I sat down in one corner and focused on sleeping. I asked my teacher if I could sleep and she agreed with it while waiting. I slept for half an hour in spite the fact that it was still early morning. When I woke up, I felt less anxious and invigorated. Fortunately, few minutes after waking up the competition started right away. There was no time for me to feel anxiety back and I realized that I was anxious again when the competition was already about to finish. Ofcourse, I won!
Sleep is a form of reward to me.
After a long day of hardwork, sleep for me is very important. It is a reminder to myself that workday has already ended. This provides me the mentality that sleep is a reward for me. Given that I worked more than 12 hours a day, almost seven days a week in the Philippines, sleep becomes a refuge for me. Everytime I sleep, even how much noise is present on my surroundings, I sleep. I am not distracted because I see sleep as comfort that no other factor can affect me.
It also follows that sleep helps me to work further. Because if I do not, I feel so exhausted that finishing a difficult task becomes impossible for me. To be honest, if I will be ask to choose between sleeping and going out with friends and acquaintances, I would choose sleep. It feels more rewarding. Partying creates more stress for me and more need for sleep. Sometimes, I do not have sufficient time for sleep, so I would rather maximize time for rest and sleep for I know I could hang out with my friends during daytime, when my body is expected to awake, rather than during night time, when I am suppose to sleep.
Sleep gives me a medium to dream for my future.
This benefit is something I could not explain fully. However, what I know is that I usually set my goals in the future just before or after sleeping. Sometimes, I sleep and see my desired future in it. Perhaps, I am just too optimistic that I dream about how good future can be for me. This is the reason, I see to it to minimize stress before sleeping if it is possible, so that I could envision myself achieving more in my dreams at sleep. Hence, sleep makes me set my mind on something good and later focus on it. Fortunately, I strive hard to reach my goals and whatever life I have now is a product of how well I set my mind on my desired goals in life.
Lastly, sleep must be comfortable as much as possible. One-third of our lives is dedicated for it. If we aim to be happy when we are awake, we should also aspire to make sleep a happy activity to do. Although people think, this results to unproductiveness, but sleep should be seen as an investment of energy to be used in more productive activity when not asleep. Luckily for me, it is not a problem and I will make sure this continues the same way. You may not agree with me totally but after reading this article, are you motivated to be a sleepy head like me?
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