The Fit to Farm column offers practical, evidence-informed strategies to reduce injury risk, improve mobility and build strength that supports the realities of life on the farm.
We all know that sleep is important to maintain quality of life and overall health. Unfortunately, sleep disruption is one of the most common complaints I hear from my clients.
The power of sleep to improve how we feel on all levels is often under-appreciated. Many people assume that they just aren’t “good sleepers” or that nothing will change their sleep patterns. The thing is sleep — like other biological functions such as digestion — can be improved with practice and awareness.
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The quality of sleep has a direct impact on our quality of life. How we sleep affects cognitive function, our perception of the world, pain tolerance and our vulnerability to stress, illness and injury. And since many people report that their sleep is disrupted by pain, stress, tension, rumination and discomfort, there is a vicious cycle between physical wellness and sleep.
Sleep depends on our nervous system’s ability to shift into the “rest and digest” mode, but modern life requires us to react to constant demands and stimuli from our environment. This causes our nervous system to become biased towards “fight or flight” mode which means shifting into a gear that promotes restful sleep becomes a challenge.
Many sleep advice resources suggest getting rid of stimuli such as artificial light, screens, social media and TV within a few hours of bedtime to allow this shift to happen. I certainly don’t disagree; however, what’s even more relevant is finding ways to adjust our internal response to stimulus and to find ways that support the nervous system to shift toward restful states.
In my experience, one of the best ways to do this is to involve the body in countering the mind’s narrative. Our nervous system senses its environment largely through the body, while the mind functions as an interpreter to make sense of environmental cues. We can influence the mind’s perspective by using the body to promote a sense of “safe enough to rest.”
What does that look like? For starters, practice slowness, especially in the evenings as you (ideally) wind down from the day. In the winter months when the evenings are longer, see if there are routines that you can do extra slowly, for example, washing dishes, showering, moisturizing, gentle movement practices, sipping tea. Imagine pressing a slow-motion button for these daily tasks, making the movements associated with washing your face, brushing your teeth, etc., as slow as possible.
Neurologically, this slowness creates a perception of safety. Whenever we generate a sense of safety, our nervous system can more easily shift away from reaction/action mode. So, see how slowly you can brush your teeth and really focus on the sensations of slow movement. Do the same when washing your hands or your hair. Intentionally focusing on these routine actions tells the nervous system that less activation is currently required, making rest more attainable.
As you get into bed, slowly inhale to tense the large muscle groups (e.g., glute muscles, shoulder muscles, etc.) and exhale to release the same muscles. Do this for five to ten rounds to help the body settle. From there you can move from easy inhales to practicing longer exhales. Adding length to exhales signals to the nervous system that it’s a good time to settle down. If you find longer exhales challenging, start instead with a balanced breath, that is an equal inhale to an equal exhale at a pace that feels easy and sustainable. Find the easiest length of inhale then match your exhale to that length.
Interrupted sleep is something to take seriously. If implementing practices such as those outlined above is not making a difference, it is important to seek professional support. Likewise, waking up fatigued is also a sign to get a professional assessment.
Simply put, if we aren’t sleeping well, we aren’t living well. Speak to your health care providers to find out what steps you can take for better sleep.
