09/14/24
The one thing (probably) ruining your life. (5 part series)
Fix this and youâll become unstoppable.
And by âthisâ, I mean something youâre probably not thinking of right now.
It is a substance.
One so dangerous that, if consumed, can give you constant mood swings, higher irritability, sap away motivation, lower your sex drive, virtually remove your ability focus and worsen memory.
Now, what if I told you 30 to 40% of people are unwillingly injecting this substance every day?
And what if I told you this substance wasn’t even easily accessible decades ago, but that now everyone and their mom can and most likely will find it at some point?
Sounds dystopian, doesn’t it?
But it’s true.
This âsubstanceâ is called sleep deprivation.
Let’s understand why it’s so dangerous as I’m portraying it to be and how we can all solve it in a couple of simple steps.
What I will share with you now is what I found reading the book âWhy We Sleepâ, by Matthew Walker, and also on my extensive research on the topic.
But why did I even bother researching all of this in the first place?
Isn’t sleep a somewhat simple matter?
Well, I used to think so.
Until I had two peaks of depression this year.
Yes, you read that right.
One in January, and the other one in August.
I thought it was a stretch at first too.
âIt can’t be depression, that’s way too heavy and I’m fine most of the timeâŠâ
Then I checked the behavior patterns and symptoms.
- Persistent sad, anxious or “empty” mood.
- Feelings of hopelessness, pessimism.
- Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, helplessness.
- Loss of interest or pleasure in hobbies and activities.
- Decreased energy, fatigue, feeling “slowed down”.
- Difficulty concentrating, remembering, making decisions.
- Insomnia, early-morning awakening, or oversleeping.
Every single thing checked out.
âBut that can’t be, I was the class clown for God’s sake!â
I thought it just had to do with motivation or something like that.
I kept trying to get my head back in order, but it just wouldn’t last.
It was always a quick fix at best.
For some reason, I was convinced it had something to do with the way I saw myself.
So, I focused on reading about self-image, identity, personality, how we see ourselves mentally etc.
It made sense, but nothing would really change at the end of the day.
Then, when I looked back on the two times I felt that way, and one thing had remained the same:
I was sleep deprived.
I would go to sleep at around 2/3 a.m. and wake up at 7 or 8 a.m.
âBut why did you go to sleep at that time, John?â
Because that’s when I felt free.
See, when you’re in such a predicament, you don’t see yourself as capable of doing the most basic of things.
Even getting up to brush your teeth seems like a challenge.
Late at night was the only time I had with no messages, no emails, no obligations, nothing whatsoever.
I knew I was wrong, but I couldn’t figure out why I felt that way.
How could someone like me, who’s learned 5 languages on his own, would be constantly out hiking and exploring, talking to strangers and making friends everywhere, feel like that all of a sudden?
Needless to say I felt like, just maybe, it really had to do with sleep.
So I focused on understanding it better.
Once my attention shifted towards it, I started remembering things I had already read or heard about it.
Like when psychologist Jordan Peterson said the first thing he’d tell his depressed patients to start doing was to go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day.
Or when Brazilian neuroscientist Eslen Delanogare said every time he spoke to high performers in whatever domain, their sleep was systematically great.
Or when both of them explained the importance of the circadian rhythm for the brain and bodyâs proper functioning.
I just felt like I needed more context to fully understand the whole picture.
That’s when Matthew Walker’s book came in and my personal research began.
Fundamentally, 4 main things were causing all of my mental health problems:
- Not enough sleep.
- No consistent physical activity.
- No consistent exposure to sunlight.
- No sleep hygiene.
Number 1 is self-explanatory.
2, 3 and 4 however, not as much.
But that’s because I wasn’t familiar with the sleep cycles we go through.
When we’re asleep, we go through 4 sleep cycles:
Stage 1, usually called REM (Rapid Eye Movement), is when we’re closest to waking up due to higher neuronal activity. That’s when we dream, for example.
Stage 2, 3 and 4, described as NREM, meaning Non-REM, happen as we pass the stages and go in and out of REM sleep.
However, stage 4 is when we have our deepest sleep.
That’s where you’re mentally closest to a coma, for comparison.
The reason why is because it’s when the brain shuts everything off, so to speak, to focus on repairing itself and your body.
Now, here’s what’s interesting:
You might sleep for 10 hours straight and not have a single hour of deep sleep.
That’s because falling into deep sleep is completely dependent on:
- Being physically active throughout the day (specially doing some sort of cardio).
- Having enough daily exposure to sunlight.
- Eating healthy (no crazy amounts of sugar nor junk food)
All of these things dictate your circadian rhythm, which is your âbiological clockâ.
It regulates the sleep-wake cycle over a 24-hour period and controls functions like sleep, hormone production, and body temperature.
Sunlight, however, plays a major role in keeping this rhythm in sync, helping you stay awake during the day and sleep at night.
Now would you look at that!
Precisely the two things I was consistently not having: sunlight exposure and consistent physical activity.
My diet was fine and I’d go to the gym and run, yes, but not as frequently as I used to.
And because I’d be constantly worried about the ton of things I had to for work, I wouldn’t even leave my house because I knew I had too much to do still.
It was a vicious f*cking cycle.
But once I read Matthew Walker’s book, things were a lot clearer.
Here are some of the things that shocked me the most when I read it:
âThe shorter your sleep, the shorter your life. The leading causes of disease and death in developed nationsâdiseases that are crippling health-care systems, such as heart disease, obesity, dementia, diabetes, and cancerâall have recognized causal links to a lack of sleep.â
âRoutinely sleeping less than six or seven hours a night demolishes your immune system, more than doubling your risk of cancer.â
âInadequate sleepâeven moderate reductions for just one weekâdisrupts blood sugar levels so profoundly that you would be classified as pre-diabetic.â
And my absolute favorite:
âThe best bridge between despair and hope is a good nightâs sleep.â
The one thing I missed the most: hope.
Hope that I could go back to normal.
That I’d be able to eventually fix all of it.
That I’d overcome that nightmare and be able to enjoy my life again.
And thankfully I did.
But what happened, exactly?
And how can you fix it too in case all of this is sounding familiar?
Well, here is the step by step:
- Immediately start going to sleep and waking up at the same time.
That will instantly help regulate your circadian rhythm a lot faster.
- Make sure you have sunlight exposure every day.
I know you might work in an office, and maybe only have time for that during lunch.
If that’s the case, then have lunch while you walk or sitting at an open area where you can get some sunlight.
Don’t play around with that, it’s by far the most important thing in all of this.
- Do some sort of physical activity.
Going to the gym, running, Crossfit, sports⊠whatever you like, go for it.
âBut John, I don’t like any of that⊔
Then just walk. That by itself can and will be hugely beneficial.
No excuses.
- Have a sleep hygiene routine.
Remove all the lights you can an hour before going to bed.
Don’t drink water or eat carb dense foods either.
And do NOT take your phone to bed with you.
If you do these, it’s guaranteed you’ll mess up the deep sleep quality you could be having.
And for the night owls that might be reading this thinking it doesn’t apply to you:
Yes, it does.
âNight owlsâ don’t actually exist.
You just trained your brain to be more active during the night through constant trials.
I understand some moments in life do require that extra push, but these are supposed to be exceptions.
And yeah, I get it. It’s quieter at night. Colder. More comfortable. I understand.
But it could be ten times better if you were properly regulated.
Give it a try at least once, and see how it feels.
I’m pretty sure you’ll be surprised.
I will leave you with some links below that helped me better understand it all.
And I also HIGHLY recommend you read Matthew Walker’s book.
That being said, please:
Have a good night, my friend.
Links for further reading:
âCompared to people who have not been diagnosed with any mental health condition, individuals with a diagnosis are much more likely to experience symptoms of sleep deprivation such as mood changes (62% vs 32%), irritability (58% vs. 32%), lack of motivation (67% vs. 37%), lower sex drive (26% vs. 9%), and memory lapses/loss of focus (40% vs. 18%). While 18% of people with no diagnosed mental health conditions say they have no symptoms after sleeping poorly, a mere 4% of people with anxiety or depression say the same.â
âRecent research suggests the relationship between sleep deprivation and depression is bidirectional. This means a lack of sleep isnât only a consequence of depression. Sleep deprivation or disrupted sleep in itself may also cause or worsen symptoms of depression.â
- Jordan Peterson explaining depression and how to deal with it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfO0dvqI9B
