Last night I came across a post on X, that made me think of the implication this matter has in a person's life, yet it is not taken seriously, or just a slim segment of the population is allocating enough attention to it.
I've been meaning to check my sleep for a good few days and even though my wristband was on the table every time, I still went to sleep without it every night. Who the hell needs a watch during the night, right? This is why I kept forgetting it, but finally, last night I did it!
Most likely you're rolling your eyes, thinking I'm another lunatic, gadget addict, believing every new theory influencers are throwing into social spaces and can't really blame you as everyone wants to look clever and some would do anything to get the attention of the masses, but it's not the case.
A certain degree of sleep deprivation appears in everyone's life, for some occasionally, for others more often, and when you're young (I mean a teenager or in your 20's), you think you're invincible, you can do anything, even go with a few hours of sleep for as long as you want. You can for a while, but not indefinitely, as there are consequences.
One of the roughest period in this regard was during my university years, when I had a full time job and was attending courses in the weekends, to be able to pay my tuition. During my masters was even tougher, as those courses were held in the afternoon, so from work I went directly to attend the courses, plus studying during weekends. Exams were no jokes as this was the toughest university with professors that have been kicked out from other universities for being too harsh.
Some of my classmates were living on coffee and energy drinks, which is the worst thing one can do and we saw the effects or the results before one of the exams, when one of them was rushed to the hospital, after collapsing in the classroom due to irregular heart rate and high blood pressure. I was high on coffee all the time as well, but not energy drinks or other substances. My strategy was, study as much as you can, or as smart you can, during the day and sleep during the night as nothing can substitute sleep and rest.
I've been dealing with some sleeping issues that got worse when my mom passed away. During the last stage, she needed assistance 24/7 and for a month I think, I was sleeping fully dressed as we never knew when we have to rush to the hospital or call the ambulance. Sleeping for a whole night was a luxury, so I was glad to get 3 or 4 hours of sleep without interruption.
As a result, I was left with a condition that took me 5 years to get rid of. Basically I would wake up to every noise, with my heart beating like a drum, my blood pressure and pulse to the roof and took me 10 minutes to calm down. I wouldn't wish anyone to go through what I've been through, but this is life and you have to deal with what's coming your way. Most people would have consulted a doctor, but I knew I'd be sent to a psychologist and put on meds as well, none of these would be the treatment I consider right, so I preferred to deal with it myself and even though it took some time, I succeeded on my own, without shrink and meds.
Now I don't have those symptoms when woken up by some noise, but there are other issues I'm dealing with, which are light sleep and irregular sleeping hours. I suspect the first one has always been the case, just didn't pay much attention to it. The other ... well, we all know how it is. The first and most obvious option to make time is cut sleeping time, unfortunately.
Without being an expert in this field, I know deep sleep is needed as that's when you rest and not only just deep sleep, but continuous deep sleep. I've been falling short in this regard and wanted to see if I got better at it since the last time I had a check. Yeah right, who am I kidding here? 😆
Here's the result. As suspected, I still fall short at deep sleep. It's not like I care about statistics or want to be prefect, but this issue has consequences. Even after 7 hours of sleep, I wake up tired and that says it all. It is not quality sleep.
You may also ask, what precision a wristwatch can offer and the answer is none, I'm aware of that as the only certified test can be made in a specialized hospital. One night sleep, connected to a machine that monitors a lot of things, but we're not there yet.
As I said at the beginning of my post, the post on X made me think of a lot of things and this paragraph especially hit a cord.
I've spent my career working with some of the most decorated athletes in history: UFC fighters, MLB All-Stars, Olympic medalists, Hall of Famers, etc. We have incredibly precise tools for just about everything for training, nutrition, recovery — but when it came to sleep, the most fundamental pillar of human performance, we were stuck choosing between a $300 tracker OR a single night wired up in a hospital so we could be told we may or may not have apnea and sent home with a CPAP machine.
Both of those options share the same fatal flaw: they tell you that your sleep is bad. But THEY DON'T TELL YOU WHY - so they don't give you a real plan to fix or improve.
You can consult your GP, or go to a sleep specialist, but apart from some advice and maybe some meds, they can't do much. It's on you to fix your sleep and only you can figure out how. There's no "one size fits all" here, each case is different and the solution, or cure should be tailored for your needs and can only be done with your help and contribution.
Sleep quality can affect not only your well being, but your performance as well and ultimately, can shorten your life too. I know, this sounds dramatic, but unfortunately it's true. You can shorten your life with a few years easily, if you don't take sleep seriously.
I've been saying I need to fix my sleep for a few years now and here I am, making no progress at all. My new lifestyle change is going well, but I need to take this seriously as well. Waking up tired each day is not fun at all.
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