Tammi's World

So, How'd You Sleep Last Nite??

I've hinted several times at the product I sell. I've mentioned sleep, stores, mattress, etc. So I might as well just come clean and tell you. That way I can give you a bit of a lecture and you'll know I'm trained on what I'm talking about. I am a sales rep for a mattress company. Yeah folks, I sell mattresses. Doesn't sound all that interesting, but it is. I've learned so much about sleep and how vital it is. I've been to more training than you can shake a stick at. So, while not a PhD I am a bit of an expert.

One of the questions I press my sales associates to always ask a consumer is "How'd you sleep last night." It gets the customer talking and helps them realize that maybe they didn't sleep so well, maybe a new mattress would help.

What I want to talk about here is how sleep deficit really does effect the quality of your life. Did you know that having 1 drink on 6 hours sleep effects your body like 6 drinks on 8 hours sleep? Really, it does. 6 hours of sleep or less = 50% lower resistance to viral infections. One hour of sleep deprivation = 25% loss in productivity. Quality of sleep is as important as quantity of sleep.

Getting a good nights sleep is important. I know. What's so funny about me being in this business is that I have always suffered from insomnia. I used to go 3 days without sleep then crash for a day and do it all over again. I was always sick, always in a bad mood and generally not a nice person to be around. When I got this job, I was actually relieved to know it was lack of sleep and not some mental condition. (At least not totally!)

So......what can we do to help promote a good nights sleep? Well, make sure you have a good mattress. That is really important. It should support your body and not cause any pressure point pains. Every brand has good and not so good mattresses. You have to try them out. You have to lay on them to know if they are right for you. And I'm not talking sitting on the edge and bouncing - stretch out on that bad boy. Lay there for a while. Roll over on your side. Close your eyes. FEEL the damn mattress. It's ok. Nobody's gonna laugh at your or take advantage of you. If you don't do that, the chances of getting a mattress that isn't right for you are pretty strong. Also - if you have an older mattress, remember the first bed you lay on is gonna feel like heaven. Its new, its better, but it may not be right. Try out 2 or three. This isn't a decision you should make in a short period of time. Oh - and it's one of those instances where you really do get what you pay for. If it seems like the deal is too good to be true, it is. Believe me, not all mattresses are made the same.

Also - make your bedroom a haven. It should be dark, quiet and comfortable. If it's too hot or cold that will disturb your sleep. If you've got blinking neon lights outside or are constantly being woke up due to loud noices, do what you can to minimize that.

I'm not going to bore you with all the technical talk about sleep cycles and such. If you are interested in learning more about sleep, how important it is to the quality of your life and how to get a better nights sleep I suggest the book Power Sleep by Dr. James Maas. He has several other books out there that deal with sleep and sleep issues. Really, it's interesting stuff.

Posted by Tammi at July 9, 2004 09:28 AM | TrackBack