Sleep…
Sleep is good, very good. The body needs to sleep in order to consciously channel energy and keep your life going smoothly and if you’re not sleeping well you know you’re missing out on something.
Everyone has a different number of sleep hours they needed a night, and often we feel that number is higher than we actually need because of built-up fatigues and toxicities in the system.
Normally a very healthy body needs about 6 hours of sleep per night and actually anything much over that is just time when the subconscious is dumping it’s overload so the sleep is usually not deeply restorative because the subconscious mind creates dreamscapes full of fear and anxiety during this extra time. If you’ve ever woken up from sleep, but still felt exhausted you know.
It is actually when you sleep as opposed to how long you sleep that has the greatest impact on your vitality, health and healing. Powerful healing deep sleep occurs between 10 at night and two in the morning, Pitta time. This is a time cycle that as long as the body isn’t having to digest food, but instead allow the organs rebuild and repair themselves. If you are not sleeping during these times, then all the intensity, your body endures each day from work, pollution, and improper eating never gets a chance to get fully mended. This eventually leads to superficial illness, which isn’t necessarily fatal, but is nevertheless, life, sucking and chronic, and can lead to something that actually is more intense. If you’re suffering from illness and you’re on a healing path, then putting yourself to bed by 10 PM is a must for regenerating your body.
Once I understood the Ayurvedic clock, the Pitta hours of strong digestion, of Agni, made sense in the cycle of sleep as well. And although it took some lifestyle changes, bedtime and preparing for sleep became a ritual I instilled not only for myself but for my family as well. Well timed sleep is as high a priority for myself as is water, physical activity, and my green juice. Actually, the new year’s “habit” change was also inspired by sleep, as with age I realized that the quality of sleep between 10pm and 2am was very much affected by my habits. And along with Sadhana, the feeling of a refreshed night’s sleep helped me stay on track each morning.
If you are someone who has difficulty getting into bed by 10pm or if you experience, occasional insomnia, following a balanced evening routine, will help your body wind down in preparation for sleep…here are some suggestions to try:
Diffuse, a relaxing fragrance, such as lavender vanilla chamomile in your bedroom, and use the aroma only at bedtime
Prepare a hot bath for yourself and put several drops of the same essential aroma oil in your bathwater or my favorite bath sea salts to relax the muscles
Give yourself an Abyhanga Massage with attention on your feet and scalp
Turn down the lights, light some candles enjoy your bath
Drink a cup of golden milk or chamomile tea
Go directly to bed, allowing your attention to be on your breath as you fall asleep
Darkness. All lights off, even the light from your neighbors garage can keep you tossing. Get it dark.
White noise. I live with one active teen and a spouse that (well you know). I use a cheap fan in my room so that when its time for me to sleep, the fan goes on and drowns out the noise of the street, the teens, and the husband that tinkers around.
Things that disturb the wind down cycle of falling into sleep
Bright lights - try turning down and off lights around your home as you hit the hour before bedtime…too much light can trick your brain into thinking its much earlier
Attention - give your attention to sleep a priority and put away the movies, thriller books, and any heart racing activities (well…) at least get off the peleton. Our thoughts create chemical reactions and stress doesn’t equal peace.
Your bed should be for bed things…try not to watch t.v., do your work, check your phone social media, or eat in your bed. Seriously! This takes diligence. I have many clients who say they fall asleep watching t.v. because its the most comfortable place to catch up on Survivor!! Falling asleep with the noise, light, subconscious background will not give you a restful sleep in the Pitta hours. Doesn’t matter if you think its the only way.
I really can’t emphasize sleep enough. So here is another school of thought to convince you of importance and in relation to your organs. This from the Chinese medicine theory:
A bedtime of 10:30pm (at the latest) is advised so that you are asleep by 11pm when the Liver and Gallbladder start to regulate qi, process emotions, balance hormones and detoxify the body. According to Chinese medicine, the window from 11 PM - 3 AM, which correlates to the Liver and Gallbladder, is most important in terms of maintaining health, especially as we age. Many of us have heard the old adage: “Every hour of sleep before midnight is worth two after midnight.” This idea is backed by modern sleep science - we experience the deepest part of sleep during the first third of the night. This deep sleep, or Slow Wave Sleep (SWS), is the most restorative part of our sleep. During these hours the stress hormone cortisol is reduced and parasympathetic nervous system activity increases, which allows us to fully rest and move away from the fight or flight responses that dominate during waking hours. SWS is associated with memory and learning. A lack of this type of sleep can lead to reduced daytime functioning and alertness as well as waking feeling unrefreshed. Further, human growth hormone, which is essential to repairing our bodies from daily injury and maintaining health, is released from 9pm-7am, making each hour of sleep during this time critical.
9 PM - 11 PM // Triple Burner (related to the Heart and Pericardium)
Emotion: Joy or lack of joy, depression, hopelessness.
Functions: The Triple Burner is not a distinct organ but is related to our endocrine and lymphatic systems. It controls metabolism within the body.
Symptoms of imbalance: Mania, feelings of guilt, depression, adrenal fatigue, hormone imbalance, sluggish metabolism, frequent headaches, fatigue, earaches, swollen lymph nodes, fibromyalgia, thyroid disorder, alternating chills and fever.
Tips: Consider going to bed earlier, establish a calming nighttime routine, avoid artificial light after 9pm.
11 PM - 1 AM // Gall Bladder (strongly tied to the Liver)
Emotion: Indecisiveness
Functions: The Gallbladder stores and excretes bile to facilitate proper digestion. It also rules the decision making process, controls the sinews and tendons and governs dreams.
Symptoms of imbalance: Indecision, frequent sighing, rash decisions, poor judgement, difficulty making decisions, shyness, timidity, high cholesterol, resentment, dream-disturbed sleep, weak tendons, tendonitis.
Tips: Avoid alcohol, transfats and spicy foods. Eat a small dinner well before bedtime and avoid snacking before bed.
1 AM - 3 AM // Liver
Emotion: Anger/Irritability
Functions: The Liver is responsible for detoxifying our bodies and processing emotions each night. The Liver stores the blood and governs the qi of the body. It is associated with the tendons, nails and eyes. Think back to a night when you had too much to drink or a period of intense frustration at work. Did you wake up around between 1-3am unable to fall back asleep? From a Chinese medicine perspective your liver was overloaded with and struggled to do its work.
Symptoms of imbalance: Explosive outbursts of anger, bottled up emotions, resentment, irritability, moodiness, frustration, high blood pressure, chest distention, PMS, bitter taste in mouth, digestive upset, dizziness, migraine headache, breast tenderness, blurred vision, eye floaters, red face, tendonitis, frequent sighing.
Tips: Make sure to drink alcohol in moderation and eat your last meal a few hours before bed. Consider a whole foods cleanse. Cut out coffee for a week and replace it with green tea. Find ways to deal with your anger and frustrations in a healthy way. Get regular exercise.
3 AM - 5 AM // Lung
Emotion: Sadness/Grief
Functions: The Lungs govern the respiratory and immune system, regulate the sweat glands, and moisten the skin.
Symptoms of imbalance: Feelings of sadness or grief that have not been dealt with, shortness of breath, sweating easily, weak voice, shallow breathing, fatigue, cough, frequent cold/flu, fever with chills, sore throat, runny nose, headache, allergies, asthma, chest pain, pale complexion, dry skin, depression, crying.
Tips: Try breathing exercises, meditation or yoga to improve your lung capacity. Consider getting counseling or talking to a friend about feelings of sadness or grief. Write in your journal about your emotions before bed each night.
