Page 11 - Stress,anxiety

you are stressed is because you are not supposed to

be able to sleep in this state. Lets go back to our

bear example. If a bear were stalking you, would

you want to be able to close your eyes and go to

sleep? No! You would want to be as awake and

aware as possible. This would help insure your

survival. The SNS is designed to keep you at a high

state of alertness. The PNS is what helps you fall

asleep.

Cognitive difficulties/ Memory problems

Where the short term effects of not sleeping well -

exhaustion, poor focus, bad mood - may be bad,

the long term effects may be even worse. There is

research that shows that your brain cleans out its

wastes when you are in a deep state of sleep. If you

do not get into a deep state of sleep, the brain

cleans out its wastes less efficiently or not at all.

This retention of wastes is beginning to be linked to

neurological problems including Alzheimer's

disease. Please note that this does not mean that

poor sleep CAUSES Alzheimer's disease but it may

be one of the factors that contribute to it.