Reflexology Pre-Treatment Video. Fun!
This blog is for the person wondering how to fit it all in: Wellness and work. Folks are wondering how is it possible to get quality rest, relaxation and sleep with the demands of the day. One answer: Take a nap to make up for lost hours of sleep. However, all of this is not just a numbers game—quality matters. For me, now that my once chaotic home sphere is handled and beautifully orderly, I am moving into mastering R&R.
We have now moved into the “R” of SPR™: Recover.
Ever wondered how much sleep is enough sleep? How is it possible to sleep for 8 hours and still be fatigued? Could one pay back his/her “sleep debt”? What does the REM cycle mean and look like?
Or
How to recover from surgery with fewer painkillers? What complimentary therapies exist for postoperative patients? What is reflexology after all?
What is recommended is 7.5 – 9 hours of sleep for adults over 18. Usually what follows this statement is others laden with incredulity: “Yeah, right, who gets that much anyway? Well a recommendation is not always reality.”
Not this time. No one says that you have to get it all at the same time. You can take a one or two-hour nap during the day—I recommend after work. This can be preemptive—building buffer into your sleep time just in case you lose it somewhere else in the week—or reactive—trying to catch up on sleep already missed.
Important to note: “If you’re giving yourself plenty of time for sleep, but you’re still having trouble waking up in the morning or staying alert all day, you may not be spending enough time in the different stages of sleep—especially deep sleep and REM sleep.” (http://www.helpguide.org/life/sleeping.htm)
There are two main types of sleep. Each is restorative and needed. Pictured below is what a sleepy cycle looks like:
We have now moved into the “R” of SPR™: Recover.
Ever wondered how much sleep is enough sleep? How is it possible to sleep for 8 hours and still be fatigued? Could one pay back his/her “sleep debt”? What does the REM cycle mean and look like?
Or
How to recover from surgery with fewer painkillers? What complimentary therapies exist for postoperative patients? What is reflexology after all?
What is recommended is 7.5 – 9 hours of sleep for adults over 18. Usually what follows this statement is others laden with incredulity: “Yeah, right, who gets that much anyway? Well a recommendation is not always reality.”
Not this time. No one says that you have to get it all at the same time. You can take a one or two-hour nap during the day—I recommend after work. This can be preemptive—building buffer into your sleep time just in case you lose it somewhere else in the week—or reactive—trying to catch up on sleep already missed.
Important to note: “If you’re giving yourself plenty of time for sleep, but you’re still having trouble waking up in the morning or staying alert all day, you may not be spending enough time in the different stages of sleep—especially deep sleep and REM sleep.” (http://www.helpguide.org/life/sleeping.htm)
There are two main types of sleep. Each is restorative and needed. Pictured below is what a sleepy cycle looks like:
- Non-REM (NREM) sleep consists of four stages of sleep, each deeper than the last.
- REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep is when you do most active dreaming. Your eyes actually move back and forth during this stage, which is why it is called Rapid Eye Movement sleep.
There is a way to repay your sleep debt as this one comprehensive article “How Much Sleep Do You Need?: Sleep Cycles & Stages, Lack of Sleep, and Getting the Hours You Need” shares:
Paying off your sleep debt (Section in “How Much Sleep Do You Need?: Sleep Cycles & Stages, Lack of Sleep, and Getting the Hours You Need") Sleep debt is the difference between the amount of sleep you need and the hours you actually get. Every time you sacrifice on sleep, you add to the debt. Eventually, the debt will have to be repaid. It won’t go away on its own. If you lose an hour of sleep, you must make up that extra hour somewhere down the line in order to bring your “account” back into balance.
Tips for getting and staying out of sleep debt While you can’t pay off sleep debt in a night or even a weekend, with a little effort and planning, you can get back on track.
I was hoping to do something like this when I went on vacation the 15th – 19th, but one cannot really start something like the above while preparing an apartment for a new roommate.
I typically go to bed for 5 – 6 hours: 11pm/12am and wake 5am/6am. It has been less and it has been more. But lately, it has been five.
Paying off your sleep debt (Section in “How Much Sleep Do You Need?: Sleep Cycles & Stages, Lack of Sleep, and Getting the Hours You Need") Sleep debt is the difference between the amount of sleep you need and the hours you actually get. Every time you sacrifice on sleep, you add to the debt. Eventually, the debt will have to be repaid. It won’t go away on its own. If you lose an hour of sleep, you must make up that extra hour somewhere down the line in order to bring your “account” back into balance.
Tips for getting and staying out of sleep debt While you can’t pay off sleep debt in a night or even a weekend, with a little effort and planning, you can get back on track.
- Aim for at least 7.5 hours of sleep every night. Make sure you don’t fall farther in debt by blocking off enough time for sleep each night. Consistency is the key.
- Settle short-term sleep debt with an extra hour or two per night. If you lost 10 hours of sleep, pay the debt back in nightly one or two-hour installments.
- Keep a sleep diary. Record when you go to bed, when you get up, your total hours of sleep, and how you feel during the day. As you keep track of your sleep, you’ll discover your natural patterns and get to know your sleep needs. Click here to download Helpguide’s sleep diary.
- Take a sleep vacation to pay off a long-term sleep debt. Pick a two-week period when you have a flexible schedule. Go to bed at the same time every night and allow yourself to sleep until you wake up naturally. No alarm clocks! If you continue to keep the same bedtime and wake up naturally, you’ll eventually dig your way out of debt and arrive at the sleep schedule that’s ideal for you.
- Make sleep a priority. Just as you schedule time for work and other commitments, you should schedule enough time for sleep. Instead of cutting back on sleep in order to tackle the rest of your daily tasks, put sleep at the top of your to-do list.
I was hoping to do something like this when I went on vacation the 15th – 19th, but one cannot really start something like the above while preparing an apartment for a new roommate.
I typically go to bed for 5 – 6 hours: 11pm/12am and wake 5am/6am. It has been less and it has been more. But lately, it has been five.
With the 5.8 earthquake August 23rd that hit the East Coast, the approaching hurricane (Irene) coming the weekend and the list of natural disasters that hit this year, it is clear that our Earth is bracing herself for some seismic changes.
In this milieu, I have been feeling greater calling to share my message for healing all over and developing my skills as a practitioner. To withstand the coming changes, it is imperative that we be well. Synergistically, avenues for development and teachers/guides have been emerging since my obedience to the call. I have particularly begun an interest in reflexology amongst other wellness therapies.
Philadelphia Introductions to Reflexology Class September 6th & 7th 6:30pm – 9pm. Call: 215-240-6360.
Neat fact on reflexology: Reflexology could be an effective way to relieve postoperative pain.
Tense bodies feel more pain. Thus massage can assist with postoperative care both physically and psychologically. In a Science Daily piece with research led by University of California San Francisco, it shared that postoperative patients who receive regular massage therapy, like daily foot massage or back massage, may experience less pain than their counterparts who are not massaged.
There is a foot-body connection. Reflexology is founded on the theory that the control center for the whole body is in our hands and feet. It splits the body into zones versus meridian points found in acupuncture. The control strings connected to one’s heart, liver, stomach, colon, etc, can be found in the endings of our hands and feet.
I will share how the class next week goes.
The instructor for the reflexology class with whom I spoke shared a bit of the African origins of reflexology and learning how to gather wild herbs as a compliment. We were vibe-ing off of the clarity that recovery is both science and art. It takes study and focus—and often a pleasant guide who is willing to open up his/her heart and life to those students who are ready to do the same.
In this milieu, I have been feeling greater calling to share my message for healing all over and developing my skills as a practitioner. To withstand the coming changes, it is imperative that we be well. Synergistically, avenues for development and teachers/guides have been emerging since my obedience to the call. I have particularly begun an interest in reflexology amongst other wellness therapies.
Philadelphia Introductions to Reflexology Class September 6th & 7th 6:30pm – 9pm. Call: 215-240-6360.
Neat fact on reflexology: Reflexology could be an effective way to relieve postoperative pain.
Tense bodies feel more pain. Thus massage can assist with postoperative care both physically and psychologically. In a Science Daily piece with research led by University of California San Francisco, it shared that postoperative patients who receive regular massage therapy, like daily foot massage or back massage, may experience less pain than their counterparts who are not massaged.
There is a foot-body connection. Reflexology is founded on the theory that the control center for the whole body is in our hands and feet. It splits the body into zones versus meridian points found in acupuncture. The control strings connected to one’s heart, liver, stomach, colon, etc, can be found in the endings of our hands and feet.
I will share how the class next week goes.
The instructor for the reflexology class with whom I spoke shared a bit of the African origins of reflexology and learning how to gather wild herbs as a compliment. We were vibe-ing off of the clarity that recovery is both science and art. It takes study and focus—and often a pleasant guide who is willing to open up his/her heart and life to those students who are ready to do the same.
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