4 Main Causes of Sleep Deprivation
Everyone has a sleepless night once in a while, but for some people, sleep can become so elusive that it leads to sleep deprivation. Sleep deprivation can cause the sufferer to become less able to focus and perform routine tasks such as driving, caring for dependents or caring for themselves. So what causes lack of sleep? Generally, it's one of three things: a poor sleep environment, a voluntary behavior or a health problem.
Poor Sleep Environment
For some people, sleep deprivation can be caused by a poor sleep environment. This includes anything from being too hot at night to living next door to loud neighbors. Fortunately, it's usually pretty easy to fix a poor sleep environment by switching to cooling moisture-wicking sheets, putting up blackout curtains or using earplugs to drown out the noise. If you can't seem to get a good night's rest, taking a critical look at your sleeping space should be the first step.
Voluntary Behaviors
Work, school, caring for children and other voluntary behaviors could be what's keeping you up at night. When you don't have enough time to sleep or can't take your mind off of your obligations, resting and recharging becomes very difficult to do. Try changing your routines to allow for more time to sleep, and use a planner or other time management tools to help prioritize sleep and ease the burden of remembering obligations and appointments when you should be letting your mind rest.
Health Problems
If you've done everything you can to improve your sleep space, you're mentally prepared for sleep, have time to rest, chronic sleep deprivation may be the result of a health problem. Talk to your doctor to see if an illness or problem may be what's keeping you up at night.
Sleep is a critical function of the human body, so if you're not getting enough of it and have become sleep deprived, it's important to identify the cause of the restlessness and correct the situation right away. Start by visiting Cool-Jams™ to shop for cooling bedding and to rule out environmental factors as the cause of missed sleep.
