I nearly wept with joy when I first woke this morning at my usual 5am - it was RAINING HARD. Yay. And Caturday. So I took a leaf out of my favourite guru's book, and went back into a deep sleep for 2 more hours, on top of the 7 hours I'd just enjoyed. The rain had given me permission.
Despite all the thousand of chemical and environmental contributors which contribute to deep rest I have found none so potent, none so important, as mental permission. Self-permission. Allowing.
Those extra 2 hours deeply asleep with no alarm, no "need to be anywhere" and no "shoulds" gave me more rest and have changed the way I feel today more than probably the last 3 nights of reasonably good sleep put together.
When I woke, I felt wonderfully productive and have had an amazing morning working, creating, writing and yes, even made an online sale. Meanwhile, my buddy and our number #1 boy cat of the house, Mr Gin, has lazed at my side.
He doesn't know he's one of my greatest natural medicine gurus.
Sleep is divided into two categories: REM and non-REM sleep. You begin the night in non-REM sleep followed by a brief period of REM sleep. The cycle continues throughout the night about every 90 minutes. Stage 5, or your first stage of REM (deep) sleep,occurs about 90 minutes after moving through non-REM stages. During this stage:
- your eyes move rapidly from side to side
- you experience dreaming as your brain activity increases to a more wakeful state
- your heart rate increases to near its wakeful state
- your breathing becomes faster and even irregular at times
- your limbs may even become paralyzed Source
I have been watching Mr Gin twitching, dreaming, tossing and so deeply asleep - watching him is a relaxation and a meditation of its own!
Glucose metabolism in the brain increases during deep sleep, supporting short-term and long-term memory and overall learning.
Deep sleep is also when the pituitary gland secretes important hormones, like human growth hormone, leading to growth and development of the body. Other benefits of deep sleep include:
- energy restoration
- cell regeneration
- increasing blood supply to muscles
- promoting growth and repair of tissues and bones
- strengthening the immune system Source
Real vibrant wellness demands regular bouts of amazing sleep, rather than a rigid, military level schedule of mediocre quality sleep.
What happens when you don’t get enough deep sleep?
Deep sleep is responsible for helping process the information you encounter each day. Without enough, the brain can’t convert this information to your memory. Not getting quality sleep is also linked to conditions, like:
- Alzheimer’s disease
- heart disease
- diabetes
- stroke Source
So what do I personally recommend for GREAT sleep bouts? And a consistently good and renewing sleep regime?
Holding on to poor sleep habits is a choice we make. Constantly reinforcing old beliefs by endlessly telling the world "I'm a light sleeper" or "I've never been a good sleeper" doesn't set the stage well for positive change.
GREAT sleep is free, regular natural medicine for our brain, our body and our deeper spiritual selves. Mr Gin knows this. 😍🐱 He's a wonderful, faithful guru and has made this Caturday such a joy.
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