Table of Contents

 

Key Takeaways

  1. Sleep Is Important!
  1. Undersleeping Is Acceptable Societally but Horrifying
  1. Biologically
  1. Sleep Deprivation and Your Body
  1. Exhaustion Suppresses Your Potential
  1. The Reframe: Sleep Is an Active High Performance State Like Flow
  1. Sleep Is NOT a Compressible Part of the Day
  1. Two Factors Regulating Sleep & Wakefulness
  1. The 80/20 of Sleep Optimization
 

Exercise

notion image
Implement the 80/20 Of Sleep Optimization. Type out the exact next steps you’re going to take, and when, to implement each habit:
  • Timing - 9 Hours in Bed, 8 Hours of Sleep
  • Tracking - What Gets Measured Gets Managed
  • Cold - 18 Degrees Celsius; 65 Fahrenheit Gets Managed
  • Dark - Blackout Blinds/Curtains & Mask
  • Food - Two Hours Minimum before Sleep
  • Power Down - Unwind, Slash Cognitive Load, Unplug
  • Fluids - Cut Back Fluid Intake Pre-Sleep
  • Noise - Quiet, White Noise, & Ear Plugs
  • Exercise - Always Intense, 3+ Hours Pre-Bed
  • Substances - Cut Caffeine, Alcohol & Nicotine 10+ Hours Before Bedtime, Ideally 12

Glossary

REM sleep: REM sleep stands for rapid eye movement. Usually, REM sleep happens 90 minutes after you fall asleep. The first period of REM typically lasts 10 minutes. Each of your later REM stages gets longer, and the final one may last up to an hour. Your heart rate and breathing quicken. You can have intense dreams during REM sleep since your brain is more active. REM is important because it stimulates the areas of the brain that help with learning and is associated with the increased production of proteins.
Light NREM sleep:
  • Stage 1: During stage 1, you drift from being awake to being asleep. This is a light, NREM sleep that doesn’t last very long. You may start to relax and dream but may also twitch as you transition into stage 2.
  • Stage 2: Stage 2 of the sleep cycle is still a light sleep, but you are drifting into a steadier sleep. Your breathing and heartbeat slow down, and your muscles relax. Your body tÂş decreases, and your brain waves are less active.
Process S-Homeostatic Sleep Drive: The homeostatic sleep drive process regulates the drive to sleep based on the amount of time we're awake and how much energy we're expanding. The chemical adenosine binds to adenosine receptors during waking hours. The more you do and the longer you're awake, the more adenosine you accumulate, making you feel tired. Scientists feel that adenosine is the way the body keeps track of how much sleep you've gotten, and how much sleep you need. If you don't get enough sleep, the adenosine in your body is still remaining when you wake up, making you feel groggy. Caffeine, actually blocks adenosine (because they are extremely similar molecules) from doing its job to promote sleepiness, thus helping to keep us awake.
Process C-Circadian Wake Drive: The circadian process is regulated by a tiny internal biological clock located in the hypothalamus called the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). This structure receives light waves from the eye directly through the optic nerve. This light resets the clock to correspond to the day-night cycle. Signals from the SCN travel to the pineal gland which switches off the production of melatonin during the day, and increases it during the night.
 

Lesson Resources

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy - Insomnia Protocol

Step 1—Stimulus Control
  • Minimize None Sleep Time In Bed — Sleep and sex are the only permitted activites in bed.
  • Minimize Sleep Latency — If > 15 minutes in bed and you’re still awake, get out of bed.
  • Downregulate While Out Of Bed — Unstimulating activities like reading, cleaning.
  • Return To Bed — Fall asleep in less than 15 minutes or repeat step 2.
Step 2—Sleep Restriction
  • Identify How Much You Sleep — Calculate how much time you’re spending asleep, not in bed (e.g., 5 hours asleep).
  • Limit Time in Bed To Sleep Time — Spend only the amount of time you currently sleep, in bed (e.g., go to bed at 12AM and get up at 5AM).
  • Reduce Sleep Duration & Improve Quality — Sleep less total hours, improve efficiency, latency and restfulness.
  • Extend Time in Bed Gradually — As the time spent asleep, matches the time spent in bed, extend the window slowly

Lesson Resources

  1. 'Sleep should be prescribed': what those late nights out could be costing you By Rachel Cooke
  1. Extent and health consequences of chronic sleep loss and sleep disorders
  1. Rest, Recovery and Readiness: Proper sleep hygiene as a force multiplier By Col. David Romine, DO, MPH, USACRC Command Surgeon
  1. Avoid dementia with this one simple activity By Charlie Williams
  1. People react better to both negative and positive events with more sleep By University of British Columbia
  1. Sleep On It: How Snoozing Strengthens Memories By NIH news in health
  1. How sleep makes your mind more creative By Tom Stafford
  1. 5 Amazing things your brain does while you sleep By Carolyn Gregoire
  1. Brain sleep memory productivity By Dr. Jane George
  1. Sleep disorders and sleep deprivation: An unmet public health problem. By Colten HR
  1. Why we sleep: Unlocking the power of sleep and dreams By Matthew Walker
  1. 25 Terrifying Side Effects of Sleep Deprivation By Debbie Evans
  1. The organizational cost of insufficient sleep By McKinsey Quarterly
  1. The drive to sleep and our internal clock By Harvard Medical School
  1. Take a Break! Benefits of sleep and short breaks for daily work engagement By Jana KĂĽhnel
  1. The Read: The Science of Naps By Kirsten Weir
  1. Effects of caffeine on the human circadian clock in vivo and in vitro By Tina M. Burke
  1. Benefits of Sleep Research By Puya Yazdi
  1. How The Brain & Neurotransmitters Affect Sleep By Nattha Wannissorn
 
© THE FLOW RESEARCH COLLECTIVE
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