Sleep Guide for Canadians

Week 14 Sleep  According to health Canada how many hours a night should one sleep? 11/28/2024 2 According to health Canada how many hours a night should one sleep? 7 to 9 hours 3  What are the side effects of not getting...

Week 14 Sleep  According to health Canada how many hours a night should one sleep? 11/28/2024 2 According to health Canada how many hours a night should one sleep? 7 to 9 hours 3  What are the side effects of not getting enough sleep? Affects your mood (anxiety/depression) Makes stress management more difficult Decreases energy levels Affects concentration, memory and attention Increases the risk of accidents and injuries Slowed reaction time and poor decision-making Increased risk of illness and long-term health problems 11/28/2024 4  What are the benefits of getting enough sleep? Better mood (happier) Better stress management Increased energy Better alertness, concentration and memory More productive and efficient Fewer accidents and injuries Reduced risk of illness and health problems 11/28/2024 5 6 11/28/2024 7 11/28/2024 8 Melatonin Melatonin is a hormone produced by the brain in response to darkness. It contributes to the synchronization of circadian rhythms (24-hour internal clock) and sleep. Exposure to light at night can block melatonin production. Our body produces melatonin naturally. It doesn’t make you sleep, but as melatonin levels rise in the evening it puts you into a state of quiet wakefulness that helps promote sleep 11/28/2024 9 Supplementation of melatonin? Jet lag Some sleep disorders in children According to practice guidelines from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (2017) and the American College of Physicians (2016), there’s not enough strong evidence on the effectiveness or safety of melatonin supplementation for chronic insomnia to recommend its use. 11/28/2024 10  How to manage anxiety and stress at bedtime... Physical activity helps manage stress! Write our concerns in a journal Talk to a friend/family member about what's on your mind Try meditation 11/28/2024 11  Mindfulness In recent years, the practice of mindfulness meditation has grown considerably, as science has proven its beneficial effects on health and well- being. According to psychologist Christophe André, Mindfulness "is attention to lived and experienced experience, without filter (we accept what comes), without judgment (we don't decide whether it's good or bad, desirable or undesirable), without expectation (we don't look for something specific)". 11/28/2024 12  Mindfulness Mindfulness involves paying attention to the present moment, thoughts, emotions, physical sensations and the environment in a deliberate and non- judgmental way (e.g. This emotion is wrong or This sensation is unwanted). It's about being fully in touch with the present moment, rather than reliving the past or anticipating the future. Mindfulness can be practised formally (sitting or walking meditation, yoga, etc.) or informally, by striving to be fully present at every moment in the day's usual activities: drinking, eating, listening to music, looking out of the window and so on. 11/28/2024 13  I'm unable to clear my head when I meditate… Mindfulness is not intended to suppress thoughts, emotions or sensations. It's perfectly normal and inevitable for thoughts, emotions and sensations to arise during the practice of mindfulness. The practice aims to train ourselves to notice them, to observe them without clinging to them, much as we watch the clouds go by in the sky, and then to bring our attention back here, now, in the present moment. The challenge is to bring ourselves back again and again to the present moment, as many times as necessary! 11/28/2024 14 11/28/2024 15  5 minutes of mindfulness meditation 11/28/2024 16