9Mar 2021

Learn to sleep better than a baby during Sleep Awareness Month

Since March is sleep awareness month, we’d like to talk to you about sleep health. If you can’t fall asleep the moment your head hits the pillow, do not despair: you’re in good company. Poor sleep is one of the most common health issues many adults have to deal with. In fact, most of us realize how important (and how difficult) it is to consistently get a good night of sleep only when we start to see the negative impact on our day.

Think of your sleep as a natural mechanism, but also slightly complex. Like nutrition, exercise, stress management, sleep is an important pillar of well-being because it’s our best resource to pause and regenerate our physical and mental energy.

How poor sleep can impact your day

Poor sleep has an impact on other important aspects of our lives. Here are a few examples you probably didn’t know about.

  • Nutrition – When you are tired and feel down, your body tends to look for energy from foods rich in sugars, like candies, sweets, sugary drinks, or from caffeine, sodas, and chocolate. However, this is a short-lived solution: soon after, your energy level will drop again and you may find yourself looking for more snacks. Over time, this can lead to weight and metabolism problems. On the other hand, during deep sleep, your body produces hormones that balance your energy and contribute to making you feel naturally full and satisfied. This means that when you sleep better, you are also more likely to avoid foods you should probably stay away from!
  • Exercise – It is no secret that rest gives you the energy to exercise. However, did you know that it’s during deep sleep that muscle fibers are regenerated? This is also why even professional athletes take care of their sleep schedules as much as their workouts. To improve your sleep and your exercise moves, go to Snowfit and try new routines from our virtual workouts.
  • Immune System – If anyone needed another reason to get good sleep, this may be it: sleep helps the immune system. Researchers found that sound sleep improves the production of immune cells known as T cells, which play a big part in helping your immune system against viruses. Learn more about studies done on this topic from the article How Sleep Strengthens Your Immune System.
  • Stress – This is tricky – it’s difficult to see which one is the ‘cause’ and which one is ‘consequence’. When you don’t sleep well, it is hard to stay focused and manage stress; at the same time, when you accumulate stress during the day, it is much harder to get in bed and fall asleep. Ideally, stress would have a very small impact on us, but that’s easier said than done. In reality, chronic stress has a huge impact on our metabolism by increasing sugars in our blood and potentially leading to more serious health issues such as obesity and Type 2 diabetes. What we can do is learn the skills to cope with chronic stress, stay healthy and sleep well. You can count on several resources from Lyra, such as this recording on stress management or a video on how to cope with stress during COVID.
Top tips to improve your sleep from Lyra

Good sleep is the result of many choices we make throughout the day. To recharge our batteries, simply taking a pill or counting on medications to do the trick is not the right long-term solution. That’s why we want to share some of Lyra’s healthy sleep habits to help you take better care of yourself with better sleep. Read below to learn what you can do to get healthy nights of sleep and healthier days.

  1. Optimize the bedroom environment – temperature, air quality, light and noise. And, keep work or any activity related to electronic devices and screen time out of the bedroom, so you don’t inadvertently teach your body to be awake in bed.
  2. Practice Lyra’s Progressive Relaxation – a process of tensing and relaxing each muscle group, beginning with your feet and ending with your head and face. Learn more at lyrahealth.com/blog/getting-better-sleep/.
  3. Don’t eat late and try to limit alcohol – they may make you feel sleepy, but they interrupt deep sleep and can cause significant daytime fatigue.
  4. Skip stimulants – including caffeine, tea, nicotine and chocolate, especially in the afternoon: effects can last up to 8 hours. Avoid caffeine after 2 PM, and stick to a maximum of 2-3 cups of coffee per day.
  5. Meditate – meditators are the world’s best sleepers. Progressive relaxation and focusing on deep breathing helps avoid spiraling into negative thoughts and anxiety. It also builds body awareness and brings us in the present moment, often the only way to calm our mind and (finally!) get to sleep.
  6. Avoid blue light exposure in the evening – which electronic devices like smartphone or tables emit in large amounts (see #1)
  7. Nap strategically. Napping diminishes your sleep drive; it should happen before 3 p.m. and last no longer than 20 or 30 minutes.
  8. Be consistent. Maintaining a regular sleep schedule by waking up at the same time each day—even on the weekends—is a great way to maintain a sleep rhythm.

For even more tips and information on sleep health, you can also access the Lyra Sleep Webinar (PW: 1r?338jM).

More resources available to you!

The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) through Lyra

Thankfully, Lyra Health offers a wealth of knowledge to explore the connection between mental health and sleep. Go to Lyra for a variety of exercises to develop mindfulness and progressive relaxation for your mind and body, and to learn how good sleep can help you behave, feel, think, and take better care of yourself.

Also, check out some educational resources and tips from our medical plans on how to manage stress, improve sleep, and understand the importance of overall mental health.

Cigna Members:

Kaiser Members:

At the end of the day (quite literally), all the behaviors that are good for your sleep are good for you—because it’s one of the most important pillars of your physical and mental well-being.