Your Heart Loves Sleep! Fact #26

If you know anything about me, you know one of my biggest issues is sleep. I never get enough! I'm lucky if I get six hours of sleep in a night and I can guarantee it will not be consecutive. I sleep in naps, usually two to three hours at a time. It's a huge problem and something I desperately need to fix. I'm hoping the physical therapy I am doing will help my body feel better so it's easier for me to sleep, but in the meantime, I need to find some other solutions.

"Short-term sleep deprivation is known to raise blood pressure and stress hormones, lower glucose tolerance and even lead to irregular heartbeats. All of these factors are precursors to coronary disease. Chronic sleep deprivation promotes weight gain and diabetes, both of which can send you to the emergency room grabbing your chest. Going without enough sleep also affects the functioning of the lining inside the blood vessels and can cause some low-grade inflammation that could lead to heart disease" (source).

I wish I could sleep more. I love it! I can take a nap like a champ - anytime, anywhere. I love the refreshed feeling you have after a good nap, I wish I could have that feeling every morning! Here are a few things I hope to try to improve my nighttime sleep:

• Going to bed earlier. Logan usually wakes up between 5 and 6am, so going to bed between 10 and 11pm is setting myself up for failure right from the beginning.
• Tuning out for awhile before trying to fall asleep. I, like most people, watch TV (and clip/organize coupons) right until I go to bed, then I am online on my phone until I start to fall asleep. I need to go back to reading a book or magazine on a device that doesn't glow when I'm trying to relax.
• Showering or bathing at night so the warm water relaxes my muscles.

Do you have any tricks up your sleeve for getting a good night's sleep?