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“Your Guide for Better Sleep” By: Neville Amis
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The advice contained in this material might not be suitable for everyone.
The author only provides the material as a broad overview by a layperson
about an important subject. The author obtained the information from
sources believed to be reliable and from his own personal experience, but he neither implies nor intends any guarantee of accuracy.
All claims made for any product, treatment or other procedure that is
reported in this book is only the author's personal opinion. You must carefully check with your own medical advisor and other reputable sources on any
matter that concerns your health or that of anyone else.
Research is constantly changing theories and practices in this area.
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“Your Guide for Better Sleep” By: Neville Amis
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services from competent professionals that can review their own particular circumstances.
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“Your Guide for Better Sleep” By: Neville Amis
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Contents
How Much Sleep Do You Need?..............................................................11
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“Your Guide for Better Sleep” By: Neville Amis
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Help Yourself to Better Sleep..................................................................36
Make Your Bedroom More Sleep-friendly...........................................36
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“Your Guide for Better Sleep” By: Neville Amis
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About The Author
Neville Amis had undiagnosed sleeping problems for a few years.
They affected his health, relationships and his ability to do his work to the standard he was really capable of.
Neville was told by his doctor that a lack of quality sleep was a major factor affecting his life.
He made fixing his problems a priority instead of continuing to accept that his constant tiredness and frequent minor illnesses were a price he had to pay for his fairly successful career.
He started to make simple changes and was amazed at the improvements he
felt in himself and his interaction with those around him.
Neville realized that many people were also suffering from various sleeping problems. Some were, like him, unaware that they didn’t have to accept
them as part of their lives.
Others were unable to find ways to deal with their problems.
So, Neville did some research on the best information about sleep problems and how to control or remove them.
“I wanted my book to help people that were suffering in their work and
relationships as I had been.”
“This is a plain language guide by an average person who has started to reap the rewards from dealing with his own sleep problems.”
“I hope it will be as helpful to other people in that situation.”
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“Your Guide for Better Sleep” By: Neville Amis
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Introduction
As the pace of our daily lives and the
pressure on us increases while we try
to produce quality work and provide
for our families, many people find that
their sleep suffers.
Often, people will give up some of
their sleep to have more “productive”
time. They don’t realize that those
periods of sleep play a vital part in our
lives.
Getting a good night’s sleep regularly is vital for ensuring that you feel your best and perform at your best.
But, few people accept that this is very important. Many still believe the old theory that sleep is a necessary nuisance and a blank hole between the
important productive and enjoyable parts of our busy lives.
Despite the research to the contrary, many people think interrupted sleep is normal in the modern world.
Sleep provides our brain and various systems essential time for rest, repair and improvement of our physical and mental resources. Many of the benefits which uninterrupted, restorative sleep are needed for are still not fully clear.
But, we cannot be at our best if we reduce our sleeping time or accept that interrupted sleep is a normal part of modern life. These attitudes can prevent us from achieving anything like our full potential and even damage our health over time.
I used to think like the need to trade-off my sleep for my success too. It is perhaps the biggest barrier to reducing the impact which poor sleep and its consequences have an on our health, family life, work performance and the
national economy.
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“Your Guide for Better Sleep” By: Neville Amis
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When I stopped accepting poor sleep as a consequence of my lifestyle, I
started looking for ways to help improve my situation.
I’ve written this book to give you the latest information I found.
Not every suggestion will be something which specifically relates to you. But, I believe that you will find many things which will help you to improve your own sleep and assist family members with any related problems that they
may have.
This book is a result of my personal journey to improve my own sleep. After I started to experience the difference in my own life, I used the research skills which I’d used as an instructor and writer to find out more about the whole subject.
I give you an overview of points you should discuss with your doctor or other medical professional. I’ve also included explanations of some common terms to help you to understand why they ask you the questions and use their
advice to get the most benefit.
This book will also help you to recognize signs which should be checked by a doctor. These signs are often accepted as part of the price we pay for our busy professional and personal activities.
When you finish reading this book, you can look forward to better rest and that can often translate into greater success in your personal and business lives.
I know that was my experience.
Neville Amis
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“Your Guide for Better Sleep” By: Neville Amis
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The Importance of Sleep
For all the research over many years, we don’t
know the whole story of the benefits which we
get from following a proper pattern of sleep and
activity.
But, research with rats showed that reduced
sleep has lasting effects which increase with the
level of the short-fall in quality sleep.
The National institute of Health in the U.S.A.
reports that rats which were not allowed to have
any Rapid Eye Movement (light) sleep lived just a
few weeks, but their normal life span would have
been about two years!
Sleep provides benefits for the proper operation
of our body’s nervous system, but the exact nature of the relationship is not fully clear yet.
Researchers say that an essential growth hormone is released when young
people are in the light R.E.M. phase of sleep. Obviously, anything which
causes interruption or loss of this phase can have serious consequences.
Researchers say that the areas of the brain related to learning are stimulated during the R.E.M. stage. That may explain why infants seem to have much
more of this sleep phase than older humans.
If someone cannot get adequate R.E.M. sleep, it has an effect on their ability to retain information which they have recently acquired. If people are taught something and then allowed to sleep, but not allowed to get any R.E.M.
sleep, they will probably not be able to remember the new information which they got just before their sleep session.
If they are allowed to sleep and their non-R.E.M. sleep is interrupted but they get some R.E.M. sleep, they will probably be able to recall and use the new information.
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“Your Guide for Better Sleep” By: Neville Amis
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This is a strong indication that a good sleeping
pattern can be important for anyone that is
learning new information or skills, whatever their
age.
Adequate sleep is also important for people when
they are operating machinery or involved in any
complex, critical decisions.
The wider community has many examples of the problems caused when
people are encouraged to sacrifice sleep and its benefits in favor of longer working hours and higher productivity.
For individuals, that can mean lower quality production, reduced quality of life and a significant rise in the number of accidents.
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“Your Guide for Better Sleep” By: Neville Amis
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How Much Sleep Do You Need?
The amount of sleep that you need depends on many
factors which do not affect every person to the same
degree.
Although there are figures which are commonly accepted
as healthy for the average person, there is a wide variation
in what different people can get used to while still
performing their work and keeping up with their social and
family activities.
Babies seem to need up to sixteen hours of sleep each day.
Teenagers can operate well with about half that.
Most adults also operate best when they get about eight hours a night.
Particular individuals may need an hour less than that and some will need
more. It is hard for us to judge what is best for ourselves. Our thinking and decisions are affected by our personal desires and peer pressures to fit many social and business commitments into each day.
Because of these pressures, most people will probably sleep more lightly and often for shorter times as they grow older. This does not take account of the fact that the demands on our aging bodies and mental abilities still require as much quality sleep as before.
If we nap rather than get sufficient sleep to enjoy complete sleep cycles, the benefits of that sleep are greatly reduced.
Everyone will also, naturally, need more sleep when (or very soon after) we are under extra stress but, of course, that is not usually available to us at those times.
Research suggests that we start to incur a “sleep debt” when we cut down
too much from the amount which our body really needs.
Teenagers usually think that they really only need a fraction of eight hours each day. Their youthful strength and attitude can mask most effects for a while but there will be a reckoning to some degree later on.
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“Your Guide for Better Sleep” By: Neville Amis
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Another important factor is whether we look after our health. If we have a regular exercise program and follow a good diet, this can help to reduce the effects of insufficient sleep, but only to a degree.
If we do not look after ourselves, then we are likely to suffer some serious consequences in the future.
Our ability to deal with the demands we put on our bodies will be reduced
and all areas of our lives will be poorer because of that.
It is inevitable that the sleep debt which someone has will affect their mental and physical capacity after a while unless they get some extra quality sleep so that they can reduce their “sleep debt”.
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“Your Guide for Better Sleep” By: Neville Amis
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Effects of Sleep Loss
A lack of appropriate periods of quality sleep will affect your energy level and quickly show in poorer levels of work performance.
Sleep deprivation will affect your ability for
doing any activity which involves hand-eye
coordination and focused physical activity,
such as driving, playing sports or operating
equipment.
Your interaction with your family,
colleagues and other people will also suffer.
Although the symptoms you have may not
become worse in the short term, the effect
on your health and lifestyle will only increase if you do not do something to improve the situation.
Common signs of a sleep debt include:
Having difficulty with focusing your eyes
Faulty short-term memory
Frequent yawning
Deprivation can be Torture!
This is an example of the serious effect which loss of sleep can have.
One of the most common methods used by interrogators through the
centuries is to deprive their victims of sleep.
This involves preventing them from being able to sleep.
Most of us will be aware of the effect that can have on us when we
deliberately go without sleep to have more time for parties and other social events, or try to complete some important work objective. It is clear that the effect would be much greater if someone was under the control of their
enemies.
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They also let them fall asleep but wake them up at frequent, irregular
intervals. This affects the quality of all the sleep which the victim gets because they never know when they will be woken again.
This also prevents them from having any deep, restorative sleep.
It has proved to be very effective, causing distress and disorientation which makes the victim more likely to give the questioners the information they are looking for.
This sort of treatment leaves no marks or injuries but the emotional and
physiological effects are great and tend to be long-lasting.
When people, soldiers and civilians, are trapped and subjected to bombing or artillery bombardment in any conflict, they are unable to get regular sleep.
Soldiers who were sent back to hospitals from the trenches during the First World War were given psychiatric help and the opportunity to sleep safely
each night. Many were jud