Realizing the value of sleep on World Sleep Day 2020

Many of us are guilty of getting caught up in our daily lives, often resulting in the sacrifice of several hours of sleep every night. The significance of a healthy sleep routine is especially crucial for members of the defence community and their families, considering the stresses involved as part of the military lifestyle. With today marking World Sleep Day 2020, we wanted to share some information about the origin of this celebration and share some of our top tips for a comfortable sleep. 

World Sleep Day was introduced by World Sleep Society as a means of raising awareness on the importance of sleep for our health and psychology and as a call to action on important factors impacted by sleep, such as medicine, education, driving, and social lives. The World Sleep Society was founded by healthcare professionals, who found that sleep was often overlooked by the 24/7 flow of life and that getting enough sleep was not always considered to be a priority. World Sleep Day was designed to bring together sleep healthcare providers to discuss and share information about healthy sleep across the world. 

As a way to celebrate WSD 2020, here are some factors to consider when ensuring the best sleep possible: 

•  Try and stick to a regular bedtime and waketime. Ensuring that you sleep and wake at approximately the same time each day will allow your body clock to set itself naturally, ensuring that you can maximize your sleeping hours.
• Avoid caffeine in the hours leading up to bedtime. Stick to a caffeine cut-off point will allow you to get tired naturally, and be ready for bed.
•  Choose comfortable bedding. The material, thread count, number of pillows all matter, so making sure that your bed is dressed in the most inviting way possible does play a big part in the quality of your sleep. 
•  Find an optimum sleep temperature and ensure the room is well ventilated. Both of these factors also ensure that you can fall asleep quickly and sleep in comfort.  
•  Keep the room dark and noise-free. Investing in good blackout curtains can ensure that no light enters the room at night. Having an alarm clock with a pleasant noise to wake up to each morning can help start the day off on the right foot!