SLEEP HEALTH
We all know sleep is important, we’ve been told this our whole lives. But how important is it really? Let’s talk about a healthy sleep schedule according to Ayurveda, the benefits and detox processes that happen when we sleep, and the spiritual side of sleep.
Healthy Sleep Routine
According to Ayurveda, sleep is one of the three main pillars of life alongside diet and lifestyle. If you treat sleep as a dispensable part of your day, you might want to think again. Around 10pm, our liver begins to detox. The liver is a powerhouse organ that regulates so many of our body’s functions. When we don’t give our liver proper time to rest and detox, we become overheated, accumulate toxic waste, and begin to feel emotionally “off” and exhausted. The more time you can leave your body to sleep before 12pm, the better. Being in bed, drifting off to sleep BY 10PM is crucial. If you like to go to bed earlier or have the ability to, even better.
Some ways to wind down for the night:
Finish eating by 7pm (do not eat after 8pm). In general, dinner should be your lightest meal. Eating too heavily before bed can make you toss and turn. Your Agni (digestive fire) is also very low at night and doesn’t have the same capacity to digest as it does when the sun is out.
Electronics off 1 hour before sleep
If you have trouble sleeping, drink a golden milk with a dash of nutmeg to promote deep sleep
Do not read before bed (this stimulates mental activity and inhibits sleep)
Do some light stretches and legs up the wall to relax the muscles before bed
Give yourself a castor oil foot massage. This brings vata down, grounding the body. Add a few drops of lavender for extra relaxation.
Do some meditation, processing the day and resolving anything from the day before you enter into sleep.
Sleep Detox
What really happens when we sleep? Sleep is like detoxing free of effort. No green juice or salad involved. Let’s examine just a few of the body’s processes that magically happen while we rest:
Lymph Drainage: as we sleep, the lymphatic system drains, removing waste products, toxins, and cellular debris that we have accumulated throughout the day. This supports our immune system, reduces inflammation, and prevents the buildup of harmful waste in the body.
Liver detox: the liver is responsible for detoxing our body. When our liver is healthy, we are usually healthy. One way we can support our liver is by getting to sleep on time (10PM!). The liver removes harmful substances. When we don’t sleep on time, we sometimes get a second wind. This is our liver waking up again, instead of using its energy to detox.
Brain detoxification: through sleep, we give our brain a chance to process and rest. This ensures optimal function of all the body’s processes, as well as supporting our emotional wellbeing.
Blood and kidney detox: the kidneys filter our blood every 45 minutes. They are very busy and are supported when we support them by resting. The blood is life. When our blood is clean and healthy, all of our cells get nutrients and there is free flow throughout the body.
Spiritual Aspect of Sleep
Many ancient traditions from around the world recognize the dream world as a portal into our inner world. Our dreams are an interpretation of the spirit world reorganizing and integrating the information from our day. Ayurveda describes dreams as often being vata, pitta, or kapha. This can show you where you may be imbalanced based on the types of dreams you are having. Dreams can show us physical diseases, predict future events, show us where we need to clear emotional heaviness, and bring us clarity and insight into our lives. Overall, dreams are meant to be used as a tool to examine ourselves and balance ourselves out where needed. We are continuing our spiritual work when we sleep through our dream state.
This is just a basic overview of sleep. If you need more support with your sleep health, please reach out.
