Are you getting enough rest? Do you ever feel overwhelmed and overworked and unable to turn your brain off? Do you dread having to get up in the morning?
You’re not alone. With the high demands of today’s fast-paced society, many people feel this way due to increasing work & family demands, bills to pay, deadlines to meet, and family activities. It can often seem like there’s a never-ending list of things to do, and not enough hours in the day to get it all done.
With so many things going on, how is one supposed to find the time to unwind at the end of the day and get enough sleep? Most people simply don’t. Over time, this can lead to a buildup of stress and sleep deprivation.
Stress and Poor Sleep: A Vicious Cycle
Stress can have a significant impact on the quality of your sleep according to the American Psychological Association. You’ve likely experienced this yourself. After a really stressful day, it’s often difficult to turn your mind off enough to be able to fall asleep at night, and it’s also sometimes hard to stay asleep.
This can decrease the quality of sleep and also the time spent sleeping, especially REM sleep or ‘deep sleep’. Without adequate sleep and deep sleep, people often wake up feeling groggy and irritable. As a result, feelings of stress can occur and it’s hard to get everything done.
To make matters worse, countless studies have shown that stress and a lack of sleep can compromise your immune system making it easier to get sick, cause weight gain by increasing levels of the stress hormone cortisol, negatively affect your digestive system, and so much more. These effects can become compounded over time, creating a vicious cycle…
The Stress-Sleep Cycle
Break the Stress-Sleep Cycle with CBD Full Spectrum Hemp Oil
When you’re caught in the stress-sleep cycle, lifestyle changes like getting more exercise or better time management simply don’t work well, they don’ t “stick”. Why is that?
Behavioral changes require time, effort, and motivation. These are precious resources you may not have when stressed out and sleep deprived. This is where CBD hemp oil can come into play.
People have been turning to cannabis for its possible health benefits for a very long time. Its ability to help people is mentioned in the Atharvaveda, a Hindu text that dates back to around 1500 B.C., and its use for inducing sleep is described in a 1200 A.D. Chinese medical text.
Today, cannabis is still being used to help people sleep, particularly one form of it: CBD, or cannabidiol. This is a compound found in hemp that doesn’t get you high, and that has recently exploded in popularity because of its potential to treat so many health concerns, including sleep, pain and anxiety.
It’s easy to understand why people are frequently turning to CBD to help with sleep: Almost 80 percent of Americans say they have trouble sleeping at least once a week, according to another recent nationally representative CR survey of 1,267 U.S. adults. And many existing treatments, particularly prescription and over-the-counter drugs, are often not very effective—and are addictive, too.
Joseph Maroon, M.D., a clinical professor and neurosurgeon at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center who has researched the effect of cannabis and the brain, says that CBD has properties that could help some people get to sleep easier and stay asleep longer. Most notably, he says, it appears to ease anxiety and pain – both of which can make it harder to fall asleep and/or stay asleep.
Some other research hints that CBD may also affect sleep directly, by interacting with receptors in the brain that govern the body’s daily sleep/wake cycles, according to a 2017 review of sleep and cannabis in the journal Current Psychiatry Reports. It improves REM or deep sleep.
Scientists have some biological explanations for how CBD may affect both sleep and anxiety. Recent studies have shown that cannabis compounds interact with CBD receptors throughout the brain and body—the so-called endocannabinoid system. At least one of those type of receptors is thought to affect the body’s sleep/wake cycle, offering one explanation for how CBD could affect sleep directly. And CBD also interacts with another receptor in the brain that researchers have linked to anxiety.
Look for quality products. Some studies suggest that many CBD products don’t have what they claim or are contaminated with pesticides or other harmful substances. Make sure it’s organic, non GMO, lab tested and CO2 extracted (which leaves no harmful residues). These contaminations can cause unwanted side effects.
Use it safely – please speak to a pharmacist who knows about CBD if you’re taking medications. They are the most well versed in medication contraindications.
CBD Hemp oil contains cannabidiol as well as powerful phytonutrients (plant-based compounds) which give you the support you may need to break free from the cycle. CBD oil biochemically affects the body in a unique way to help relieve stress effects and improve sleep quality. CBD not only helps people fall asleep faster, it actually increases the amount of REM, or deep sleep, which is what the body needs for true rest and the body’s healing processes.
By calming stress so that one can fall asleep and changing restless nights into quality deep sleep, the cycle can be reversed. When you’re happy and relaxed, you can fall and stay asleep better. With improved sleep, you will naturally feel better and experience less stress.
Quality CBD hemp oil a simple and effective way to improve the quality of your life.
How CBD Hemp Oil Eases Stress
Whenever you’re feeling stressed, your body releases a hormone called cortisol. It’s the hormone that gives you the feeling of overwhelm, unease, and a racing mind (and sometimes heart) —the common characteristics of stress.
In small doses, cortisol is completely harmless. But when you’re caught in the stress-sleep cycle, stress can easily become chronic or constant. This is part of what’s know as the ‘fight or flight’ response. Staying in this state for long periods of time can start to have negative effects on your mind and body and is considered ‘chronic stress’.
The good news is, researchers have found that cannabinoids in CBD hemp oil can significantly decrease the levels of cortisol in the body thereby supporting your body’s stress response.
According to Dr. Ethan Russo, a neurologist and medical scientist, CBD hemp oil also stimulates the endocannabinoid system (ECS) in your body. The ECS is a complex system of receptors that play a critical role in how you adapt to stress stress.
Research also suggests that constant stress can weaken the endocannabinoid system, making you more susceptible to the negative effects of stress. That’s why CBD hemp oil is so effective. It eases stress while also nourishing your body’s ability to become more resilient to stress.
How CBD Hemp Oil Improves Your Sleep
Hemp oil can make a meaningful difference in the quality of your sleep by reducing your stress levels which help you to fall asleep faster and by increasing your REM sleep which is when the body heals itself.
Most people assume that 7-8 hours is ‘enough sleep’. But you could get 12 hours of sleep every night and still be sleep deprived if you’re not getting quality sleep. Interestingly, hemp oil is shown to improve both the time you stay asleep at night and the quality of that sleep.
One scientific review, for example, discovered that the CBD found in hemp oil was effective for treating signs of sleeplessness. Specifically, it reduced the time it takes to fall asleep, prevented disrupted sleep, and even improved daytime alertness.
Scientists have also found that the endocannabinoid system plays an important role in the REM stage of sleep. This stage of sleep can affect how you react to events throughout the day. If your REM stages of sleep are interrupted, it could decrease your ability to cope with stress.
Since hemp oil is known to stimulate the endocannabinoid system, it’s possible that you could experience improvements in REM sleep, which can bolster your resilience towards stress.
If you live a busy lifestyle, it’s easy to fall prey to the effects of stress and sleep deprivation. Both of which magnify one another, sending you into a cycle of increased stress and sleep deprivation. If you get caught up in this cycle, it can sap you of your motivation and energy.
Over time, it gets increasingly difficult to snap out of the stress-sleep cycle. Hemp oil can help you break free and reset the cycle so you can regain control of your life.
However, not all hemp oils are the same, so consider this guide when choosing a quality oil. When you reset the stress-sleep cycle, you can find the motivation to adopt more healthy habits, become a better version of yourself, and work towards your dreams.
How to get the best sleep of your life:
You know you’re supposed to get enough quality sleep. But how often does that realistically happen? Maybe you have trouble falling asleep, constantly wake up in the night, or perhaps you wake up in the morning feeling like an overworked zombie. Any of this sound familiar?
You’re far from the only one. According to a poll by the National Sleep Foundation, more than 50% of people have difficulties sleeping.
So, for many, waking up feeling rested is a fairy tale. But it doesn’t have to be.
Luckily, there are ways to vastly improve the quality of your sleep. We’ve narrowed it down to the 5 the most effective ways to get the best sleep of your life, all backed by science.
- Avoid Blue Light at Night
When you’re exposed to blue light at night, it makes it hard to fall asleep and drastically reduces sleep quality. But where does blue light come from?
Blue light is emitted from artificial lighting and electronic displays. This includes fluorescent lights, smart phones, computer screens, and your T.V.
That means all those times browsing Facebook on your phone at night or binge-watching your favorite show before bed, can set you up for an awful night’s sleep by disrupting your natural body clock.
Because blue light is also found in sunlight, being exposed to it at night tricks your body into thinking it’s daytime, causing the suppression of melatonin in the body. Melatonin is the hormone that prepares you for sleep.
The best way to avoid the negative effects of blue light is to simply go unplugged an hour before bed by turning off electronics. Instead, read a book, meditate, or do anything else that’s relaxing to occupy your time before bed. If that is not an option for you, there are glasses that block blue light, and there are apps that can be used on cell phones/computers/tablets to block and filter blue light.
- Stick to a Sleep Routine
One of the tried-and-true recommendations sleep doctors make is that you should develop a consistent sleep-wake routine.
That means you should try to go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day. Even on the weekends, as hard as it may be. You see, when you wake up at the same time for work every day, your body biochemically adapts to that routine.
When you operate outside of your body’s sleep-wake routine, it can result in poor sleep and fatigue. This effect is most obvious when you travel across time zones and experience jet lag.
To keep your sleep-wake routine consistent, establish set times to go to sleep and wake up every morning—even on the weekends. While it may be hard it first, your body will begin to adapt making it easier the longer you stick to it.
- Get Moving
Getting some form of regular exercise is a big factor in getting a good night’s sleep. There are numerous studies that show just how important exercise is for your sleep.
One animal study, for example, found that exercise can help regulate your circadian rhythm. This can help you sleep better at night and feel more awake during the day.
Additional studies suggest that low-impact exercise such as walking can reduce stress and improve sleep for those who struggle with insomnia. So, to increase the amount of restful sleep you get, try adding in a lunchtime or after dinner walk to unwind.
- Consider CBD Oil
If restful sleep seems out of reach, you might want to consider taking some cannabinoid-rich CBD hemp oil before bedtime.
Hemp oil has a variety of cannabinoids, such as CBD, that work with the body’s Endocannabinoid System (yes, you have one of those). There are receptors for cannabinoids throughout the body, including in areas that support the immune system and sleep function.
A scientific review of cannabidiol (CBD) suggested that it promotes restful sleep, even for those struggling to fall asleep.
Another way that hemp oil may support sleep is through its ability to ease the effects of stress. After all, if you’re feeling tense after a stressful day it can be hard to unwind and fall asleep.
That’s where full spectrum hemp oil may help. Another study of cannabidiol (CBD) showed it helped to reduce cortisol (the stress hormone) production, thereby helping to relieve the effects of stress.
All of which adds up to a more relaxed and restful path to sweet dreams.
- Eat and Drink for Sleep
What you eat or drink in the evening can also have a huge impact on the quality of your sleep. Improving your overall nutrition intake will benefit every aspect of your life.
As a general rule of thumb, it’s best to avoid fatty foods, meat, caffeine, alcohol, and too much water before bed.
For instance, animal studies suggest that if you have a high-fat meal right before bed, it can cause your sleep to become fragmented throughout the night by interrupting your body clock.
If you’re especially sensitive to caffeine, you may need to have your last cup of coffee by lunch. Overall, you want to avoid eating and drinking too much up to 2 hours before bed so you don’t wake frequently in the night.
Wouldn’t it be amazing to wake up every morning feeling refreshed and energized? Well, you can. It’s all about adjusting habits to optimize sleep. If you still have trouble sleeping at night, make sure you’re not too stressed and try these stress busting tips to optimize your rest.
By following the recommendations in this post, you will be able to take advantage of your body’s internal clock, normalize your sleep hormones, and make it a breeze to fall asleep at night. It’s the perfect recipe for the sleep of your dreams.
