July 2016
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Insufficient Sleep? |
Sleep plays a critical role in thinking and learning. Lack of sleep impairs alertness, concentration, and problem solving. Sleep cycles also play a role in consolidating memories, which allows you to remember what you learn and experience during the day.
Functioning on less sleep has become a badge of honor. However, studies show that over time, people who are getting six hours of sleep instead of seven to eight begin to feel that they’ve adapted and gotten used to sleep deprivation. Researchers point out that if you look at how they actually do on tests of mental alertness and performance, they continue to go downhill. So there is a point in sleep deprivation when individuals lose touch with how impaired they are.
Sleep deprivation results in a powerful drive for sleep that is not always under the control of an individual. This drive allows for sleep to intrude into wakefulness for only a few seconds whenever there is a lack of physical activity, such as driving. Such lapses are referred to as microsleep. These brief periods of sleep can result in serious accidents or unreliable performance.
Sleep deprivation may result in a mental status that resembles depression or anxiety, with patients reporting poor mood, irritability, low energy, decreased libido, poor judgment, and other signs of psychologic dysfunction. These symptoms often disappear when normal sleep is restored.
What many people do not realize is that a lack of sleep—especially on a regular basis—is associated with long-term health consequences, including chronic medical conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease, and that these conditions may lead to a shortened life expectancy. Additional research studies show that habitually sleeping more than nine hours is also associated with poor health.
Sources: www.harvard.edu, Up to Date, and WebMD
Project Hope
Sunday, August 28th- 3:00 PM - 10:00 PM- Canal Place
Project Hope is free, faith-based event addressing the opioid epidemic in our community, with the target population being middle school age and older. The event will feature guest speaker Darryl Strawberry, uplifting music, and testimonies from parents who have lost children to drug abuse. Darryl Strawberry, a former professional baseball player, will speak about how drug abuse and addiction affected his life. There will also be exhibits with prevention, intervention and treatment resources.
Community Health and Wellness
240-964-8424