Rest as a Key to Blood Sugar Control and A Long Life

As a seasoned blood sugar and resistance coach, yoga student and therapist, profound student, and practitioner of yoga Nidra, I recognize the profound impact of lifestyle choices, habits, and routines on health (and our lives). Your habits determine your life. And sleep is a critical component that is foundational to biohacking your metabolic health and your longevity.

Over my lifetime, since being diagnosed with diabetes, I've delved into the science, neurobiology, and habit foundations of metabolic health and longevity, including sleep.

I've studied yoga Nidra with Sree Devi Bringhi, the professor and founder of the Yoga Studies program at Naropa University; the work of Matthew Walker, the professor, neurobiologist, and sleep specialist at Berkeley; and books on rest and sleep such as Shawn Stevenson's Sleep Smarter and Valerie Oula's Rest Rituals: An Introduction to Energy Medicine.

Lack of sleep triggered my diabetes. I had gone to an honors summer camp and stayed up all night much of the week studying. Three months later, my diabetes symptoms manifested.

My journey with diabetes, which began at the tender age of 16, was closely intertwined with the challenges of stress and sleep deprivation. Nights of inadequate sleep made this period of my life, which was characterized by intense academic and personal pressures, worse. It was during this vulnerable phase that my body's delicate balance was disrupted, leading to the onset of diabetes. This experience was not just a health crisis; it became a profound lesson in understanding the critical role that lifestyle choices, including sleep, play in our overall well-being.

The consequences of those sleepless nights were far-reaching. The constant fatigue dulled my once-focused and sharp cognitive abilities, making learning and performing daily tasks more challenging. Emotionally, the lack of restful sleep left me irritable and prone to mood swings, starkly contrasting my usual demeanor. Physically, I could feel my body struggling to cope, my immune system weakened, and my overall energy depleted. This clearly demonstrated how intertwined our health is with the quality of our sleep. It wasn't just about feeling tired; it was about my body's fundamental functions being compromised, paving the way for long-term health issues, like diabetes, to take hold.

I have found that sleep is key to supporting metabolic health. Loss of sleep can trigger disease. When you have a chronic disease, to support health and longevity anyway, optimize sleep.

In Huberman's Lab Podcast #31, "Dr. Matthew Walker: The Science & Practice of Perfecting Your Sleep," Dr. Matthew Walker, a renowned sleep expert and professor at UC Berkeley, provides a comprehensive overview of current sleep research and offers valuable insights for anyone looking to improve their sleep quality and overall health extensive research in the neuroscience and psychology of sleep science. Walker discusses various experiments conducted in his lab, such as selective sleep stage deprivation and its impact on health and cognition.

Respect Your Age-Related Changes in Sleep Patterns: Sleep patterns change with age; older adults often experience fragmented sleep. And short, frequent sleep periods can be beneficial. Naps and a yoga Nidra practice can make up for interrupted sleep.

Respect Both How Your Body's Natural Endocrine System Works and How Externally Taken Chemicals Effect Sleep:

The fundamental practice is to respect how sleep works and how your body's natural endocrine and externally taken chemicals affect sleep.

*Substances that Damage Sleep Quality: Some substances, including alcohol and caffeine, significantly affect sleep quality. For instance, alcohol is known to suppress REM sleep, while caffeine can disrupt sleep architecture when consumed five hours before bedtime. You can enjoy these, but beware of their impact.

Melatonin and Sleep Supplements: Magnesium and tart cherries in your diet can enhance sleep quality. Use melatonin supplements for sleep improvement when traveling. Please don't take it to sleep every night because it can push your body's natural melatonin production out of balance.

Embrace Natural Sleep Rhythms

Sleep is complex, and both non-REM and REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep are essential. Individual sleep patterns vary, and finding a rhythm that aligns with your natural tendencies is crucial. Consistency in your sleep schedule is critical for quality, restorative sleep. I've found that it's so true for me. I try to go to bed at 10:30 p.m. consistently; when I do that, my blood sugars and mood are much more consistent. And I look better and more radiant, too.

The Magic of Deep Sleep: Deep sleep facilitates a 'clean house,' a detox period, and it is essential for resetting our cognitive and emotional states. The often-neglected period between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. holds significant potential for enhancing well-being. This window typically brings the most profound sleep stages, crucial for repair and rejuvenation. Tissues are repaired, muscles grow, and the immune system strengthens. For those managing diabetes or metabolic syndrome, prioritizing deep sleep during the hour within a few hours of sunset is vital for maintaining physical health.

These hours orchestrate vital hormonal balance. Growth hormone peaks, aiding metabolism and repair, while melatonin ensures a smooth transition into quality sleep. This balance is especially important for those managing or preventing type 2 diabetes.

One of the best ways to improve your sleep is to go to bed on time. If you're not already doing so, try getting to sleep between 9 and 11 pm every night for a week (try to sleep at the same hour) and see how you feel. If you want to optimize your sleep, maintain a log of how refreshed you feel when you wake up after trying different sleep hours. You may need to change your sleep routine if you sleep late.

“It's been shown that sleeping from 10:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. maximizes hormonal secretions and recovery.” Shawn Stevenson, author of Sleep Smarter, describes that we get a "second wind" of energy at about 10 p.m. as our body transforms into a high metabolic period for healing, which is the incentive to sleep by 10 p.m. "Sleeping during this period boosts metabolic energy to heal, strengthen, and revitalize your body. Antioxidant hormones increase to protect DNA, boost brain function, and more." This boost of metabolic energy heals, strengthens, and revitalizes your body.

Missing the 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. sleep window can significantly affect well-being. Balancing life's demands with the need for quality sleep can be challenging, but it's about finding a middle ground that supports our health without compromising our responsibilities. Melatonin, HGH, and other helpful hormones are released during this sleep period with your body's hormone production; sleeping between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. is most revitalizing because you obtain the most HGH, the “youth” hormone, to halt aging and feel refreshed when you wake up.

Use that time to repair your body and prevent accelerated aging and illness at least sometimes. While 10 p.m. isn't ideal every day or for everyone, to get the best benefits, go to bed within a few hours of the sunset as much as possible.

The REM Sleep Period: A Time for Deep Wisdom: Our minds engage in dreaming during REM sleep, which often follows deep sleep. These dreams can be more than just random images; they offer a time for introspection and connection with our inner wisdom. This stage is vital for emotional processing and memory consolidation. It's a period where we can, in a sense, 'check in' with ourselves, potentially gaining insights and guidance in a way that's grounded in neuroscience and personal growth.

My personal experience with sleep deprivation and its impact on my health became a cornerstone in my approach to wellness coaching. It underscored the importance of treating symptoms and addressing the root causes and lifestyle factors contributing to conditions like diabetes. It also highlighted the need for holistic care that encompasses physical health and mental and emotional well-being. As I guide others on their path to health and success, this understanding of the critical role of sleep is a key element I integrate into my coaching, drawing from my journey to help others achieve balance, wellness, and longevity as a foundation for your next-level transformations.

Rest and Sleep References

Yoga Nidra Online course Winter 2022 with Sree Devi Bringhi https://www.shaktiinstitute.com/

Shakti Institute. Accessed January 7. https://www.shaktiinstitute.com/

"Dr. Matthew Walker: The Science & Practice of Perfecting Your Sleep | Huberman Lab Podcast #31.” 2021. YouTube. YouTube. August 2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbQFSMayJxk.

Sleep Smarter: 21 Essential Strategies to Sleep Your Way to A Better Body, Better Health, and Bigger Success Kindle version by Shawn Stevenson (Author), Sara Gottfried (Foreword), Modele House Publishing, 2016

Rest Rituals: An Introduction to Energy Medicine, Meditations for Healing by Oula, Valerie, New York : Sterling Ethos, 2022.