Woman vs Man...Who Needs More Sleep and Why!

Read below to find out why women need more sleep than men!

Hey ladies—tell your boyfriend or husband it’s his turn to do the morning chores--new research shows that women need more sleep than men do in order to be at their mental and physical best!

Scientists at Duke University Medical Center have found empirical evidence that poor sleep is associated with increased levels of psychological distress and greater risk for stroke and cardiovascular problems, such as heart disease and type II diabetes.  Poor sleep refers to the amount of sleep you are getting, the frequency of awakenings during the night, and the length of time it takes you to fall asleep. 

The study found that women who reported that it took them longer than 30 minutes to fall asleep were at greatest risk, and that poor sleep was related to increased feelings of anger, depression, and hostility. 

So how much more sleep should a woman get than a man?  Professor Jim Horne, director of the Sleep Research Centre at Loughborough University and author of Sleepfaring: A Journey Through The Science Of Sleep, suggests that women need, on average, 20 more minutes of sleep than men.  From his research, Horne found that women tend to multi-task more than men, and thus, require more deep sleep so that the brain has time to repair itself.

So ladies, now that you have permission to get some extra shut-eye, how should you go about doing it?  A lot of clients report to me that they have difficulty getting healthy sleep.  Some report frustrations falling asleep, blaming anxiety and racing thoughts that prevent them from drifting off, while others report they wake up frequently throughout the night. 

Bedtime is not just for children! It’s really important to practice a nighttime routine so that your body adjusts and can start winding down when you start your routine, making it easier to fall asleep when you climb into bed.  Try to start getting ready for bed at the same time every night. 

Your bedroom should only be used for SLEEP (or sex, which is good too)!  That means turn off your tv, put away your computer, and pay your bills in another room.  Artificial light from your computer, tv and cell phone have actually been shown to affect your  Circadian Rhythm, which makes it difficult to go to bed earlier. 

sleep or sex, but no computers in bed!

Keep the temperature cool, turn your clock away from you (sometimes glancing at it while you struggle to fall asleep just increases anxiety as you count down each minute until you have to wake up), and try to clear your mind with some relaxation techniques, such as visualization.  If you can’t fall asleep within a half hour, get out of bed and try a quiet, calming activity in another room (ex. read a book in dim light). Once your eyes feel heavy, hop back in and try again.

Now go set your alarm for 20 minutes later (or go to bed 20 minutes earlier), and rejuvenate your brain, body, and mental state!