Why Sound Sleep is a Must?

Sleep is a behavioral state that is an inseparable part of every individual's life. We spend about one third of our lives asleep. Sound and sufficient sleep awakens us fresh and fine the next morning and takes care to keep us active both mentally and physically throughout the day. Sleep is essential for healthy living.

Sleep isn't exactly a time when your body and brain shut off. While you rest, your brain stays busy overseeing and erasing all the unwanted impressions, keeping in memory only the information that is important and required further. It also cures problems like headache caused due to excess work pressure or stress. When the body is tired, sleep helps to reinvigorate it. On the other hand, insufficient and disturbed sleep leads to various psychological and physical problems.

Sleep is in fact a magic cure. When some people miss sleep in order to keep up with their 24/7 schedule, they pay the price in terms of inability to learn, ill health and bad quality of life. As food works for the body so does sleep work for good health and regenerated mind.

Some of the symptoms of sleep disorders or insufficient sleep or excessive exertion are:

Feeling of tiredness with headache — A person does not experience inner peace after moving out of bed as the mind doesn't feel relaxed.
Dozing off any time — Such people utilize even the short intervals or breaks during work for taking short naps.
Memory loss or weak memory — Sound sleep reorganizes the things going on in the mind priority-wise and helps in developing strong memory.
Lack of concentration — Insufficient sleep leads to lack of concentration; one isn't able to focus on things or people.
Increasing tendency to pick up fights/arguments — The mind is puzzled due to insufficient sleep and is not in a balanced state to understand, analyze or solve simple day-to-day problems.
Inactiveness — Insufficient sleep results in inactiveness and inability to fulfill tasks at normal pace.
Lethargy — The body and mind cannot synchronize with each other; drowsiness is reflected in speech and action.
Lack of self-expression — A person who doesn't get sufficient sleep finds it difficult to speak fluently.
Inability to identify places — Such people often forget roads, zebra crossings, turns, etc.
Forgetting things — Forgetting one's own belongings here and there is also a symptom of insufficient sleep.

Sleep disturbance is also caused by stress. Working for long hours and age-related ailments are factors that can interfere with an individual's ability to get sufficient sleep.

Sufficient sleep doesn't mean sleeping for long hours. It is the deep sleep or sound sleep that counts. Normally eight hours of sleep is sufficient. Children take sound sleep and thus are full of energy when they wake up.

Yoganidra or Shavasana is a solution to this severe problem. The whole body relaxes, revitalizes and becomes charged with energy. It can be learnt with the help of a yoga instructor and then put into practice. By doing so, one can experience deep sleep in a short span of time and wake afresh. In today's lifestyle full of rush, push, and hectic schedules, such practices are very beneficial.

"True teachers are those who use themselves as bridges over which they invite their students to cross; then, having facilitated their crossing, joyfully collapse, encouraging them to create their own." — Nikos Kazantzakis