"Dreaming Big: The Vital Role of Sleep in Your Journey to Wellness"

We’ve all heard it before: "Sleep is crucial for our health." Yet, many of us struggle to prioritize it. Our nightly routines vary, from inconsistent bedtimes to falling asleep with the TV on, or staying up late to enjoy some alone time after putting the kids to bed. Perhaps insomnia plagues us, or we have a baby who wakes throughout the night. Regardless, these disruptions wreak havoc on our bodies. Some may even find themselves getting a full night’s sleep but waking up just as exhausted as when they hit the pillow.

If you’re a new mom reading this, you might be wondering how to manage when your baby wakes multiple times during the night. Let’s be realistic: expecting a full night’s sleep might feel like a distant dream. However, what I can offer is guidance on optimizing the sleep you do get during this phase of life. You’ve probably heard the well-meaning advice to "sleep when the baby sleeps." Admittedly, that advice really irritated me when I was a new mom. After all, you still need to eat, shower, and attend to other essentials. For most of us, those precious moments when the baby sleeps are when we squeeze in those tasks or simply collapse on the couch to catch up on a show we missed weeks ago.

Let’s not forget dads—they may not be getting up when the baby wakes, but I know my partner would wake as soon as I got out of bed, and it always took him a bit of time to fall back to sleep, only for his alarm to remind him it was time to get up for work.

Did you know that 100,000 police-reported crashes and over 1,500 deaths are the results of drowsy driving each year? Mamas, make sure those men in your life are getting sleep, too!

Insufficient sleep not only leads to fatigue but also impairs cognitive function and affects mood. It weakens our immune systems, contributes to weight gain and metabolic issues, and has been linked to elevated blood pressure. Long-term effects include a heightened risk of cardiovascular issues. Additionally, it can diminish our sex drive and is closely associated with mental health disorders such as anxiety and depression. The bottom line: sleep is essential for both our physical and mental well-being.

Adequate sleep allows our bodies and minds to recharge, enhancing alertness. It’s during this time that our bodies undergo repair, detoxification, and hormone release. Sleep plays a vital role in maintaining healthy brain function; insufficient sleep significantly impacts learning, memory, problem-solving skills, creativity, decision-making, focus, and concentration. If your child isn’t getting enough sleep, it may affect them at school as well. While we sleep, our brain's glymphatic system clears out toxins from the central nervous system, ensuring our brains stay tidy.

During sleep, cellular restoration happens. Our muscles undergo repair, tissue growth is supported, and essential hormones are released. Lack of sleep disrupts insulin release, the hormone responsible for lowering blood sugar levels, thereby increasing the risk of diabetes.

Sleep protects us from becoming insulin resistant. When we get adequate sleep, our cells are healthy and able to take up glucose easily.

If you’re struggling with weight issues, inadequate sleep may cause an imbalance of the following hormones:

• Ghrelin: This hormone increases appetite.

• Leptin: This hormone signals when we feel full.

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Ghrelin decreases while we sleep, but when we lack sleep, ghrelin increases, and leptin decreases, leaving us always feeling hungry. This can lead to weight gain and put us at risk of obesity and metabolic syndrome.

You may find that when you’re not sleeping well, you’re also more prone to getting sick. That’s because when we sleep, our body produces cytokines, proteins that help fight inflammation and infections (as my oldest son calls them, "the body’s soldiers"), as well as antibodies and immune cells. These work together to help prevent and fight germs when we’re sick.

You may have reached this point and thought, "But I get 8 hours of sleep at night and still feel exhausted—why is that?" The thing is, when we sleep, we go through four stages. If we aren’t hitting all four stages or staying in them long enough, we’re not getting adequate sleep. So, let’s take a quick dive into these stages.

Stage 1: Non-REM Sleep

This is the beginning of sleep. It’s light sleep, where your heart rate, brain, and eye movements start to slow down. This stage lasts about 5 to 10 minutes.

Stage 2: Non-REM Sleep

This is just before deep sleep. We’re still in light sleep at this time, but our body temperature starts to decrease, and our heart rate and muscles continue to relax. Our brain waves spike and then slow down. This is the stage where we spend the most time.

Stage 3: Non-REM Sleep (Deep Sleep)

At this point, our eyes and muscles don’t move, and our brain waves slow down further. This is when the restorative phase starts—our cells, tissues, and muscles get repaired, and our body replenishes its energy.

Stage 4: REM Sleep

This happens around 90 minutes after falling asleep and reoccurs several times throughout the night for a period of 90-120 minutes. In this stage, our eyes move side to side, our heart rate and breathing speed up, and our brain waves increase. This is the "dream stage" and is when our brain processes information, sorts out our thoughts, and helps with memory and cognitive health.

If you’re wondering how to figure out if you’re hitting all these stages, there are a few ways. You can use a wearable sleep tracker like an Apple Watch, the Oura Ring, or any smartwatch with a sleep tracking function. I personally use a Fitbit and have been tracking my sleep stages for the last 3 years. I find the online reports really helpful because I can see if there are times of the month when I’m sleeping less and know when I need to work harder at prioritizing my sleep.

How Much Sleep Do We Need?

Here are the basic guidelines for a 24-hour period:

• Birth to 3 months: 14–17 hours

• 4 to 12 months: 12–16 hours

• 1 to 2 years: 11–14 hours

• 3 to 5 years: 10–13 hours

• 6 to 12 years: 9–12 hours

• 13 to 18 years: 8–10 hours

• Adults: 7 or more hours

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Note: Women in perimenopause—sleep is super important for regulating hormones.

There are many factors that come into play when it comes to getting a good night’s sleep, so let’s start with some easy things you can do.

1. Stick to a routine bedtime: Try to go to bed at the same time every day, even on weekends. Life happens, and sometimes we have nights out or kids who stay up late, but just try to plan for a good night’s sleep the next day.

2. Dim the lights: About an hour or two before bed, dim the lights to help your body’s melatonin levels rise. This is a tool we’ve used in our home since our boys were babies, and it still works wonders.

3. Optimize your sleep temperature: The ideal sleep temperature is around 18.3°C. Ladies, if you’re going through perimenopause, make sure to have a fan to help with those hot flashes.

4. Limit screen time before bed: Screen time can be too overstimulating, especially for kids. If you’re working late and need to use screens, try using blue-light-blocking glasses.

5. Get daily exercise: Even just a walk will help.

6. Get outside for early morning sunshine: This helps balance your circadian rhythm, and I’ll dive more into this in an upcoming post.

7. Increase your bright light exposure during the day: In winter, I use a light box when sunlight is hard to come by.

8. Limit caffeine after 1 p.m.

9. Set a bedtime reminder: Use an alarm (like on your phone or Fitbit) to help signal that it’s time to wind down.

10. Create a bedtime routine: Not just for the kids—moms, you deserve one, too. I’ll share mine in another post.

11. Eat enough throughout the day: Make sure you’re getting enough protein. If you often wake up around 3 a.m., it could be because you’re not eating enough. Aim for at least 80–100 grams of protein a day. Let me know if you need help figuring this out.

12. Sleep in a dark room: Use blackout blinds or an eye mask. If your kids are afraid of the dark, a salt lamp provides a warm, peaceful glow without affecting sleep.

13. Make your bed comfortable: Use cooling sheets in summer or cozy flannel in winter. Ensure your mattress supports restful sleep.

14. Try a weighted blanket: They provide a "giant good-night hug" (my son’s words) and help you relax.

15. Take a warm bath or shower before bed: This will help you wind down and relax.

    
    

From Roots to You believes in creating space for rest and rejuvenation. Sleep is an integral part of nurturing your body, mind, and spirit. If you're navigating the challenges of motherhood or experiencing perimenopause, I’ll be sharing more sleep tips tailored just for you in upcoming posts. Stay tuned!