Viral Thread Explains Why You Should Always Get Enough Sleep, And The Frightening Effects Of Not Doing So
Remember the last time you had a fully well-rested all-nighter, aka 8 heavenly hours recommended by doctors? Yeah, primary school was great. ‘Cause many of us keep rollin’ on not even fairly enough hours of sleep, believing that brain fog is just a modern modus operandi.
But all jokes aside, not getting enough shut-eye time is seriously putting our bodies at risk. And one Twitter user has just done everyone a favor and listed all the reasons, loud and clear, just why sleep deprivation is so harmful.
From wrecking your immune system and weakening your arteries to waving off your emotional sanity, these are very eye-opening points to close them. With 133.5K likes and 52.6K retweets, the thread went viral, and we hope for a surge in good night emojis.
This Twitter user explained what not getting enough sleep does to our bodies and it went viral
Image credits: 1chigoko
Image credits: 1chigoko
Image credits: 1chigoko
Bored Panda reached out to Dr. Vicki Creanor, a Glasgow-based clinical psychologist with a specialization in sleep, to talk about just why getting a good night’s sleep is so important. Vicki emphasized that good quality sleep is so vital because it lets our bodies heal and reenergize.
It also has a great effect on our long-term aspects of life like memory, concentration, and emotional well-being. “We often see that those with poor sleep struggle to regulate their emotions as well as those who get good quality sleep each night,” explained Vicki.
Image credits: 1chigoko
Image credits: 1chigoko
Image credits: 1chigoko
However, the psychologist warned against the common misconception that everyone needs all 8 hours of sleep.
“It very much varies from person to person—you tend to know when you’ve not had enough sleep by how tired you feel upon waking or throughout the day,” Vicki commented. That’s why listening to our bodies is much more important than simply counting the hours spent with eyes closed.
Image credits: 1chigoko
Image credits: 1chigoko
Image credits: 1chigoko
Image credits: 1chigoko
Vicki also suggests adapting good sleep habits like “avoiding caffeine late in the day, keeping bed for sleep, and having a consistent wind-down routine before bed.” Plus, even though many find it challenging, “keeping technology out of the bedroom impacts hugely on quality of sleep.”
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Image credits: 1chigoko
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Image credits: 1chigoko
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Image credits: 1chigoko
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And many got seriously scared into sleeping
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Share on FacebookThis post is not helpful at all for all those people (including me) who have problems with sleeping. Of course i know insomnia is a health risk, reading these horror posts doesnt't help with my sleep issues. Makes it worse...
Even as a child I couldn't sleep. I'm in my forties and I still can't sleep. It sucks. I really, really want to sleep. But I don't think all that was for people like us. It was geared towards the people who stay up late on their devices, choosing not to go to sleep and screwing up their own sleep cycles like it's no big deal. Those people need to understand the consequences of that choice so they can be empowered to make better choices.
Load More Replies...PTSD has kept me up at night, but when I eventually pass out from exhaustion I'm down for 7 - 12 hours. Makes for short days.....
This post isn't for people who have problems sleeping, this post is for people who DON'T have problems sleeping but choose to stay awake anyways (for whatever reason). Clearly, if you have problems sleeping, seek out help of some kind. But if you are choosing to "stay up" then this post is sound advice.
I think it was a well intended thread, but the OP initially used drastic language that probably caused people some anxiety. It would have been better if it was backed up by statistics though, instead of scary facts! I think all in all ( as the OP said later on), while sleep is indisputably important, a few days of little to no sleep, or experiencing a sleeping disorder won’t kill you. The best thing you can do is keep yourself generally healthy and cut yourself some slack if you don’t sleep well. As an insomniac, I know how difficult it can be to get a full night’s rest!
Unfortunately for me, I naturally wake up after 4 hours. Not because of alarms, phone calls, just natural waking up. Even if I wanted, I can't sleep 8 hours with out drugs.
This is very general guidance. Other studies have shown that everyone's sleeping patterns are different and can vary with age, so for instance a younger person obviously sleeps more than an older person. But also someone may function just fine on 4 hours sleep a night with a nap in the afternoon whereas others may not function at all well unless they have had at least 7 hours sleep. There is no doubt that sleep is good for you, but individual sleeping patterns need to be taken into consideration. There is absolutely no evidence that poor sleep habits when young, have long term health effects, particularly if those sleep habits are corrected.
This goes out to all of you suffering from insomnia. Seek professional help. Take medication is necessary. There is sleeping medication that isn't addictive. Often a couple of weeks of medication and a really strict day/night routine get you back on track and from there further without medication but with sleep is possible. I've suffered alot. Badly. I feel all of you. I now have my routines, my meds, my sleep - it is worth it. You are worth it!
I've been searching for years. Nothing has worked for me so far.
Load More Replies...My mom is obese and pre-diabetic and she usually goes to bed at 2 to 4 am so she can relate.
Sleep is good, but 6/7 hours is more then enough for a lot of people. I never sleep more then 7 hours, and am still alive after 54 years.
I've had severe insomnia since I was in the 2nd or 3rd grade. I would absolutely love to get more sleep. Every part of the sleep process is difficult for me but the worst is trying to fall asleep. I've had every stage of sleep deprivation and at one point I called my hallucinations my friends because when they'd show it up meant I was getting ready to pass out, finally. I've been through every over the counter sleeping aid there is (Melatonin is a joke), tea's, and other 'make you sleep' stuff. The only reason I haven't gone the superscription route is because of how bad most of the side effects are. I would love to sleep. I would adore to, however there are just some of us who can't.
Right ! I'll just inform my 4yo, and from now on I'll be sleeping in every morning
i have insomnia but it's pretty well managed with medication, and due to my other chronic conditions i sleep anywhere from 12-22 hours at a time, with periods of awake time in between sleeps ranging from 6-36 hours. my mom is the same way. we're fortunate that we have no reason to make ourselves do otherwise, apart from occasional appointments that we break that schedule to meet.
This was pretty interesting to me.. the gaining weight thing due to lack of sleep I found to be super interesting because I wonder if that's my issue when it comes to my weight gain. Hmm, ionno.. I used to have insomnia when I was younger and I am definitely a night owl, so I am totally one of those people who stay up as late as possible, binging on my shows and or falling asleep to a show even though I have to get up at 6 every morning.
I am 56 years old and have had insomnia since I was 13. I can attest to all of the above. It's been particularly bad the last 5 years or so, luckily I have a sympathetic doctor who understands the importance of sleeps and prioritizes it at every visit.
I've always been an insomniac. The last handful of time I've been up 30-40+ hours (basically since hitting my early forty's) I've had a weird side effect - at some point I start to lose the ability to recognize faces. I can't watch TV since I have no idea what's going on. I usually can't game on my PC because I can't track the cursor, and reading? forget it...
Frankly...if you "a study found" just ignore this. There is a study out there for anything. If someone teaches us about health and medicine, they better properly cite the scientific literature. Without references, all of this might be right, it is still worthless.
And besides: tell young parenta that enough, regulat, straight, uninterrupted sleep is essential for good healthier. Slapping their faces is a nicer thing to do.
Load More Replies...I don't think the people this thread was targeting really care...I've seen too many students falling asleep after pulling all nighters, playing video games because "they don't have time during the day"
Great! If he can talk to my brain and tell it all of this maybe it will stop keeping me awake at night thinking things like ‘Why are The Simpsons yellow?’ and ‘I wonder what happened on my birthday in 1763’? and I could try this nightly 7 hour sleep thing he talks of.
Melatonin. Seriously, I don't know why but it makes my brain shut up
Load More Replies...This post is not helpful at all for all those people (including me) who have problems with sleeping. Of course i know insomnia is a health risk, reading these horror posts doesnt't help with my sleep issues. Makes it worse...
Even as a child I couldn't sleep. I'm in my forties and I still can't sleep. It sucks. I really, really want to sleep. But I don't think all that was for people like us. It was geared towards the people who stay up late on their devices, choosing not to go to sleep and screwing up their own sleep cycles like it's no big deal. Those people need to understand the consequences of that choice so they can be empowered to make better choices.
Load More Replies...PTSD has kept me up at night, but when I eventually pass out from exhaustion I'm down for 7 - 12 hours. Makes for short days.....
This post isn't for people who have problems sleeping, this post is for people who DON'T have problems sleeping but choose to stay awake anyways (for whatever reason). Clearly, if you have problems sleeping, seek out help of some kind. But if you are choosing to "stay up" then this post is sound advice.
I think it was a well intended thread, but the OP initially used drastic language that probably caused people some anxiety. It would have been better if it was backed up by statistics though, instead of scary facts! I think all in all ( as the OP said later on), while sleep is indisputably important, a few days of little to no sleep, or experiencing a sleeping disorder won’t kill you. The best thing you can do is keep yourself generally healthy and cut yourself some slack if you don’t sleep well. As an insomniac, I know how difficult it can be to get a full night’s rest!
Unfortunately for me, I naturally wake up after 4 hours. Not because of alarms, phone calls, just natural waking up. Even if I wanted, I can't sleep 8 hours with out drugs.
This is very general guidance. Other studies have shown that everyone's sleeping patterns are different and can vary with age, so for instance a younger person obviously sleeps more than an older person. But also someone may function just fine on 4 hours sleep a night with a nap in the afternoon whereas others may not function at all well unless they have had at least 7 hours sleep. There is no doubt that sleep is good for you, but individual sleeping patterns need to be taken into consideration. There is absolutely no evidence that poor sleep habits when young, have long term health effects, particularly if those sleep habits are corrected.
This goes out to all of you suffering from insomnia. Seek professional help. Take medication is necessary. There is sleeping medication that isn't addictive. Often a couple of weeks of medication and a really strict day/night routine get you back on track and from there further without medication but with sleep is possible. I've suffered alot. Badly. I feel all of you. I now have my routines, my meds, my sleep - it is worth it. You are worth it!
I've been searching for years. Nothing has worked for me so far.
Load More Replies...My mom is obese and pre-diabetic and she usually goes to bed at 2 to 4 am so she can relate.
Sleep is good, but 6/7 hours is more then enough for a lot of people. I never sleep more then 7 hours, and am still alive after 54 years.
I've had severe insomnia since I was in the 2nd or 3rd grade. I would absolutely love to get more sleep. Every part of the sleep process is difficult for me but the worst is trying to fall asleep. I've had every stage of sleep deprivation and at one point I called my hallucinations my friends because when they'd show it up meant I was getting ready to pass out, finally. I've been through every over the counter sleeping aid there is (Melatonin is a joke), tea's, and other 'make you sleep' stuff. The only reason I haven't gone the superscription route is because of how bad most of the side effects are. I would love to sleep. I would adore to, however there are just some of us who can't.
Right ! I'll just inform my 4yo, and from now on I'll be sleeping in every morning
i have insomnia but it's pretty well managed with medication, and due to my other chronic conditions i sleep anywhere from 12-22 hours at a time, with periods of awake time in between sleeps ranging from 6-36 hours. my mom is the same way. we're fortunate that we have no reason to make ourselves do otherwise, apart from occasional appointments that we break that schedule to meet.
This was pretty interesting to me.. the gaining weight thing due to lack of sleep I found to be super interesting because I wonder if that's my issue when it comes to my weight gain. Hmm, ionno.. I used to have insomnia when I was younger and I am definitely a night owl, so I am totally one of those people who stay up as late as possible, binging on my shows and or falling asleep to a show even though I have to get up at 6 every morning.
I am 56 years old and have had insomnia since I was 13. I can attest to all of the above. It's been particularly bad the last 5 years or so, luckily I have a sympathetic doctor who understands the importance of sleeps and prioritizes it at every visit.
I've always been an insomniac. The last handful of time I've been up 30-40+ hours (basically since hitting my early forty's) I've had a weird side effect - at some point I start to lose the ability to recognize faces. I can't watch TV since I have no idea what's going on. I usually can't game on my PC because I can't track the cursor, and reading? forget it...
Frankly...if you "a study found" just ignore this. There is a study out there for anything. If someone teaches us about health and medicine, they better properly cite the scientific literature. Without references, all of this might be right, it is still worthless.
And besides: tell young parenta that enough, regulat, straight, uninterrupted sleep is essential for good healthier. Slapping their faces is a nicer thing to do.
Load More Replies...I don't think the people this thread was targeting really care...I've seen too many students falling asleep after pulling all nighters, playing video games because "they don't have time during the day"
Great! If he can talk to my brain and tell it all of this maybe it will stop keeping me awake at night thinking things like ‘Why are The Simpsons yellow?’ and ‘I wonder what happened on my birthday in 1763’? and I could try this nightly 7 hour sleep thing he talks of.
Melatonin. Seriously, I don't know why but it makes my brain shut up
Load More Replies...
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