Second Cup: In a fog, Try sleeping more

A surefire way to keep your brain sharp

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning.
This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's
tip is that getting more sleep can solve a lot
of problems. If you are feeling distracted or unproductive, getting

(00:27):
even a little more sleep could help a lot. I
know that is easier said than done, but even in
tough situations it might be possible, and facing the day
feeling alert and clearheaded is worth making big changes. For
this week, we're going to be talking about ways to

(00:49):
take care of our brains. If we want to take
our days from great to awesome, being on top of
our mental games can help a lot. Our brains are
the most important productivity tools we have now and in
the future too, so we want to keep these tools
as sharp as possible. This brings us to today's tip.

(01:15):
Sleep is honestly one of the best mind sharpening tools
out there. When I was scrolling through Twitter recently, Yes,
someone I followed posted this revelation. She had gotten in
bed early and slept until a civilized time in the morning.
The most miraculous thing had happened. Her distractability had completely disappeared.

(01:42):
She was focused. Was this what she had been missing
her entire adult life. It is quite possible. While people
on the whole are not sleep deprived from a numerical perspective,
many adults adopt disorderly sleeping habits that keep us feeling

(02:03):
either fatigued or out of control. We stay up too
late one night and then crash on the couch in
front of the TV. The next night. We get up
earlier than we'd like a few days in a row,
and then sleep through an alarm and start the day
in a panic. A lot of this happens because many
of us view sleep as an unfortunate necessity. We have

(02:27):
to do it, so we go to bed grudgingly. There
are so many things we would rather do with our time.
But here's an idea. How about viewing adequate, orderly sleep
as a secret weapon. When we are well rested, we
can function far better than when we're tired, when we

(02:51):
feel like we are in a fog. Getting more sleep
can make what seemed challenging feel crystal clear. I see
this personally all the time. I was feeling earlier this
week like I couldn't get anything done. Then I managed
to sleep eight hours two nights in a row, and

(03:12):
today I am planning all the courses I want to
launch in the new year. For some people, getting more
orderly and adequate sleep is straightforward. Give yourself a bedtime.
If you need to set your alarm for a certain
time in the morning, count back the number of hours
you need to sleep. For most adults, this is seven

(03:35):
to eight hours per day. Try seven and a half.
If you're not sure your bedtime, that is, seven and
a half hours before your alarm goes off in the
morning is when you need to be going to sleep,
So you need to set another alarm for approximately thirty
minutes before that bedtime so you can wind down, brush

(03:56):
your teeth, and so forth. You can change this time
by an hour or so on weekends or holidays, but
any more than that is going to put you right
back into that fog. It probably isn't worth it. I mean,
unless it's really worth it, Like we're talking your own
wedding here, not much else. If you're not sure this

(04:19):
experiment is going to be worth it of giving yourself
a bed time, just try it for a week or two.
You might be so surprised at your level of productivity
that you won't believe you skip that feeling just to
get an extra hour of scrolling or household puttering at night.
Of course, there are many of us for whom this
is not so straightforward. Trust me, I wasn't feeling in

(04:44):
a fog because I wanted to be up in the
middle of the night or at five AM. I would
love to get more orderly sleep. However, I have also
spent the past fourteen years raising five children who have
not been naturally great sleepers during baby and toddlerhood. I
am sure many listeners are going through similar rough patches.

(05:08):
Some people may have family members with complex medical conditions,
and caring for them means more interrupted nights than not.
Sometimes our own health problems can interfere with sleep. I
absolutely get this, and I know that lectures to get
more sleep often just feel like adding insult to injury.

(05:34):
For those of us where this is the case, we
have to acknowledge that there is much we can't control. However,
there are still some things we can control. If my
toddler has gone to bed at a reasonable time, I
can choose to be in bed at ten instead of
ten thirty or eleven, and that extra thirty to sixty

(05:56):
minutes of sleep already banked can make a big difference.
If there is a middle of the night wake up
or a very early morning, I can arrange my schedule
and work from home days to make sure there's at
least sixty minutes of open time in the afternoon. That way,
I can take a nap if I need to. If
things are really bad, I can go to bed as

(06:18):
soon as the tiddler goes to sleep. I can trade
off with my husband and deprioritize everything else until I
am caught up. Maybe some of these ideas might work
for you too. Try to go to bed as soon
as possible. Yes, it is no fun to give up
potential free time, but feeling free of the brain fog

(06:42):
makes it possible to be much more efficient with the time.
We do have, something that would have taken two hours
takes one. That time is then paid back to you
to do whatever you want. It really is pretty magical.
In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and

(07:05):
here's to making the most of our time. Hey everybody,
I'd love to hear from you. You can send me
your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just connect with
me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod

(07:26):
that's b E the number four, then Breakfast p O D.
You can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast
podcast at iHeartMedia dot com that before Breakfast is spelled
out with all the letters. Thanks so much, should I
look forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a

(07:48):
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