REM Talk

How our bodies cope

In the past I’ve talked about the serious consequences that one can encounter when they are serious lacking in REM sleep. As I’ve mentioned, when our brains do not get enough REM sleep we can feel very exhausted all the time, feel weak and are even more susceptible to illness and disease. Lack of REM breaks down our bodies to the point that we feel unwell on a regular basis. But, did you know that our bodies will begin to get the REM sleep it needs if were lacking in it for a long period of time?

This isn’t to say that you should put your body through the stress of needing to make the change of getting into REM mode quicker, but when our bodies begin to adjust to lack of REM, our brains will be able to enter the REM phase of sleep as a quicker rate- allowing us to get the restorative sleep we need. You’re not going to feel as you wouldn’t feel with a good night’s sleep, because in order to get into the REM sleep phase quicker, your brain goes through the other phases of sleep much quicker than it should.

If you’re lacking in sleep, you may notice that all of a sudden you seem to be feeling better and adjusting more to having a lot less sleep. This is because your brain has adjusted to this change. It is best not to put yourself through this though because before your brain can adjust, your body will go through all of the negative aspects from lack of REM and this can last for several weeks.

Exercise to increase REM sleep

Many people don’t realize that exercise is actually one way in which we can help our bodies to wind down at night and get more REM sleep. While you shouldn’t exercise right before bed because it can make it harder to actually fall asleep, exercising earlier in the day will help your body relieve the extra stress and release feel good chemicals that will help you to sleep longer and deeper during the night.

If you looking to exercise to help increase your REM, just doing a short 20 minute workout in the afternoon will be beneficial. You can choose any type of exercise activity you’d like, as long as it is something that gets your heart pumping and the blood flowing. You should try to avoid exercise any time after 3, as the body can stayed wound up a while after completing the routine.

Not ony will exercise help you to increase the amount of REM you get during the night, it will help you to feel better and more energized during the day. When we exercise, we get the highest amount of oxygen to our brains. Excess oxygen helps our bodies produce energy and thus relax more. The extra oxygen also helps our memory and our overall well-being. Having a regular exercise routine is a great thing to add to your daily life in order to sleep better, increase your REM and just feel better on an everyday basis. Encouraging your partner and/or children to complete a short routine will help their mood and sleep as well.

New parents are seriously lacking in REM sleep

Those of you who are new parents or know someone who is, you are seeing lack of REM sleep at its finest. New parents are not only lacking from sleep, they are seriously lacking in REM sleep. Even if they do have time to get a little sleep in before baby gets up- the body doesn’t have enough time to go into REM mode, meaning that the sleep that they get honestly isn’t that beneficial in the first place.

New parents often feel very wear. They don’t have the energy they had post baby, and while they are correct by attributing this to lack of sleep, many don’t realize that it’s the REM stage. Single parents are even more deprived on REM because they can’t have their significant other take turns checking on baby, but it doesn’t really matter because if you are in a relationship, you’re still going to wake when babies crying- regardless if you’re the one going to check on them or not.

New parents can also often feel like their ‘head is in a cloud’, unable to think straight, forgetting things easier and so on. This is why so many new parents have to make lists that include even small reminders, such as; when it’s time to change baby’s diaper or feed them their bottle. For women- just get used to it. If you didn’t lose out on enough REM during your pregnancy because of the aching back, swollen ankles and inability to get comfortable, sleep deprivation is only in its beginning stages for you.

Consequences of not getting enough REM

Those of you, who have been reading up on REM sleep, know that it is a vital part of our well-being. We could sleep for 10 hours straight, but if we are not getting the right amount of REM sleep, we’re going to feel absolutely terrible, as if we haven’t slept at all. When your body doesn’t get REM sleep, it doesn’t have the ability to rejuvenate itself. It doesn’t rest and isn’t ready to take on more without that rest. So how can you determine if you’re getting enough REM sleep?

It’s not like you can test your brain and see if you’re getting enough REM sleep, so it’s important to pay attention to the signs of not getting enough. When you’re not getting enough REM sleep, you’ll often feel tired upon awakening in the morning. When you get enough REM sleep, the morning is full of energy and you can tell that your body got the rest it needed. When you’re not getting enough REM sleep, you’ll often feel as if you need a nap when the early afternoon approaches, as if you’re tired all the time and you may even experience symptoms of depression. When our body doesn’t get the rest it needs, it can show this by even presenting itself as a mental health issue such as; anxiety and depression, causing our sleep to get even worse.

So what can you do? If there is no medical reason as to why you’re sleeping isn’t great at night- you can begin looking into other alternatives. Practicing meditation and finding the right relaxation supplement can help you increase the amount of REM sleep you get during the night. Just increasing the amount slightly will have big benefits on how you feel each day.

Melatonin to increase REM?

Melatonin is a hormone that our brain produces when we are becoming sleepy. It is not so much a relaxing hormone, as this supplement is not typically used for anxiety, but more of a sleep enhancer. Melatonin is commonly sold on the market as a sleep aid and it is said to increase the amount of REM sleep we get each night. The thing amount this hormone is it’s only beneficial for those who are lacking the proper amount of melatonin in their brains.

It’s hard to tell if you have enough melatonin or not, but it is said that melatonin decreases as we become older. We have a ton of the hormone as children and by the time we are 80, we have practically none. Other things play a role in the amount of melatonin we have as well, for example; people who take an anti-depressant tend to have less melatonin than those who do not.

If you don’t feel rested when you wake up in the morning, or wake up several times during the night- melatonin may prove to be beneficial for you. You can test the supplement by starting a one half milligram and increasing your dosage until you find the one that is right for you. If you are in need of melatonin, the supplement will increase the amount of REM sleep you get each night, prevent you from waking up several times per night and benefit your sleep cycle immensely. Some people experience nightmares from the supplement and that’s why it is important that you start off slow. It can be found for purchase at pretty much every health food store.

Using guided imagery meditation to increase your REM sleep.

If any of you have ever heard of guided imagery, you know the many benefits that come with this type of meditation technique. Guided imagery is the process of taking your body on a meditation journey guided by images while in a relaxed state. The guided imagery journey can be directed by oneself, but is typically directed by an outside party in order to make the meditation more effective.

Because of the relaxed state a person is able to reach when practicing guided imagery meditation, they are able to increase the amount of REM sleep they get each night. When you practice this method, it allows your mind to unwind and relax before entering its restorative state. When the mind is at its most relaxed state, it can fall into a deeper sleep much quicker and enter the REM stage for longer periods of time.

If you are not familiar with guided imagery meditation, there are many CD’s available through local and online vendors that can make you familiar with the technique. When using the method to increase the amount of REM sleep you’re getting, it is best to use the method before you go to bed and not to try and fight your sleep when your body is falling into that state. Many people feel they will not get the benefits of the meditation if they are to fall asleep during the process, but our body hears the messages at a subconscious level. Therefor falling asleep during this particular meditation process is most beneficial.

Are you getting enough REM sleep?

REM, also known as rapid eye movement, is the deepest and most effective sleeping phase we go through. Many people wonder why they are still tired when they slept for hours. The reason is because REM is the most difficult sleep stage to reach. Our bodies reach this stage several times during the night and it is the only time during sleep that our bodies truly rejuvenate. If you are a light sleeper, wake often, worry or have a hard time falling asleep- it is more difficult for your body to reach the REM sleep phase, causing daily exhaustion. Luckily, there are activities you can take part in to increase the amount of REM sleep you achieve.

Meditation is one of the best ways for our bodies to unwind at nighttime, reach a deep level of relaxation and successful enter the REM sleep stage. When we take some time to relax our minds and bodies, we’re able to sleep more soundly, wake less and thus feel more rested in the morning.

For those who practice meditation relaxation yet still have a hard time falling asleep, you may want to consider alternative methods. Calms Forte is a homeopathic sleep aid available on the market. It is the #1 selling sleep aid in America and contains only natural ingredients. A medication such as this is great for optimizing REM sleep because it allows our minds to relax and fall asleep naturally, without the sedating effects of a traditional sleeping medication. You can take it in the middle of the night if you wake and still wake up refreshed only a few hours later. I have used to natural sleep aid successfully for years and have increased my REM sleep immensely.