Nobody pays much attention to the importance of sleep, but sleep is critical for revitalizing the body and rejuvenating the mind. However, how to know if we have had enough sleep? There are many people who wake up during the night, and they wonder if they have a sleep disorder of some kind.
Well, sleep disorders are common, but it is also a possibility that sleep in not an all-night thing. Actually, according to historical records, ancient references and literature which is centuries old, there is a whole new way to look sleep.
Segmented Sleep
If you are frequently waking up in the middle of the night, then you could be suffering from sleep apnea or insomnia. “Segmented sleep” seems like an irregular sleep pattern, but this might not be a disorder at all, yet a natural biological response.
Roger Ekirch, who is an English scholar cemented the notion that the ancestor used to practice segmented sleep in a natural way. The ancestors used to wake in the middle of the night and spend that time finishing chores round their home, meditating or praying. According to many people, this was the most relaxing period. This might be due to the fact that the time between first and second sleep is around midnight, when the brain produces prolactin, which provides a person with a feeling of relaxation.
A Number of Sleeping Problems Are Due to the Natural Preference of the Human Body for Segmented Sleep
Ekirch thinks that the historical sleeping patterns might be the cause for the “sleep maintenance insomnia”. People with this condition wake up in the middle of the night and cannot fall asleep again. The first cases of this condition date back to the 19th century.
According to Greg Jacobs, a psychologist, waking up in the middle of the night is normal, and the notion that we have to sleep in consolidated block might be damaging. He adds that if that makes people anxious, the anxiety itself can prevent sleep and cause waking.
Russell Foster, a professor at Oxford said that a number of people wake up during the night and start to panic. He adds that he tries to explain to them that that experience is a throwback to the bi-modal sleeping patterns and that most doctors still fail to acknowledge that an eight-hour sleep is not natural. More than 30% of all medical conditions are directly or indirectly originates from sleep.
Keep This in Mind before Taking a Sleeping Pill
Exposure to darkness and light governs our natural biorhythms. Prior to the invention of the light bulb, everybody organized their days round the rising and the setting of the sun.
Source: theheartysoul.com
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