If we offer you a chance to get a new, improved brain, would you take it? In fact, since you have come this far in the Kosmik journey, we offer you a whole better body, with improved muscles as well. Is the deal tempting enough now?
And no, we are not kidding! 😉
History tells us that taking this deal could have saved the grave disasters faced by the Chernobyl nuclear reactor and the Challenger space shuttle. The surprising part is that this deal has been open to everyone, but most do not seem to like it. Is the price too much to ask for?
The price: sleep better.
The Rise of the Epidemic
The US Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has declared sleep prevention as a public health epidemic, with 30% of adults and 66% of adolescents sleep-deprived, i.e., less than 7 hours of sleep each night.
In the US alone, around 100,000 road accidents per year are attributed to the driver being tired. This shows up in the form of poor judgement, increased impulsiveness, and poor memory that result from a lack of sleep.
To make it worse, research links the lack of sleep to many more chronic conditions such as type 2 diabetes, obesity, heart attack, and depression.
And as the companies pace up behavioral engineering, popularizing the ideas like binge-watching and fear of missing out on social media, the responsibility of our well-being lies in our own hands. More on this later, but let’s first see why we even need to sleep.
But Why?
If engineering masterpieces like F1 cars need pitstops, it should not come as a surprise that the human body, a far more complex machine, needs a break as well. But what really happens when we sleep?
Sleep has been a mystery for the longest time, but recent research proves two primary functions:
Brain function: Memory consolidation and linking ideas
Restorative function: Repair and maintenance of body systems
Brain function
Have you ever noticed that sometimes you feel stuck at a problem, and tired of trying you fall asleep, but when you wake up the next day the solution miraculously pops in your head? This is the sleep’s brain function at play.
The mechanisms are still not clearly understood but the general notion is that while sleeping the brain tries to make sense of the events of the day with respect to our previous life experiences, and in this process, the neural connections are strengthened if they aid retention of the newly acquired information. You literally wake up with a new improved brain after sleeping.
Restorative function
If you think muscles are built in the gym, you couldn’t be more wrong. In fact, they undergo breakdowns during exercise. It is only when you are sleeping that the repair mechanisms kick in and start building stronger muscles for the next time.
Sleep is the golden period for our body to regulate its vital functions, growth, immune system, and circulation.
Want to beat fever? Sleep.
Want to get bigger? Sleep.
Want to sleep? Definitely sleep!
Return to the Rhythm
Ok, enough of “Why?” but how can we sleep better?
The secret to good sleep lies in following our circadian rhythm. Remember it from Tree of Life – Level 2?
In this mission, we are more interested in the slumps than the peaks. Ideally, Slump 2 is where you should be sleeping to get the most out of your sweet slumber.
But it is not so simple, especially when most of the people today end up with phones on their beds, chatting or browsing content until they fall asleep, while many others are still out partying or working. Is there a perfect way?
Like everything else in life, you have to create your own way, a wind-down ritual. Here, we share some proven methods, and depending on your lifestyle you can adopt as many as possible for the best result.
1. Stimulation: Stay away from any stimulation to fall asleep faster.
Darkness: Dark releases sleep hormone melatonin. Try reducing light exposure 30-60 minutes before sleeping.
No gadgets: Put your gadgets away 30-60 minutes before sleeping. Not only are they a source of distraction, but also of white/blue light known to stimulate the brain.
Medicines: Some medicines can hurt your sleep. If you’re on medication, consult a doctor for the best advice.
Intake: Keep dinner light and at least 2 hours before sleeping time. Also, avoid caffeine, smoking, and alcohol too late at night as they affect sleep quality.
2. Association: Set cues for the mind to trigger sleep.
Regularity: Circadian rhythm works on certainty and sticking to fixed timings helps it get under control. You can use an alarm to start your wind-down rituals (have you tried turning on the alarm for your Kosmik Rituals?).
Bed = Sleep: Make sure that your brain doesn’t associate bed with anything other than sleep. If you can’t sleep within 25 minutes, get out of bed and do something boring or relaxing, like reading a book, walking, or a mindless chore.
3. Soothing: Some activities help switch gears to sleep mode faster.
Baths: Taking a shower before bed helps fall asleep faster. Whether the shower should be cold, hot, or lukewarm, opinion is divided, and you can pick whatever works for you.
Low temperature: Keeping your bedroom cool helps sleep better. The ideal point is around 18 degrees Celsius.
Relax the mind: Habits like journaling and meditating before bed free the mind and improve the quality of sleep.
Now that you have a whole platter of choices for better sleep, it’s time for the mission.