How sleep contributes to a sense of wellbeing
Have you ever considered that gifting yourself quality sleep is considered as self-care? Self-care is a critical aspect of our everyday life, it is what keeps us physically, mentally, and emotionally healthy.
Getting quality sleep is an active part of your self-care regimen as this is what ensures the body is able to function at healthy mental and physical levels.
Sleep deprivation is directly linked to serious impacts on your mental health. The absence of quality sleep increases your risk of mental illnesses like depression, bipolar disorder, and anxiety.
The link between sleep and mental health can also easily be seen in the case of how easily irritable you can become when you lose a good night’s rest. Often your household and your ability to perform at work is greatly impacted.
Sleep is what ensures the mind is able to rest and take on all the processes of each day. Without this it is impossible for your mental health to thrive. When you are rested your emotional health is able to thrive.
As you continue to read you will gain a greater insight into how sleep and mental health are connected.
Benefits of Sleep on Mental Health
As earlier expressed, sleep encourages brain health thus it improves how the brain responds to daily tasks. Sleep ensures that you are mentally able to learn and think more clearly.
Other benefits of sleep include:
Reduced Brain Fog – The lack of sleep greatly impacts the mind and often leads to brain fog. Brain fog impairs your judgement and ability to function on a daily basis.
Improved Mood – Sleep rejuvenates the mind and allows for essential chemicals to flow healthily throughout the body. When you are sleep deprived you are more likely to become cranky and irritable. Regular stressors throughout the day might feel overbearing and attack your mood even more drastically than if you were well rested.
Improved Memory – Sleep is never an overrated subject. Without sleep your memory dwindles greatly. However, when sleep is prioritized your memory levels improve and you function more efficiently throughout your day.
Reduced Mental Illness Symptoms – The quality of your sleep directly reflects your mental health. When you receive adequate sleep, you are less likely to leave yourself exposed to develop mental illnesses. What is also true is that improved quality sleep for persons who are faced with mental illnesses lessens their symptoms. It also improves how well they respond to treatment thus improving their mental health in totality.
Improved Cognitive Abilities. Sufficient sleep on a daily basis keeps the mind sharp. You are able to make better decision and solve problems more effectively.
Final Thoughts
It is often believed that missing a full night’s rest won’t cause much damage or your body will make up for it in other ways. However, your quality of sleep is directly connected to your mental health and should be prioritized.