This morning, I started a discussion in the Savvy Living Community about “Beauty Sleep” and knew I needed to expand this topic into a blog post. Sleep is one of those things that we all need (and we typically all need MORE of it than we’re getting).
How many hours of sleep do you typically get per night?
Do you wake up every morning wishing for more sleep, knowing you stayed up too late (like me?). Or are you one who carefully guards her hours in bed?
My husband says that 6 hours of sleep from early in the night to early in the morning leaves him feeling much better than 8 hours from after midnight to late in the morning.
I know for sure that 7 hours of sleep with kids in my bed or a snoring husband is never as restful as 7 hours of sleep by myself….
The National Sleep Foundation says there is no “magic number” and each person has a unique “basal sleep need.” I’ve heard that it also changes with age.
Here’s what they say about that:
There is no “magic sleep number”
The first thing experts will tell you about sleep is that there is no “magic number.” Not only do different age groups need different amounts of sleep, but sleep needs are also individual. Just like any other characteristics you are born with, the amount of sleep you need to function best may be different for you than for someone who is of the same age and gender. While you may be at your absolute best sleeping seven hours a night, someone else may clearly need nine hours to have a happy, productive life.
Another thing that the The National Sleep Foundation says about the amount of sleep that people should get is that both too little sleep and too much sleep can be detrimental to a person’s health.
Too much sleep….or too little sleep?
…one thing sleep research certainly has shown is that sleeping too little can not only inhibit your productivity and ability to remember and consolidate information, but lack of sleep can also lead to serious health consequences and jeopardize your safety and the safety of individuals around you.
On the other hand, some research has found that long sleep durations (nine hours or more) are also associated with increased morbidity (illness, accidents) and mortality (death).
I found it a fascinating article.
This summer, I have enjoyed letting my body determine when I’ve had enough sleep. Waking up when I’m done sleeping and not being jolted awake by an alarm (2 hours too early…) has been fabulous.
However, school will be starting at the end of the month, and the kids and I are going to have to re-train our bodies to both get to bed earlier at night and get out of bed earlier in the morning….or we will be suffering!
What about you? What is YOUR perfect amount of sleep (and do you ever get it?)
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I have always been a big proponent to listening to what your body is telling you. If I can’t sleep, I don’t sleep. If I’m not hungry, I don’t eat, so on and so on. I think the main issue here is to get enough sleep when you can, especially in today’s society, where it seems the term rest is for the wicked has become the mantra. I for one have always been a fan for the good old fashion nap.
That would be light not night.
I found 20 years ago that getting 9 hrs was a must, but I perfer to get somewhere around 6-7 hours of sleep if I’m in bed by 11pm. I tend to feel much better then if I get anymore than that. I do this on weekends also and stay often to my wife that if the suns up I need to be up. I hate wasting a day.
Anyone else feel like they are missing out on the day if their not up at first night? Please share your thoughts. Thx
Right now, with a 9 day old baby, 3-4 hours of sleep at a time is a miracle. Normally though I’m a 7 hour girl.
Oh goodness. I think I over-slept this summer–my hubs didn’t have class until noon and would let me sleep in. But during the school year, i get 7 to 8 hours. Thanks for posting this info–its really intriguing!
I love sleep and love not waking up to an alarm but school is starting here in a couple weeks and my oldest now has to catch his bus at 6:48am, yikes!
I need more sleep than a lot of people I know. I really don’t feel well rested unless I get 8.5-9.5 hours of sleep.
Before I had kids, I would have said 8 hours, for sure. I used to complain about only getting 7, and then I was grumpy by Friday. My how things have changed! Three kids later, I would definitely say 6 is not enough. So, somewhere in between 6 and 8. Baby number three is (I think) starting to sleep through the night. So, possibly now I can retrain my body to actually expect uninterrupted sleep. Or, I might just be getting ahead of myself . . . :)