For years, I didn't appreciate my need for sleep nor how the lack of sleep impacted EVERY area of my life. When my children were younger, like many moms, I thought the only time I had to get things done was after everyone was asleep. In my defense, it was the only time I had a quiet house and uninterrupted time. For years, I used that time from 10 pm- 2 am to watch television, read, work, prep, catch up on emails, worry, create, and brainstorm. While I felt productive at night, I was exhausted the next day. To help me stay awake, I ate. After repeating these habits over and over, I started to gain weight. That led to frustration and emotional eating, which led to more weight gain. But I could push through. I didn't recognize how sleep deprivation impacted my quality of life.
Ironically, as parents, we know how a lack of sleep impacts our children. They are cranky, easily frustrated, have less impulse control, and are just curmudgeons. So, we prioritize their sleep. We will do contortions to ensure they get enough sleep- especially 'that' child. Unfortunately, we can overlook the same symptoms in ourselves.
Over time, I began to prioritize my sleep and found that I could be more productive with a fresh mind at 5 am after getting a whole night's sleep than I was from staying up until 2 am. My 2 am emails didn't always make sense, requiring me to rewrite or edit them the next day. So, I was doing twice the work- I realized I needed to save myself the time I initially thought I was.
Last year, I learned about Matthew Walker and was blown away! His Book, Why We Sleep, is fantastic, although I found it a more challenging read- it's so dense. A few weeks ago, I learned about his Master Class! It's equally impressive, and I can't recommend it enough. Here's to sleeping better!
If you're curious about the impact of sleep on your finances, consider joining the 75-day Finance Challenge.
Ty Salvant uses her experience as a homeschooling mom to advocate and advise women on how to modify their expectations of motherhood to include space for women to practice self-care as a form of self-love and self-compassion. Author of The Alphabet of You and A Mother's Reflection, Ty relishes speaking opportunities on either book.