Sleep Deprived? You’re a Walking Risk!

Many people these days know all too well what it’s like to go without sleep. Our busy schedules keep us moving from morning until night. If you have a family, when you have to get the kids and your spouse ready and out the door in the morning, even getting yourself to work it is stressful. Plus, your day never ends there. With eating dinner, trying to get physical activity and keeping up with your home, settling down for bedtime isn’t always a top priority. When is the last time you remember getting a night of sound sleep? If it has been a while, you might not be aware of some detrimental effects a lack of adequate rest has on your body.

Sleep deprivation causes multiple risks that affect your everyday life. Here are just a few of the major problems that can occur when you have gone without your much-needed shuteye.

Mental Alertness

Some people feel that they can function very well on six hours of sleep. The only reason for that is because they’ve likely become accustomed to, and adapted, to their current sleep routine. The fact is, many people function at their best with seven, eight or even nine hours of sleep each night. Memory is improved with greater amounts of sound sleep as well. Not getting the recommended amounts of sleep a few times would probably not be detrimental, but repeated episodes of this can seriously harm you. Decision making skills are especially important when it comes to driving, working around machinery or other skills that require quick thinking.

Have you ever been really sleepy and said something that you wished you hadn’t said? It has happened to everyone at some time or another. This occurs because you aren’t thinking clearly. If you didn’t sleep well, or just didn’t get enough hours in the night before, this could be the reason why you said it. Our concentration, problem solving and reasoning skills will all suffer when we go without sleeping enough.

Accidents

Research has shown that some major accidents have been tied to sleep deprivation; Three Mile Island, the Exxon oil spill and Chernobyl were all linked to sleepiness. They’re just a few historical tragedies that have been discovered as connected to sleep deprivation. So, what type of accidents could you be involved in due to not getting sound sleep? Think about it: even if you commute to work, driving exhausted every day is extremely dangerous, falling asleep at the wheel occurs often and can be fatal.

Serious Health Issues

Your body is in motion most of the day doing activities, such as taking care of your home, cleaning, working, driving and more. There are two things that you need to do to keep it running: you need to eat and you need to sleep. Without these, you run the risk of developing some serious health issues. Lack of adequate sleep has been linked to complications such as heart disease, hypertension, stroke, diabetes, depression, obesity and more.

When we don’t sleep enough our skin even suffers. Have you ever experienced dark circles under your eyes? When you’re in a deep, sound sleep, a growth hormone is released in your body that helps repair its tissues. Basically, you’re doing harm to your body and your productivity by not getting the rest you need.

Stop Scrimping on Sleep

Sleep deprivation is a prevalent issue in many people's lives because it’s often the daily task that gets the least attention. Being pulled in 20 different directions every day makes it hard to relax, lack of sleep can cause some serious problems if you aren’t careful. In order to feel good, look good and be more mentally alert, you need to take care of your body each and every day. Stop scrimping on rest and find the time to get the sound sleep that you need and deserve. Get some quality hotel bedding and your body will thank you for it.