Shed Old Sleep Habits
The hands that raised you held an extraordinary power. They had an intuitive ability to distinguish your social cries from emotional ones. Throughout infancy, your needs were promptly met by the attentive caregivers who surrounded you. You were utterly dependent on them, and in their care, you discovered your own form of self-care. Those hands cradled you in comfort, and nurtured you as you navigated the earliest stages of life. The rooms you inhabited bore their touches, their ideas, and their surroundings.
Childhood, in many ways, is a journey of assimilation, a process of molding yourself based on the models your caregivers provided. The way they interacted with the world and managed life's challenges often became your template for navigating experiences. Little did you know then that these early impressions can shape your behaviors for years to come.
A recent encounter with a client illuminated the profound impact of this modeling process. The client disclosed a 23-year-old habit inherited from family: the practice of popping a single aspirin alongside a cup of coffee. This concoction, a supposed antidote to fatigue, was deeply ingrained in their daily routine. However, as retirement beckoned, the realization struck that the pattern needed revision. With a goal of attaining more than a mere 3 hours of sleep each night, the client recognized the need for a major shift.
The truth is, lack of sufficient sleep, defined as less than 7 and a half hours each night, can significantly hinder your ability to focus, solve problems, and fulfill commitments. The hours spent in slumber are not a luxury but rather a necessity for maintaining cognitive function and overall well-being. Routine sleep is, in essence, an essential component of your personal productivity and your best version of you.
Sleep is a priceless resource for your health, and freely available to everyone. The lessons imprinted upon us by the hands that cared for us are valuable, but recognizing when these habits no longer serve us is equally crucial. Just as we once depended on their hands for our well-being, now we must embrace our own autonomy and make conscious choices that promote our health and vitality. Becoming our best selves requires us to reassess and adapt, shedding old habits in favor of practices that nurture and sustain us.
Self-rate on a 1 (not at all) to 10 (completely) scale for further exploration:
Overall, I prioritize my daily self-care.
I respond to stress with tactics that avoid over-eating, laziness, and/or blaming others.
I routinely fall asleep within 5 to 10 minutes.
