Sleep and Your Mental Health

Having good sleep hygiene and getting a good night's sleep are essential to your well-being and mental health. It's important to have an inviting environment to promote relaxation so be sure to invest in a good mattress, pillow, and sheets. Sometimes scents such as lavender can encourage tranquility. Additionally, it is crucial to wake up at the same time each day. Another way to sleep better is to get at least 20 minutes of physical activity each day. You can monitor your sleep by keeping a sleep journal and tracking what may be hindering you from a good night's sleep; if you have an apple watch you can also download a sleep app that helps you keep track of the hours of restful sleep you get each night. Drinking alcohol before bedtime will be disruptive to your sleep because even though it may help you get to sleep, it will negatively impact your deep sleep.

Sleep is important to your overall well-being because it affects all of the organs in your body. Dr. Michael Twery, a sleep expert at NIH states, “It affects growth and stress hormones, our immune system, appetite, breathing, blood pressure and cardiovascular health."

According to the sleep foundation, sleep plays a significant role in synchronizing the production of hormones including melatonin which helps promote sleep, growth hormone which supports muscle and bone development in addition to metabolism, cortisol which is a portion of the body's stress response system, and leptin and ghrelin which influence appetite.

If you are still struggling to get a good night's sleep after implementing a good sleep hygiene routine and you live in Maryland, you can make an appointment with me by filling out the contact form and we can discuss medication options to help optimize your sleep.