ANCSLEEP BLOG

Caffeine is stimulant that is used around the world to combat sleepiness. It is present in coffee, teas, sodas, and other supplements to help provide energy throughout the day. It is natural, but can also be synthetically produced. 

Caffeine normally affects the body within about 30-60 minutes of consumption. It is efficiently distributed throughout the whole body and can cross the blood-brain barrier. 

Inside the brain, it blocks a sleep-promoting chemical and can also interfere with the circadian melatonin rhythms. Caffeine has a half-life of 4-6 hours, which means that's how long it takes for approximately half of it to remain in your system. So, consuming caffeine in the evening could keep you up at night because of how long it takes your body to metabolize it.

Caffeine can have a significant impact on sleep, so it's important to understand how it works, and how you should be consuming it for optimal sleep health. 

The art of sleeping is truly just that. It is not as simple as lying down and entering a peaceful slumber. Actually getting good quality sleep requires a multidimensional effort in terms of good sleep environment, a relaxed state of mind, and good sleep behavior. 

Once you are able to "master" all three of these, then you can prepare yourself for a very restful night of sleep, consistently. A good sleep environment is one that is dark, quiet, and cold. If it's clean and decluttered, that also helps. A relaxed state of mind is achieved by doing relaxation techniques before going to bed, and trying to stress dump before it's time for sleep. 

However, sleep behaviors can be a little more tricky to achieve because they require consistency and have to be individual to you! Sleep behaviors are the things you do before bed that prepare you to go to sleep. They are important because they get your body ready (or un-ready) to go to bed. Once you get a good pattern of sleep behaviors down, you can complete your triad of necessities for sleep.

So, in this article, we are going to talk about good and bad sleep behaviors, and what you can do to get ready for bed. 

Sleep deprivation and excessive daytime sleepiness is a common issue in the United States. It can be very distressing for some people to get through their day because they are so tired. People who have sleep disorders, work night shifts, spend all night awake, may find themselves struggling to stay awake.

There is no cure for sleeplessness outside of simply getting a good night's rest. However there are some tricks to help you stay awake so that you can get through the day. Regardless of why you must stay awake, the next day must continue. Therefore, it is very helpful to know some tricks for how to stay awake. Continue reading to see if any of the following hacks can help you the next time you're in a sleep binder.   

Family sleep habits tend to run in the family. Any sleep disorders that parents or grandparents have may be witnessed in children. These could be witnessed events, or events separated by 30 years (such as parents who sleepwalked as children and see their children sleepwalking). 

Good sleep habits can be built as a family, but so do bad sleep habits and sleep disorders. A study found that 47% of families share good sleep and that 29% of families had shared poor sleep between mothers and teens. 

This is not the first time this has been found. In 2022, the sleep foundation found that those who lived in multi-person households saw that those who lived with someone who had sleep issues also had sleep issues. The opposite was true, those that did not have sleep issues, 73.2% lived in households who also did not. Continue reading to learn more about why this connection occurs, and what can be done to develop good sleep habits for everyone. 

Breaking up can be a really devastating event in your life. When you are emotionally, financially, and physically invested in someone, separating from them can be a truly heartbreaking series of events. The longer and more tangled you are with them, the more of your life that is disrupted and has to be changed. 

One part of your life that my be particularly disrupted is your sleep. Post-breakup insomnia is a series issue. Not only are you going through this emotionally distressing time, but you are becoming sleep deprived. Sleep deprivation has its own set of consequences, including mood dysregulation, lack of attention, focus and memory, and reduced optimal functioning. Add a break up to that, and getting through the day may seem practically impossible. 

Continue reading for some tips to help you get a good night's sleep, even if you are going through a heartbroken time. 

Getting good sleep shouldn't be a luxury, but more of a requirement for a good life. Sleep deprivation can exacerbate existing health issues, decrease memory, attention, and mood regulation, and also increase risk for cardiovascular disease and other chronic conditions, such as diabetes. Therefore, missing out on a sleep is not just an inconsequential action. There are serious health implications with missing out on sleep. 

If you are looking to improve your sleep, however, it is. aprocess. You cannot have practiced bad sleep your entire life and expect to sleep like a baby tonight after reading this article. Good habits lead to good sleep, and habits take some time to develop. Honestly, they take so long, that it may be easy to give up on them before you're even able to see the results. 

In order to see the benefits of sleep, you must change your mindset regarding sleep. It's almost like a diet. With crash diets that are painful and miserable, the failure rate is very high. However, when changing your mindset regarding food and activity, you are creating better food habits which are sustainable and easier to adhere to. 

Same with sleep. Having a different attitude towards sleep and looking at building lifelong long healthy habits will help to turn your sleep around for good. Here are ways to change your mindset regarding sleep. 

Hypoglycemia is a metabolic condition where your blood sugar drops below 70 mg/dL. This is dangerous as your body depends on glucose for energy. Without it, it cannot properly function. Normally, throughout the night, your body has mechanisms to create more glucose from glycogen storages or fat. However, if you are diabetic, and take insulin, then you may be at a higher risk for hypoglycemia if there is an imbalance between your medication and the amount of carbohydrates you have consumed. Here is more information on how to prevent hypoglycemia at night. 

Nothing is more tempting than a late night craving. They come on suddenly and they are insatiable. It's like where did this come from? Why do I suddenly want these foods that are sugary, fatty, and probably not the best choice before bed? 

We have all been there, and those late night cravings can be especially harmful if you have sleep troubles, diabetes, or any other health disease where late night sugar rushes can be dangerous. An indulgence every once in a while is okay, but when it's a constant habit, you may find yourself with indigestion, weight gain, and a harder task to control your blood sugars. Here are seven ways to kick those late night cravings. 

Since the beginning of the pandemic, people have either been forced out of their jobs or left on their own accord. Either way, being without a job has been detrimental to sleep for both US and European workers. 

The idea that individuals without jobs have increased sleep trouble can seem paradoxical considering they seem to have more time to regulate sleep routines than those with full-time jobs. However, the stress that comes with job loss can lead to either too much or too little sleep. Continue reading to find out how unemployment can impact sleep and what you can do if you are unemployed. 

The days can get so busy, that sometimes you feel like you've gone all day without really talking to your kids or connecting as a family. As kids get older and start participating in extracurricular activities, it can be even harder to find time to connect with them. But connecting before bed is really important. If your kids had a stressful day, or they are anxious about the following day, then bedtime can be a great place to talk about those feelings so they can get a good night of sleep. 

It may also provide you some solace to know that you were able to spend quality time with your children and everyone can go to bed on a positive and connected note. Here are some ways to connect with your kids before bed.