When it comes to healthy living, many people place their main focus on diet and exercise. But there’s a third factor many people overlook — sleep. Fortunately, you can learn everything you need to know about healthy sleep habits with a search online.
While proper diet and regular exercise are essential, a sufficient amount of quality sleep is just as important for maintaining optimal health. That’s right — sleep isn’t just an indulgence but a necessity. Why is sleep so important, you ask?
Deadly Dangers
You don’t need to immediately rush to the doctor after reading this crucial reason to get more sleep, but you should know that a lack of sleep comes with an abundance of deadly dangers. Not only does being sleep-deprived put you at a higher risk of getting into a traffic accident, it also increases your chances of developing hypertension, which is a leading cause of heart disease and stroke.
Depression and Diet
It’s no secret that you wake up on the wrong side of the bed when you don’t get an adequate amount of sleep, but over time, you may not be able to set your mood right with a couple of cups of Joe. A continuous lack of sleep can lead to depression and anxiety, obesity, and diabetes. Heck, it can even make you more susceptible to the winter cold, flu bug, and other infections your kids always seem to be bringing home from school.
Decreased Parenting
No one doubts that you’re an amazing parent, but a lack of sleep can wipe your memory and tank your energy levels, making it harder to be the best parent you can be.
Each and every day comes with incredible memories, and although you may be snapping photos with your iPhone all day long, the true memories are the ones you remember making. You also want to have enough energy to be able to get up and create those same moments you treasure, and more importantly, that mean the world to your kids. So, sufficient amounts of sleep can definitely make you an even greater parent.
Damaging Your Duties
As the parent of the household, it’s your duty to support your family emotionally, mentally, physically, and in every way possible. However, a lack of sleep may be preventing you from owning up to all of your responsibilities.
The first thing that’s likely to take a hit is your productivity, not only in the office but also at home. By getting a good sleep every night, you’re increasing your productivity and focus throughout the day which allows you to continue providing stability for your family, helping your kids with their homework, and maintaining your position as “Employee of the Month.”
Deteriorating Direction
Your family looks to you for direction. You’re the head of the household, and despite that old saying, “Do as I say, not as I do,” your children are definitely watching your every move and learning from that. You wouldn’t want anyone, especially someone in your family, to experience the effects of sleep deprivation, so lead by example and teach them that sleep is just as important as proper diet and regular exercise.
It may not seem achievable to get 8 hours of sleep when you work a 9-5 job, have to take the kids to their extracurricular activities, only to then cook dinner, help with homework and only then, when they finally get into bed, find yourself scrambling to finish the rest of your daily tasks instead of going to bed when your body is screaming, “You’re exhausted!”
However, with a little bit of time management and organization, you can complete all of your duties as the adult in your household, without jeopardizing the ever-so-important sleep — and as you can see, there are many critical reasons you need to be getting that shut-eye.