In case you haven’t noticed, society is in the middle of a Zombie Apocalypse, and it gets worse every day. I’m not talking about the evil brain-eating zombie mobs from Hollywood movies. The zombies I’m thinking of are the ones surrounding you every day. Sleep deprivation is so common, that you will see many of them at work, home, on the street, and even at the gym.
How do you identify these creatures? Look closely and you will see the slack-jawed, puffy-eyed, and mentally foggy quasi-humans yawning and bumbling their way through the day. They can usually be found with an extra large coffee in their hands, or sporting a blank stare while standing in line at a local coffee shop. They may be the ones casually cruising through stop signs in your local community, or weaving in traffic (Not to be confused with those who are simply texting while driving).
Look closely at your co-workers, they could be members of the Zombie Apocalypse
Look closely at your co-workers. Are they mumbling incoherently, drooling slightly, or have their shirt on inside out? If so, they could be a member of the Zombie apocalypse.
Unfortunately, you may also be one of them!
What happened to turn these seemingly ordinary people into walking zombie hordes? Simple. They didn’t get enough sleep!
You may laugh and think that I’m being overdramatic, but sleep deprivation is a serious issue. There are many studies on this topic, but virtually all of them show that a majority of North Americans are chronically sleep-deprived (the exact numbers vary depending on the population sample size and demographic segment).
Why does sleep deprivation matter to you?
First, sleep deprivation has a massive negative impact on your health, happiness, moods, productivity, and physical energy. From the nutrition side, it increases your cravings for sugary foods. On the exercise side, it decreases motivation to be active. Put simply, you won’t be performing at your best unless you get enough sleep.
This is just the tip of the iceberg. Lack of sleep will even make you more dangerous.
Studies show that even mild sleep deprivation can produce deficits in cognitive processes, reasoning, reaction times, and decision-making ability at levels on par with being drunk! The National Health Service in the US did studies showing that being awake for over 18 hours was equivalent to having a 0.05% blood alcohol content (BAC). Even worse, being awake for 24 hours consecutive hours produced an effect greater than a 0.08% BAC level.
Combine this information with the fact that 40-60% of the population is chronically sleep-deprived, and it paints a scary picture of how the average person experiences life in the modern world. This is why I used the zombie analogy. Far too many people go through life like zombies.
If you are a manager, executive, or business owner, you should also be aware of the impact that sleep has on your team, your organization, and ultimately the profitability of the company
Sleep deprivation, and the resulting physical, emotional, and psychological symptoms sleep-deprived people feel, are at the heart of the shocking workplace wellness stats in modern offices. Look at absenteeism, presenteeism, sick days, stress leave, and poor productivity. They will ALL be improved if people improve their sleep quality.
As parents, we see what kids are like when they don’t get enough sleep, but many kids stay up too late every night, so they never get the chance to catch up. The repercussions are behavioral challenges, learning difficulties, emotional outbursts, and general lethargy. Adults aren’t any different!
When working with both corporations and individual clients, a key point I help them understand is the difference between surviving and thriving. Humans can survive on very little sleep. That’s a proven fact. New parents, shift workers, insomniacs, and many others get little sleep yet still manage to make it through each day, and some even hold down a job at the same time.
However, there is a big difference between seeking out an existence with the help of stimulants (coffee, Red Bull, etc.) and depressants (alcohol, sleeping pills, etc.), and actually thriving in life. If you haven’t experienced what it’s like to thrive, I will give you a quick glimpse.
Imagine waking up each morning (usually without the need for an alarm), bound with natural energy, alert, loaded with enthusiasm, and motivated to take on your day
You feel amazing, are positive, friendly, and genuinely engaged with the tasks you choose to do. There’s much more, but you get the picture.
Which one do you think is more beneficial to your health, happiness, productivity, and future prospects? (don’t worry, it’s a rhetorical question).
Despite what you may be thinking, learning to thrive is quite easy, though it may involve making some hard decisions surrounding your current mindset and habits with regard to sleep.
The first step with clients to help them experience a different reality is to take my simple sleep challenge. For the next week (preferably two), get to bed by 10 pm (asleep by 10:30 pm), and sleep for 7.5-8 hours (not more than 10).
Throughout this time, track how you feel, along with any challenges, successes, and adjustments you need to make. I’ve yet to have a client do this who didn’t feel amazing after the experiment. It’s a great way to “take the blinders off”, and realize how great you can feel with small simple changes.
Combine this with my mobility minute:
and daily success habits, and you will be unstoppable.
If you feel you or your company could benefit from more energy, better moods, and higher productivity, I can help. Just book your FREE coaching session and let’s start!
Comments
Oh, man, this really hits home. I have been running on too little sleep for too long, and I can really feel it taking a toll on me.
Sorry to hear that. Thanks for sharing and for the feedback.
Very informative! So many us are not getting nearly enough sleep – the impact it has on our health is huge!
Exactly Morgan! Thanks for commenting!
Great post, sleep is so important to me. I know that if I sleep less than 7 or 8 hours, for example, I don’t perform as well and I get tired faster, so I always try to have a precise schedule for going to sleep.
Very informative, thanks for sharing!
Thank you for the feedback Ginger!
This article on sleep deprivation hits close to home. I am a sound sleeper but all too often I don’t get enough hours. Thanks for the reminder to focus on proper sleep and the ramifications of not doing it.
Thank you for commenting Stephanie!
This is such an eye-opener! Your insights on sleep deprivation and its effects are really informative. I appreciate the practical tips for better sleep. Thanks for addressing such an important topic!
It truly is an important topic. Thank you for the feedback. I really appreciate it.
Oh yes, we all need to get that heavy dose of night sleep! Sleep is good for our health in general – capitalism seems to advise otherwise!
Thanks for commenting!
Whew, this post resonates with me a lot. I’ve been getting less sleep lately and I know I need to revamp my sleeping habits. Thanks so much for all your great tips.
Thank you for commenting!
I had sleep deprivation for four years! And now I have some trouble with sleeping. It isn’t fun for sure. Ill watch these videos.
I am sorry to hear that. Email me if you need additional help!
Sometimes I suffer from not enough sleep, and it really affects my daily routine when I do. Thanks for the great tips.
Thank you for commenting!
Ha, great post. I joined the zombie herd when I had kids. It’s been a bit hit and miss since then. It can have such a negative impact on us and affect our daily lives. I find exercise can really help.
Exactly, exercise can be very helpful for a good night sleep. Thanks for commenting!
I can’t stay overnight although I tried, I get scared if I join hahah. I keep overthinking about it and end up going to sleep. This is a great reminder to focus more on sleeping better than not.
Sleeping like that is not a good idea. Email us if you need any help. Thanks for commenting!
Excellent article on sleep deprivation! What are your top tips for improving sleep quality quickly? I’m struggling with sleep lately and need practical advice. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you for reading and commenting. Email us for any additional help!
Oh my goodness! Yess! Sleep deprivation has been such a big part of my life for the past few months trying to keep abreast with all I have to do
Email us if you are having trouble. We will be glad to help.
Oh man, this is for me. Lately, I have been sleeping very little. This article came just in time. Thanks for sharing.
We are glad to hellp. Thanks for commenting!
OMG, so timely. I haven’t had a decent sleep since the beginning of July. Too much on my plate. And yes, it does mess up with your cognitive and reasoning.
Yes, it becomes a very bad habit very quickly. Thanks for sharing!
Sleep is my medicine! It’s just as valuable as exercise!
It sure is! Thanks for the feedback!