Falling Asleep: As Simple As Watching Paint Dry

by Karen Langhauser 3, August 2011
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We’ve all read countless articles and studies about how physical factors can affect your sleep. Light, noise, temperature and even your diet can contribute to insomnia (this just in, washing down a pizza with a six pack of beer and passing out in your clothes with the music blaring does NOT contribute to restful slumber).

However, there is overwhelming evidence that emotional and mental factors can also affect sleep. And because colors have been shown to impact people’s mood, it makes sense that the colors you choose for your sheets, curtains and walls in your bedroom can influence your sleep.

Red, for example, appears to be the worst possible color to add to your bedroom. Red is often associated with intensity, blood and violence. Psychological testing has shown that when subjects are exposed to the color red, blood pressure rises and the heartbeat speeds up. These physiological changes can stimulate appetite (red is often used in restaurants) and further exacerbate nervousness and tension (which could affect your ability to perform in academic situations). Therefore, your red bedroom walls could potentially leave you tired, overweight and even less intelligent!

Blue, on the other hand, has been shown to lower blood pressure and stimulate the pituitary gland, which regulates and controls the release of adrenaline into our system. Psychologically, most people associate the color blue with the coolness and calm of night. Green has a similar effect, stimulating relaxing thoughts of nature and renewal. Thus, a bedroom with cool shades of blue and green has the most potential in terms of helping you sleep.

If you are one of millions of Americans struggling to sleep at night, before turning to pricey doctors and sleep aids, why not try giving your bedroom an inexpensive makeover? A fresh coat of paint, a new pair of sheets and of course, a soothing new . water pillow . to enable stress-free, uninterrupted sleep – and you might be surprised at how slightly altering you mental state helps improve your physical well-being.


Sources:
http://insomniacuredjs.com/how_colors_can_affect_your_sleep.php
http://thesleepsecretebook.com/blog/tag/pituitary-gland
http://www.colourlovers.com/blog/2008/04/25/avoid-before-exams-can-a-color-make-you-dumber

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Impending Alien Invasions and Other Good Reasons to Not Sleep

by Karen Langhauser 18, July 2011
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I’m the first to admit, if I wake up in the middle of the night and roll over, I almost always pick up my cell phone and quick scan my texts and emails. I’m not quite sure what I think I could possibly be missing at 4 am – other than maybe a nonsensical text about deep fried pickles from my drunken friend or a chain-letter email from my aunt alerting me to my forthcoming ownership of an unclaimed diamond mine in Nigeria – and yet, I still feel compelled to look. In all fairness, if aliens landed on earth and someone chose to warn me via text in the middle of the night, I’d almost definitely get the message….and I can sleep easy knowing that.

Or not. Apparently, sleeping with technology is not always easy. Modern day technology has invaded every corner of our lives, including our bedrooms. It is no surprise that cell phones, video games and laptops are leading to less sleep. In fact, besides the physical distraction, experts at Harvard Medical School claim that exposure to artificial light before going to bed (aka playing video games, texting, using a computer) can increase alertness and suppress the release of melatonin.

Bedrooms weren’t always a communication hub – but they weren’t just for sleeping either. In the 19th century, mothers gave birth in their own bedrooms, and on the other end of the spectrum, most people died in their own beds as well. The 19th century bedroom also served as a bathroom. Most had washstands that held a water pitcher, a basin and a washcloth. At night or in cold weather when getting to the outhouse was too difficult, every bed had a chamber pot underneath.

It would seem though, with the advent of convenient perks such as indoor plumbing and hospitals, we would have learned to appreciate the simple sanctity of our bedrooms – as a place for sleeping. But our never ending quest to keep pace with everything going on around us (and to stay on high alert for alien invasions) seems to be getting the best of us.

If you are one of millions of American’s struggling to sleep, here are ten simple sleep tips from medical professionals…but only if you PROMISE not to watch them on your laptop at night in your bedroom....



Sources:
http://www.state-journal.com/news/article/4639250
http://inventors.about.com/od/bstartinventions/a/bed.htm
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/07/us-sleep-technology-idUSTRE7260RH20110307

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Sleepwalking 101: Your Loved One Isn’t a Zombie

by Karen Langhauser 8, July 2011
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You have to admit, they are kind of similar: Mindless bodies roaming the halls at nighttime, with no awareness of their actions. So maybe your spouse doesn’t have an insatiable appetite for brains and human flesh, but it IS possible that he or she will walk into the kitchen and unknowingly prepare a sandwich.

Sleepwalking, or Somnambulism (not to be confused with Solanum virus, which is what turns people into Zombies), is a sleep disorder which causes people to get up and walk during the deep stages of sleep. The sleepwalker is usually unable to respond during the event and also does not remember the incident later.

It is estimated that 18% of people suffer from reoccurring somnambulism, and the condition is more common in men than women.

Unlike their zombie friends, sleepwalkers have a heightened sense of balance and touch that actually enables them to do things in their sleep that they might not even attempt in their waking world. Because they do not have a waking awareness of the situation, they may also show unusual courage.

A famous 1987 murder trial involved a Canadian man named Kenneth Parks, who drove 14 miles to his in-laws’ house, strangled his father-in-law until the man passed out, beat his mother-in-law with a tire iron and then stabbed them both with a kitchen knife. The woman died; the man barely survived. Parks then arrived at a police station. Police said he seemed confused about what had transpired, and they noted that Parks appeared oblivious to the fact that he'd severed tendons in both his hands during the attack. That obliviousness to pain, along with other factors, including a strong family history of parasomnia, led experts to testify that Parks had been sleepwalking during the attack. He was found not guilty.

There are many theorized causes and suggested remedies for sleepwalking (the prognosis is far more grim for zombies). A Canadian sleep studied determined that when sleep deprived, sleep walkers are more likely to sleepwalk. Experts suggest that reducing stress and making sure to get enough sleep can help reduce incidents of Somnambulism. It is also recommended that sufferers avoid sedative agents, such as alcohol, as these can trigger sleepwalking events.

So next time your partner takes a nighttime stroll, don’t cry zombie. You are most likely safe. But, just in case, keep your Mediflow pillow as close as possible – zombies HATE water.


Sources:
http://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-health/sleep/articles/2009/05/08/7-criminal-cases-that-invoked-the-sleepwalking-defense
http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/features/5_steps_stopping_sleepwalker
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/sleepwalking-facts.html
http://blog.modernmechanix.com/2009/03/09/strange-facts-about-sleepwalking/

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