Sleep In Relation to Overall Heart Health

Heart healthy

by Lavender - 2023-12-10 07:56:38

According to the American Heart Association, studies have found that most people need six to eight hours of sleep each day and that too little or too much can increase the risk of cardiovascular problems. Pacemakers shouldn't make a difference as to amount of sleep needed and in fact sometimes help people sleep better.

According to research published in the European Heart journal, going to sleep between 10pm and 11pm is linked to a lower risk of heart and circulatory disease. This article also said:

“But sleep isn’t the only factor that can impact heart health. It’s also important to look at your lifestyle as knowing your numbers such as blood pressure and cholesterol levels, maintaining a healthy weight and exercising regularly, cutting down on salt and alcohol intake, and eating a balanced diet can also help to keep your heart healthy.”

🧐Good luck with finals! Skip caffeine! Study earlier and get to bed by ten😴

Agree

by piglet22 - 2023-12-10 08:30:59

I'd echo Lavender's comments.

7 to 8 hours isn't a fixed target. It's an average.Some of us make do with a lot less.

If you sleep badly, sometimes there's not a lot you can do about it. In theory, a pacemaker shouldn't have bad effects on sleep, but they can and do. I'dput that one out of your mind for now.

If you are in the middle of finals, a long distant memory now, thank goodness, is going to be stressful.

You probably wouldn't be in best shape if you go into exams having been up half the night, so best set a time, close the books or laptop and pick up whatever relaxes you. Keep off the phone as well. There's no point in trying to cram in a few more facts, which might not come up.

Look forward to getting through the last one and enjoy doing whatever you like.

Hope all goes well.

Coffee

by Penguin - 2023-12-10 09:53:37

Hi, 

I'd drop all coffee - and see if your sleep improves.  If you drink a lot of it, you may find that you go through a kind of withdrawal from it. 

IMO caffeine has 3 distinctly unhelpful effects:  1) itisn't great when combined with stress (particularly if your gut reacts to stress), 2) any caffeine in the afternoon can be distinctly unhelpful for sleep and 3) strong coffee can trip you into tachycardia. 

Maybe cut it out or cut right down and see if things improve for you. 

Same goes for alcohol and any other stimulants. 

Good luck with the finals. 

Why do you need to stay up late to study?

by LondonAndy - 2023-12-10 15:38:37

I agree with the previous posts, but let's go back to basics: can you better manage your time to avoid having to look at reducing that available for sleeping? 

I know that might be easier said than done if you are, for example, working a job in the evenings to fund your tuition during the day, but do take a look at what you are spending time on, and cut other things if you can.

coffee

by Tracey_E - 2023-12-11 10:14:13

We've all gone days or even weeks even without getting enough sleep. Pacer or not, it's not good for us but it's not going to kill us either. 

Some of us are more sensitive to caffeine than others. It can cause the tachy. I would lay off the caffeine. 

I tend to do better on exams well rested than staying up to cram in that last bit. I get too tired and don't remember it anyway. But that's just me. 

(putting on my Mom hat) Suggestion for next semester, set aside time every week for review so you don't need to cram at the end. I know things happen and finals are hard, but it's possible to minimize the need to pull an all nighter. 

Professor here

by klmcshane - 2023-12-15 22:25:27

... So I know about finals!  (Though it's been a while since I've taken any.)

Prioritize your sleep.  You'll be in a better position to remember things from all term if you're well-rested, and better able to manage stress.  That culture of staying up late to cram is really common, but I promise you can succeed without it!