The lack of sleep dilemma & 3 simple actions you can take.

I woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. To be fair, it hardly felt like I had slept. I got up and crept to the bathroom in the pitch black, walking bang on face-first into the glass door. Ouch. As I returned to the bedroom after doing my business, I noticed the oven's LED clock; the clock read 3.40 am. I had slept for a whopping 4 hours.

I tried to go back to sleep, but to no avail, so I got up, power dressed and went for a drive. Maybe fresh air and the 8-degree air could clear my head.
On returning home at 4.30 am, I was feeling like a big bag of poop
My throat hurts. My headaches — migraine style, pulsating. My eyes were red, swollen and dry. I just wanted to get back into bed.
So I did. I smashed the back of a light-hearted fiction book and had an hour nap hoping to start the day over again, fresh and ready.

Oura had my readiness at 57—that’s super super low (like worse than after a night out drinking for me, last night was sober early night in!). Lack of sleep makes a difference in how ready we are for the day, yet I have a deadline and need to get things done today. What’s a couple of quick and easy solutions for energy and caretaking when we have mornings like these?

Movement

Emotion is energy in motion. To move through the energy, we can start by moving our bodies.
Try hitting the gym for a mini-workout, a 15-minute HIIT session or going for a walk.
Need something more simple? Skip for 30 seconds, take a walk to the letterbox & back or do 2-push ups after each time you wash your hands.

My practice? I use the Bodies by Rachel App, and I choose the easiest workouts on the days where I feel exhausted.

Practice Gratitude

Whether it’s that first sip of coffee in the morning, a smile from a stranger, or a surprise letter in the mail, these little moments can light up your day. Studies show that feeling gratitude for these everyday moments makes us happier and helps us feel closer and more connected in our relationships.

You can practice gratitude by closing your eyes and thinking of one thing you’re grateful for.
You can practice gratitude by telling someone that you appreciate them—give someone a call, tell them in person or send a quick message or text.
You can practice gratitude by writing 1–3 things down you’re grateful for.

My practice? I use Muse: the brain sensing headband.

Meditation

A simple technique is simply to meditate for one breath in and one breath out.

My practice? Use Muse. Muse 2 is a multi-sensor meditation device that provides real-time feedback on your brain activity, heart rate, breathing, and body movements to help you build a consistent meditation practice.

How does it work?
Mind
Real-time brainwave feedback (EEG) teaches you the art of focus.
Heart
Tune into your heart rate to optimise performance.
Body
Discover how your meditation posture can bring you physical relaxation.
Breath
Learn how to use your breath to find calm and fight stress.

Muse is an EEG device widely used by neuroscience researchers around the world and by yours truly. It uses advanced signal processing to interpret your mental activity to help guide you.

To help you tap into the power of gratitude, Muse is giving you FREE access to their Gratitude Collection of guided meditations from April 12–18th (or 13–19th if you’re in NZ/AU).

The Gratitude Collection includes
Power of Gratitude
Grateful Energy
Gratitude to Invite Ease
Morning Gratitude
Positive Reflection

To access, do this —
Download the Muse app and create an account. If you already have an account, make sure to update your app to the latest version.
You’ll need the muse device. (Don’t have one? Here is my discount code).
Open the Muse app and go to Guided Meditations > Collections.
Then tap the Gratitude Collection at the top under the Featured Collections section.

I love my Muse headband, and I think you’d like it too.
Here’s a free $30 Muse credit to spend on choosemuse.com.
Claim your gift by going to this link.

One of the best things we can do is focus on what we can do, what we have, what we are grateful for, and then make sure to get zzzzz’s ASAP the next night! Right, time to practice what I’m writing and reset for tomorrow :)