Are you getting enough sleep each night? Sacrificing sleep to get the most out of a busy schedule may seem like a good idea. However, the opposite is true, sleep deprivation affects your mental and physical well-being, leaving you drained of energy, reduced mental alertness, and unable to cope with stress. Moreover, mood irregularities tend to occur, indeed lack of enough sleep bodes ill over your health.
In lieu, adequate or optimum sleep is characterized by lack of daytime sleepiness and no interference in awake-state activities. But how much sleep do we need for optimal productivity levels?
Sleep’s Impact on Productivity
Optimal sleep not only promotes mental well-being and energises your body, but also boost your productivity. Sleep impact on productivity can be categorized into two; long term effect and short term. Let us look at each category:
Long term impact on productivity:
- Better health: quality sleep prevents the advent of chronic diseases like diabetes and obesity and in addition, reduces risk of heart attacks and heart disease.
- Improved weight management: lack of enough sleep leaves us feeling tired all the time, and if you are on a fitness regimen to manage weight, you lack the strength or rather, the will and mental fortitude to carry out exercises. But with proper sleep, you are full of energy and raring to go
- Boost immunity: optimal sleep has been shown to boost immunity. In a study it was noted that those who get seven hours or less sleep are three times more likely to get ill from the common cold than those who got sufficient sleep (eight hours or more).
Short term impact on productivity:
- Better memory: Our brains compile and index memories of the day when we are asleep. Lack of enough sleep may hamper this ability, sometimes leading to memory loss. To cement the memories you have experienced during the day, you need enough rest. This also extends to the workplace, where you’ll have poor working memory if you are sleep deprived.
- Improved mood: Insufficient sleep can have a negative effect on your emotional wellbeing leading to emotional dysregulation (characteristics of highs and lows), in what can be described as mood swings. Sleeping too much, on the other hand, leaves your mood dull, and a feeling of lethargy and tiredness. You just need to get the right ‘Goldilocks’ amount
- Clearer thinking: It is not surprising that you may have put your clothes worn one morning, or even put cold water in your tea or coffee. Lack of sleep is the culprit, it affects your cognitive and decision-making abilities. Quality sleep helps you make more accurate split-second decisions and this can be extended to the workplace, where better decisions make the company better.
- You’re not easily distracted: Sleep-deprivation makes it difficult to focus on tasks. You become easily distracted and after moments of distraction, you fail to recover. Adequate sleep ensures you are energised and focused on your tasks, boosting productivity.
- You make fewer mistakes: lack of sleep leaves you slow in reacting and responding to stimuli. This lowers your accuracy, quite akin to someone under the influence of alcohol.
Improve Sleep Quality with the Best Mattress and Pillow
Quality sleep isn’t achieved without a quality mattress. Finding a mattress to suits your sleep preferences is essential, for without quality sleep your productivity is hampered. So where can you find the best mattress in India? The store with the newest mattress models with advanced sleep technologies should be your first take. You should also take note that most manufacturers and retailers tend to hold sales during the holidays, which may be the best time to go shopping.
Sometimes a ‘blowout sale’ may seem like the best option but you should keep a weather eye on the prices, some tend to go unusually low once the boom is over. Get the best deal out of comfort without sacrificing your budget.
How often you should replace your mattress? Mattresses need replacing from time to time, but when exactly depends on various factors like the original quality, warranty duration — if it’s up, it may be time to replace it, usually most warranties last for 7 years and finally your physiological state as you wake up — if you wake up stiff in the shoulders and sore all over the body, then your mattress needs to be replaced.
A pillow is also an important, but an optional addition to getting quality sleep. A pillow might not be as important as a mattress for a good night’s sleep, however, it has an essential purpose: head and neck support during the night. A bad pillow will leave you with neck pain or stiffness in the morning making you cranky during the day. You can get a quality pillow online or in retail stores. Before purchasing a pillow you’ll need to do your research on the best manufacturers out there.
When Should You Replace Your Pillow? The best pillow can even wear out after some time. It is recommended that you replace your pillow every two years. This short lifespan is attributed to the fact that constant pillow use transfers germs, body oil, dead skin cells and hair. In essence, the pillow becomes unhygienic, smelly and a breeding ground for dust mites, a common allergen.
You can prolong your pillow’s lifespan, by washing it every six months, just check the laundry instructions for your pillow before cleaning it. In addition, you can use a protective lining between the pillow and a pillowcase, which adds an extra layer of protection.
Prolonged use also wears out the pillow, which loses its original fluff. Regular pillow fluffing may be an indicator that time for a new one is at hand. Also, folding it in half is another test for pillow tension you can do.
Features of a Good Mattress and Pillow
Without a doubt, it is important to find a comfortable mattress and investing in the right pillow for achieving optimal sleep, but it’s also key to invest in the right pillow. Anything, on the contrary, will leave you unproductive not to mention physically and mentally drained.
The main aim is comfort and the ideal mattress and pillow should provide you with just that. The ideal mattress should be:
- Good air circulation: A lower core body temperature enables our bodies to fall into deep sleep. A good mattress is one that promotes air circulation, keeping your body cool through the night.
- Support: Every sleeping position ought to be supported by a quality mattress. The edges need to be sturdy and not collapse under pressure.
- Durability: A quality mattress should last you for a minimum of seven years.
The features of a good mattress are usually centred on comfort. However, when it comes to pillows, the type of sleeper you are will determine which pillow you’ll get. The ideal pillow fit keeps your head in “neutral alignment,” — not too far back or forward, but resting squarely on your shoulders, quite akin to how you stand upright with good posture. So what is your pillow type?
- For a Back Sleeper: A thinner pillow may benefit you better as your neck isn’t thrown too far forward. It should have extra loft at the bottom to cradle your neck as well. Memory foam pillow is an ideal option as it moulds to the shape of your head, a water pillow is also good for consistent support. You can get these pillows online at affordable price. You can also include a pillow under your knees to alleviate pressure imparted on your lower back.
- For a Stomach Sleeper: you may incorporate the thinnest pillow there is, or even sleep with no pillow at all. Since sleeping on your belly puts too much stress on your lower back, it is advised that you sleep on your side and hug a pillow to give you the notion of something pressing against your stomach.
Parting Shot…
Quality sleep is important for optimal productivity and quality sleep is made possible by quality mattress and pillows. The best mattresses in India are without a doubt easy to find, only if you have done your research. In addition, you can purchase mattresses and pillows online are accredited manufacturers.
Get quality sleep for optimal productivity, will you?
Reference
https://www.sleep.org/articles/sleep-and-productivity-at-work/
