What is the purpose of sleeping?
I remember when I was a kid and just did not want to go to bed. I did not want to miss what was happening in the waking world for a moment! Well since then I have learned a lot about the reasons we need to get healthy sleep and what it looks like.
The first point of sleep is healing. The time our bodies are kicked into high healing gear is when we are in deep sleep, or stage 4 Delta brainwave state. If you have ever been awoken when you were in this state you would have felt groggy and disoriented with no memory of dreams. Dreams come at REM stage of sleep when we are not in Delta but Theta brainwave state. Theta is what we want to achieve when we are mediating.
The healing we want to receive not only involves the physical structures of our body being replaced, cleansed, and nourished, but also releasing stress which is vital to healing. Built up stress can cause damage to our physical being through weight gain or bloating. The body can’t keep up with lack….lack of sleep, lack of proper tools (nutrients), lack of water to remove waste and bring nutrients where they’re needed.
The second point of sleep is connecting to a Source or whatever you call your Higher Power. This is the time when our subconscious is awake, processing all the stimuli it’s received for the day, dealing with stressful situations we’ve encountered (and that can be a lifetime of stressful events not just current ones), and our soul is directly connected to our Source.
I wonder if this connection is why many people want to sleep so much? It feels so good to be connected to our Source. This is why meditation feels good as well. When we get into that space of deep peace we can relax and allow joy to fill our soul!
Taking time, as we are drifting off to sleep, to design your following day is another incredible way to program your subconscious (3). These thoughts will connect our subconscious to our Source shifting our desires and intentions into reality, behaviors and thought patterns.
Sleeping is a powerful activity for healing, balancing, and connecting to a divine Source.
My last point on sleep is design. We are herbivorous creatures that eat, sleep, and do many other activities on cycles. The cycles of sleep are very important yet not taught in school, which I believe is unfavorable for all humans. We need to understand how our bodies work so we can support them and live a full and healthy life. When we understand our sleep cycles and are willing to go along with them the healing we receive is amazing!
Humans are designed to get a number of hours of sleep before midnight. Studies on Circadian Rhythm show that for every hour you sleep before midnight you’d have to get 2 after midnight to feel the same effects (3). Some people need 6 hours and some 10 hours. That part is different for many people but the number of hours you sleep before midnight makes all the difference in how much your body can heal because we hit the Stage 4 Delta sleep many more times before midnight than after.
In summary, the time to take advantage of the best healing sleep is between 9 and 10pm. We typically get a wave of sleepiness and it’s best to ride the wave. Allow yourself a few days to get used to this new pattern. You will catch up quickly and adapt as you awaken earlier in the mornings and enjoy the peaceful time before the rest of the world wakes up. You may notice you automatically wake up before your alarm goes off. You may notice you don’t need as much sleep and you feel more energized. This is due to the fact that you are working with your body supporting it’s natural design protecting it from the modern lifestyle that demands too much of us. We can take our power back and do what is right for us so we can be the shining beacon to support others in their healing journey.
I hope that you will be inspired to do the experiment yourself finding what time before midnight that you should be in bed so that you feel the best upon waking. Try to shift from the behavior of needing to get everything done before you go to bed to one of feeling refreshed in the early morning getting an early start so that you have that time to get things done leaving the end of the day less stressful so you can get to bed early and have deep, healing sleep.
I sleep to dream (I dream in color so it’s fun!) and look forward to connecting with my Source through my subconscious for the best recharge you can find! Join me is this rejuvenating experience and let me know how it turns out for you. Share your experience in the comments box below.
Sources for this article include:
1) www.sleephealthfoundation.org.au
2) unleashyourinnerstrength.files.wordpress.com
Sleep tight!
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