Sleep and Mental Health PE Health Unit – Lesson 2

Sleep – Are you getting enough? Not getting enough sleep can affect a person’s physical and emotional well-being Although sleepiness is an obvious consequence of inadequate sleep, those who do not get enough sleep may have difficulty: Processing information Learning Behaving reliably Controlling emotions (i.e. become easily frustrated; irritable) Performing to the best of their abilities

Sleep – Are you getting enough Teenagers require adequate sleep each night on a regular basis to do their best in work and activities Need about 9 hours of sleep per night Example: If teens are only getting 7 hours of sleep during the weekdays  accumulate a sleep deprivation of 10 hours by the weekend Although teens may feel better on Saturday morning with an extra one or two hours of sleep, they will likely fee tired and irritable in the afternoon

Sleep – Are you getting enough? Increases in activities, homework, and other things can get in the way of a good night’s sleep Television, the internet, cell phones, computers, e- mail, the amount of caffeine in food and drinks Caffeine in food and drinks When adding up the daily intake of caffeine in colas, chocolate, and other foods eaten consistently, it isn’t surprising that people have trouble sleeping Even low amounts of caffeine can affect the amount of quality sleep  It is recommended that adult consumption be between 300-400 mg (that's equivalent to 3-4 cups of coffee) and teens be around 100 mg People don’t always realize the amount of caffeine in products

The Importance of sleep Sleep helps you feel less stressed and even helps you to maintain a healthy diet. Sleep deprivation can affect important aspects of your mind and body such as Mood, energy, ability to learn, memory, good judgment, reaction time and efficiency. Many of the health benefits of sleep take place during NREM (non-rapid eye movement) sleep  Tissue growth and repair occurs Energy is restored and hormones that are essential for growth and development are released. REM sleep, when dreaming occurs, is essential to our minds for processing and consolidating emotions, memories and stress. Deep REM Sleep plays a crucial role in physical health Blood flow decreases to the brain and redirects itself towards the muscles, allowing the body and mind to rest and recover.

Problems from not being fully rested… Irritability Difficulty concentrating and learning Don’t move information from short- term to long-term memory as well Falling asleep in class Mood swings and behavior problems More accident prone More prone to depression Trying to catch up on weekend further confuses your internal clock DISCUSS!!!

Suggestions for getting a good night sleep: Stay away from stimulants (caffeine, chocolate, colas etc.) in the evening Do not go to bed hungry, have a light snack Turn off any devices; keep electronics out of your room Disengage from any stimulating activities like exercise, computer games, or talking on the phone for at least 30 minutes prior to bedtime Read for leisure Take a warm bath or shower Talk to someone Try a cup of hot milk

Conclusion Health is holistic Physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, social Sleep, allows us to process information and perform better on memory tasks, as well as learn, and behave reliably. Our bodies all require long periods of sleep in order to restore and rejuvenate, to grow muscle, repair tissue, and synthesize hormones.

Task One week sleep diary Fill out one “sleep diary” handout each day for 7 days