An exploration in becoming Limitless – part 2 - Sleep

Introduction

(Intro reposted from part 1) Limitless is a movie starring Bradley Cooper, based on the novel Dark Fields. If you haven't already seen it it's well worth a watch for it's entertainment value if nothing else. It also calls on a deep desire within us to hack our physiological system and become somewhat super human. In Limitless the main protagonist, Edward Morra, receives a smart drug or nootropic called NZT48. Reluctantly he tries it, but after a couple of minutes his brain comes alive. The suggestion being that if we only use 10% of our brain NZT48 gives you access to 100%. Incredible powers of perception, analysis and memory. NZT48 literally makes people super human. So this is all fiction, but it sparked in me an interest in the optimal state of being. Building a life where you are sharp, aware and the absolute best that you can be all of the time. I'm interested in health and fitness anyway so it was really just an extension of that, although I made some discoveries along the way. While the obvious effects of optimal living are subtle, the long term resulting benefits are every bit as good as Edward Morra's experience.
Check out Edward Morra's first experience of the drug here:

Limitless also has a spin off TV show, I can't say that I found it particularly inspiring, so I wouldn't bother, just go and watch the movie instead.

Part 2 – Sleep - the supercharger for body and mind

For me, sleep used to be problematic for a variety of reasons. I used to spend hours lying in bed thinking things over and eventually getting to sleep 2-3 hours after I had gone to bed. I'd then wake up around 3am or 4am, struggling with irrelevant and useless thoughts going round and round. Couple this with late nights and early mornings and I was perhaps getting 4 or 5 hours sleep at best every night. This was not enough for me, to feel fully focused and capable I need approximately 7 hours sleep every night, which is more or less what I am able to achieve now. It's taken me some time to improve my sleep but the benefits have been incredible in terms of my ability to focus and concentrate during the day.

Benefits of good sleep

If you've ever struggled with problematic sleep you will know the fuzzy / foggy brained existence that you have to endure on a daily basis. You cannot think straight or concentrate for any period of time without becoming distracted. Lack of sleep can leave you feeling quite miserable and deflated most of the time, not to mention more susceptible to ailments and illnesses.
Once you fix the problem you'll be relieved and pleased beyond words. You will feel completley different in a number of different areas, bringing you much closer to becoming limitless:

• Healthy – When you sleep well your overall well being and health improves. You catch fewer colds and experience clearer skin and have a brighter complexion overall.
• Focus – Your ability to concentrate and focus on tasks when you are fully awake is 5 fold if you have had a good nights sleep compared to a shoddy nights sleep. You can read, work, hold articulate conversations and write for long periods of time with fewer breaks.
• Intelligence – The ability to understand complex concepts and problems will improve significantly. In intelligence tests quick thinking is essential and your IQ will be significantly improved if your sleep is good. 5 days of sleep deprevation can lower your IQ by as much as 15 points according to a study by Wolfson & Carskadon (see additional information). Imagine therefore the effect of good sleep. Your IQ will improve to it's optimal level.
• Productivity – Your ability to get more done in less time will increase exponentially when awake compared to if your are sleep deprived. Concentration and an absence of silly mistakes, errors and clumsiness means that you will get a lot done without having to go back and continually correct things.
• No distractions – When you are sleep deprived, the lack of concentration will lead to your desire to distract yourself with something else. Watching a YouTube video, listening to something on the radio, having a conversation etc. Unfortunately these distractions can be self perpetuating and lead you into a vicious circle of more distracting yourself from the task at hand. Ensuring a good nights sleep will reduce the need to distract yourself and you will be more likely to finish what you started.
• Calmness - Irritability is one of the primary symptoms of sleep deprivation. When you are fully rested you will feel calm, relaxed and able to handle what life throws at you. This is essential to cope with challenges and achieve positive outcomes. It will also make you a more amiable and likeable individual. Nobody wants to be around someone who is irritable and quick to anger. Having a calm persona will not only help you deal effectively with every day like, it will also have the effect of making people around you more positive, supportive and helpful towards you.

Quality sleep

There are some people who seem able to fall asleep quickly and yet they are still dogged with tiredness and all of the symptoms of sleep deprivation. Just because they are asleep however, does not mean that they are getting quality sleep. If they are drinking alcohol, smoking or taking other drugs or stimulants, they might be able to fall asleep, but their brain will not be remaining in deep sleep for long enough periods to have a restorative effect on the body and mind.

Sleep is a rhythmic bodily function like much else in the world. It is based on circadian rhythms and you will cycle through light sleep, REM sleep (dream sleep), deep unconscious sleep and back again 4 or 5 times during during the night if you are sleeping well. Some people however will be bouncing around in REM and light sleep for long periods and only dipping into deep sleep for short periods. Deep sleep is where your body heals itself. It essentially goes into full shut down while your cells revitalise and restore your body. Your mind will also recharge during this deep sleep period. It is therefore essential that your sleep patterns and habits are optimal to allow you to experience quality sleep rather than just quantity.

How to improve sleep

What to avoid

• Phones, TV's, tablets that give out blue light – the effect on blue light on the back of the eye will trick your mind into thinking it is daytime or morning, releasing more cortisol and suppressing melatonin production that is needed for sleep. Switch off devices that give out blue light and read a book instead. If you must use devices into the evening it is essential that you install a night time screen filter on them to reduce blue light and change the screen tint to more of a pink colour. There are various apps you can download to do this. One of them is called F.lux, but there will be appropriate apps for your device.
• Avoid alcohol (and other drugs) – I've heard so many times that people think they need a glass or two of wine to help them sleep. This is completely untrue. What has occurred is that people have got into the habit of drinking to help them relax and so when they stop drinking they don't feel relaxed. What actually happens when you drink is that you are able to fall asleep, but you won't get into deep sleep very effectively, and likely you will wake up at 3am unable to sleep. Get out of the habit of drinking alcohol in the evening and do something else to relax your mind and body. Reading, listening to relaxing music, meditation, deep breathing are all good alternatives. (read the article in additional info for more facts).
• Tea and Coffee – Avoid tea and coffee after lunchtime. Caffiene can linger in your body for up to 10 hours so if you drink a cup of coffee at 2pm you will still be experiencing the effects at midnight. If you drink it before bed the chances of getting a good nights sleep are slim to none. Coffee is a great aid to give you a kick in the morning, but don't rely on it to keep you awake during the entire day. In the evenings drink small amounts of water or herbal teas instead, although personally I notice teas such as camomile can have a mild diuretic effect, making me want to go to the toilet during the night.
• Stress and arguments – If you are stressed and thinking about things your sleep will be disturbed. Practice meditation and mindfulness to help you overcome bad thought cycles and bring you more into the moment.

Tips and techniques

• Lie still and breath deeply - One technique that is particularly effective is to lie still and breath deeply. Get yourself into a comfortable position and don't move any part of your body for as long as you can. Even if you get an itch, force yourself to resist scratching until it goes away. Remain in this position until you either fall asleep or your are just so uncomfortable that it is absolutely unbearable. At that point you can move to a more comfortable position where there is a good chance that you will fall asleep almost immediately. I'm not exactly sure how this works, but I think you are tricking the mind into thinking that the body has gone into sleep paralysis, and in doing so giving the mind a positive signal that it's OK to switch off and sleep. If your body wasn't fully in sleep paralysis while you were asleep you would be thrashing around in your dreams, so this technique is a sort of hack to get you there.
• Panting and breathing - Pant very quickly 10 times through your mouth and then breath deeply and slowly through your nose 10 times. Repeat this 4 or 5 times before relaxing and breathing normally. I've used this slightly strange technique a number of times and it has quite extraordinary results. Not only does it help me get to sleep but it seems to trigger long lost memories of sometimes quite mundane things, but things from childhood and many years previous that I'd completely forgotten about. It just goes to show that all of your memories from every moment of your life are stored away somewhere.
• Get a new mattress - If your mattress is old and sunken it's worth investing in a new one. The recommendation is to replace it every 7 years which seems reasonable. A new mattress will improve your comfort and make a big difference to your quality of sleep, as will regularly cleaned and new sheets, which will keep your evenings fresh and comfortable.
• Lavender oil - Put a few drops of lavender oil or other relaxing oils on your pillow. The gentle aroma will help your mind to relax and sleep. I quite like eucalyptus oil that people use for colds and flu, but for some reason it relaxes me. Perhaps it's something to do with childhood memories.
• Bedroom hygiene - Use your bedroom only for going to bed. Try to avoid working or watching TV in the bedroom. The bedroom should be the habitual place where you go to sleep and little else (other than the obvious ;) So it's best to avoid lying on your bed while studying, watching TV or playing video games because your mind will then be associated with those activities.
• Keep cool - Your body temperature needs to drop when you go into deep sleep, so don't maintain a hot bedroom. Keep your bedroom a couple of degrees cooler than you are usually comfortable with during the day and you will likely improve the quality of your sleep. The aristocracy in days gone by sometimes used to have two beds, in the middle of the night as they naturally awoke they would move from one bed to the next because it was much cooler, and thus they would get back to sleep more easily.

One of the best books that I read on the subject of sleep was 'Counting Sheep' by Paul Martin. It goes into a lot of scientific detail about the nature of sleep but it still manages to be an entertaining and sometimes amusing read. I highly recommend it if you want to understand more about sleep, and thus how you can improve your sleep.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Counting-Sheep-Science-Pleasures-Dreams/dp/0006551726/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1518257935&sr=8-3&keywords=counting+sheep

What other tips and avoidances do you have to improve sleep?

Look out for future limitless articles on healthy foods, supplements, beliefs, self talk, environment, flow state and even the mystical side of the higher consciousness.
Part 1 here:
https://steemit.com/health/@unclehermit/an-exploration-in-becoming-limitless-part-1

Additional information

• Wolfson & Carskadon study - http://www.sleepforscience.org/stuff/contentmgr/files/73fcbc8090d3aca81567db2c113cf0e8/pdf/wolfson_carskadon1998.pdf
• Effects of alcohol on sleep - https://sleepjunkies.com/features/ways-alcohol-messes-sleep/