Many adults across the world find it challenging to get adequate sleep. Some may suffer from sleep deprivation due to physical and mental health problems or overstimulation. Meanwhile, others may also lack sleep due to the demands of a busy lifestyle. Regardless of the reason, sleep deprivation can cause severe problems for anyone in the long run. Besides being detrimental to a person’s health, lack of quality sleep can affect their overall life satisfaction and may even become life-threatening without proper intervention or treatment.
To alleviate this issue, doctors recommend sleep therapy to those suffering from chronic sleep deprivation. This therapy is designed to improve a person’s sleep quality, helping them adjust to a regular sleep schedule and stay asleep for a sufficient period to get the rest their body needs. Moreover, sleep therapy can also benefit those suffering from specific sleep disorders such as insomnia, sleep apnea, narcolepsy, and restless leg syndrome.
If you’d like to know more about the benefits of sleep therapy, continue reading this article.
1. Getting Adequate Rest Improves Cognitive Functions
Sleep deprivation can cause a person to experience brain fog, poor memory retention, and weakened concentration. These problems occur because sleep is essential in mental recovery, the lack of which exhausts the brain and hinders it from releasing chemicals that restore it to optimal condition. Without adequate time to recuperate, the neurons become overworked and unable to function correctly.
Hence, sleep therapy could significantly improve your cognitive functions by allowing the brain, its cells, and other components to regenerate and regain strength. With quality rest, you’ll become better prepared to handle mental challenges, make decisions, think logically, and stay focused on the tasks. To get professional help with sleep therapy, you can explore services at MVS Psychology or similar facilities and choose your treatment options.
2. Sleep Therapy Is A Mood Booster
Besides affecting one’s cognitive abilities, lack of sleep can also impair your ability to regulate mood and emotions. Common signs of sleep deprivation include irritability, explosive anger, and sadness. In extreme cases, chronic sleep deprivation can worsen mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety.
To prevent these symptoms, getting adequate sleep that allows you to stay and feel rested for a certain period is crucial. As the body and the mind relax, parts of the brain that influence your emotions also recuperate, helping you process thoughts and feelings better. Moreover, as the brain retains memory effectively, you can also easily recall positive thoughts and emotions, which help regulate the mood in the presence of stressors or triggers.
3. Quality Sleep Strengthens The Immune System
Getting adequate sleep also helps fend off sickness and ailments. As the body rests at night, the immune system builds a more robust defense against viruses or infections, protecting the body from illnesses such as colds or flu. Quality sleep allows your body to produce elevated levels of cytokines, an inflammatory response that aids recovery from sicknesses, wounds, or infections. Moreover, according to a study, people who get quality sleep regularly respond to vaccines better and experience milder allergic reactions than those who don’t.
4. Sleep Aids Weight Management
Weight gain and poor sleep quality go hand in hand. This correlation is caused by the body’s fight-or-flight response triggered by sleep deprivation. Once the body is under stress, the response stimulates cortisol production, which triggers cravings for sugar and carbohydrates. Furthermore, lack of sleep also influences the hormones leptin and ghrelin, which control the appetite. Hence, people who are sleep deprived are more likely to overeat and gain weight as a result.
To avoid this scenario, experts advise improving one’s sleeping habits and ensuring quality rest every night. Doing so can help the body regulate cortisol levels and minimize the response to appetite-inducing hormones contributing to weight gain.
5. Getting Enough Rest Helps Improve Outer Appearance
Finally, your ability to rest well and get enough sleep every night also influences your overall appearance. Quality sleep allows you to maintain youthful, glowing skin since collagen production happens as the body rests at night. Sufficient collagen levels keep your skin bright and firm, which is ideal for a pleasant outer appearance.
Moreover, your sleep quality also affects how your hair, nails, and teeth look. Sleep-deprived people are more likely to experience hair loss, brittle nails, and damaged teeth. Therefore, adequate rest is essential to improve and protect one’s looks.
Conclusion
Sleep therapy can be beneficial to your health in various ways. Regular adequate rest helps you stay sharp, energized, healthy-looking, and free of ailments. Also, it protects you from health hazards and risks that may be life-threatening. Because of its importance, you can consider consulting with your doctor, psychologists, or mental health professionals if you need assistance improving your sleep quality.
The content is intended to augment, not replace, information provided by your clinician. It is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. Reading this information does not create or replace a doctor-patient relationship or consultation. If required, please contact your doctor or other health care provider to assist you in interpreting any of this information, or in applying the information to your individual needs.
