I am on a lifelong search. Sometimes I find this elusive elixir I search for, only to lose it once more. We all need it, yearn for it, curse at it when it goes away, but many of us can't seem to hold on it. Last week, once again, this lifesaving drug eluded me. Determined to re-capture it, I tried a new tactic. I turned off the 10PM news. And that night, I slept like a baby. Sleep, oh wonderful sleep! Overstimulating my brain with shootings, drug arrests, economic meltdowns & layoffs was just not conducive to getting my zzzzz's. Go figure. I don't consider myself a news junkie, but I like staying connected. Apparently, my brain needs to disconnect to recharge. A side benefit, apart from looking more rested, being less irritable and packing more energy, is I am finally catching up on some reading. It means I am dusting off that
Yoga Journal 
from 2006 and reading it cover to cover. Not to mention the eternal stacks of half read books on my night table (I do rotate them, it makes them feel special).
Not getting enough sleep ages our biological clock, depletes our immune system and causes more stress-related symptoms. Try turning off the TV one hour before going to bed this week, or in my case, retreating to the bedroom and closing the door. My husband can watch the Suns game as long as he wants, I'm learning about that perfect backbend!
I couldn't agree with you more. While I prefer the Simpsons from 10-11 pm, I find that if I watch TV in bed, then turn in off, many times it takes a long time for my brain to go quiet. I expect it has a direct relation to the fact that I was bombarding it with "activity" in the form of audio noise and blazing photons shot continuously at me (commercials are worse because they're typically louder and more bombastic, especially the later it gets). My point is, that its not the program which is the issue (though watching the "news" is probably more stressful than the Simpsons), its the act of passively receiving all that input right before you seek to quiet your mind for sleep. I've started giving myself quiet time before turning off the light and find it helps to relax my body and my mind and seems to help my sleep better and more easily-- Doug
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