Sleep like a baby, wake like a baker
by Fauzia Arain
Chicago Tribune
January 11, 2009
Fall asleep
Whether you suffer from insomnia or are just having an off night, the solution is mostly mind over matter. No gadgets, no pills, no hypnotism, just some sound advice from Northwestern Memorial Hospital's Dr. Lisa Woofe, who specializes in sleep medicine.
Set your internal clock. "Have stringent times for getting into and out of bed," Woofe said. "Your body has a clock that helps regulate your brain when you're awake and asleep, and your body will auto-start the sleep process accordingly."
Get steamed. "Before bed, take a hot shower and then enter a relatively cool bedroom," Woofe recommended as a way to copy the natural effects of a sun setting. "Imagine an ancient man living out on a prairie. When the sun goes up, you get up, when the sun sets, you sleep ... . In modern society, we regulate lights and the body gets disconnected from the environment."
Let there not be light. Electricity can throw our systems out of whack. "Get both bright light, like sunlight, in the morning and avoid bright lights in the evening," Woofe said.
Work it out. "Make sure you get exercise. It helps sleep at night, especially for those over the age of 60, for whom staying asleep is a big issue," said Woofe, who cited studies done at Northwestern's sleep center by her colleague Dr. Phyllis Zee. "Research has shown that exercise during the day is better than a sleeping pill." Woofe also says to complete all activity two hours before sleep time.
Put the brakes on your brain. Woofe suggested employing tricks to supplant the thoughts racing through your brain that prevent sleep. "Keep a worry diary in your bedroom, so when you're thinking, 'I can't forget to get that fax at the office' or 'I have to remember to go to the post office,' write that in the diary and put it next to your bed."
Woofe also suggested progressive muscle relaxation. "Instead of allowing your brain to think of extraneous things, have it concentrate on relaxing each muscle, from toe to head."
Another way to distract a restless mind is to fill it with peaceful pictures. Finally, Woofe warned not to sleep in to make up for the lost hours at night. "Keep a fixed wake-up time, and get up and go about your day. It's an investment in good sleep," she said. "The next night you should be tired enough to fall asleep on time."
Wake up
If you're lucky, you're still sleeping when it's "time to make the doughnuts." Bakery workers often rise and shine before the sun does, so that you can start the day—a couple of hours later—with a muffin fresh from the oven. We asked Joni Caputa, a pastry chef of two years at Lakeview's Bittersweet Pastry Shop, how she manages to kick the sandman to the curb at 4:15 every morning.
"I don't let myself set a snooze on my alarm, and I put my alarm across the room," Caputa said.
Once she's vertical, "I have coffee immediately from an automatic coffee maker, and I need a glass of cold water to wake up."
The key, Caputa said, is to see beyond those soft bed linens to the big picture. "If you're late, it's just not fair," she said. "We're such a small group, you don't want to have to answer to the person next to you.
by Fauzia Arain
Chicago Tribune
January 11, 2009
Fall asleep
Whether you suffer from insomnia or are just having an off night, the solution is mostly mind over matter. No gadgets, no pills, no hypnotism, just some sound advice from Northwestern Memorial Hospital's Dr. Lisa Woofe, who specializes in sleep medicine.
Set your internal clock. "Have stringent times for getting into and out of bed," Woofe said. "Your body has a clock that helps regulate your brain when you're awake and asleep, and your body will auto-start the sleep process accordingly."
Get steamed. "Before bed, take a hot shower and then enter a relatively cool bedroom," Woofe recommended as a way to copy the natural effects of a sun setting. "Imagine an ancient man living out on a prairie. When the sun goes up, you get up, when the sun sets, you sleep ... . In modern society, we regulate lights and the body gets disconnected from the environment."
Let there not be light. Electricity can throw our systems out of whack. "Get both bright light, like sunlight, in the morning and avoid bright lights in the evening," Woofe said.
Work it out. "Make sure you get exercise. It helps sleep at night, especially for those over the age of 60, for whom staying asleep is a big issue," said Woofe, who cited studies done at Northwestern's sleep center by her colleague Dr. Phyllis Zee. "Research has shown that exercise during the day is better than a sleeping pill." Woofe also says to complete all activity two hours before sleep time.
Put the brakes on your brain. Woofe suggested employing tricks to supplant the thoughts racing through your brain that prevent sleep. "Keep a worry diary in your bedroom, so when you're thinking, 'I can't forget to get that fax at the office' or 'I have to remember to go to the post office,' write that in the diary and put it next to your bed."
Woofe also suggested progressive muscle relaxation. "Instead of allowing your brain to think of extraneous things, have it concentrate on relaxing each muscle, from toe to head."
Another way to distract a restless mind is to fill it with peaceful pictures. Finally, Woofe warned not to sleep in to make up for the lost hours at night. "Keep a fixed wake-up time, and get up and go about your day. It's an investment in good sleep," she said. "The next night you should be tired enough to fall asleep on time."
Wake up
If you're lucky, you're still sleeping when it's "time to make the doughnuts." Bakery workers often rise and shine before the sun does, so that you can start the day—a couple of hours later—with a muffin fresh from the oven. We asked Joni Caputa, a pastry chef of two years at Lakeview's Bittersweet Pastry Shop, how she manages to kick the sandman to the curb at 4:15 every morning.
"I don't let myself set a snooze on my alarm, and I put my alarm across the room," Caputa said.
Once she's vertical, "I have coffee immediately from an automatic coffee maker, and I need a glass of cold water to wake up."
The key, Caputa said, is to see beyond those soft bed linens to the big picture. "If you're late, it's just not fair," she said. "We're such a small group, you don't want to have to answer to the person next to you.
