🔼: # ⭐️ Sleep The common denominator for the overwhelming majority of psychiatric [[Medical Conditions and Diagnoses|diagnoses]] is poor sleep. [[💡 Insomnia|insomnia]] is not the root of all fatigue and grogginess, but sleep is still the bedrock of well-being — protecting it is of the highest priority. No matter how healthy we otherwise are, if we aren't getting enough sleep we're going to struggle in all areas of our life. Some people only need 6 hours, others need 10. Most people sleep for 7-10 hours and tire after 12-20 waking hours. > [!NOTE] > It seems like the less sleep I get, the more trouble my [[💡 Protector Parts|Protectors]] have with [[🔑 Protectors are dedicated to maintaining their idea of safety, balance and homeostasis|🔑 keeping me regulated]]. Poor sleep being both a symptom and a cause of "psychiatric conditions" might be due to: > - [[💡 Protector Parts|Protectors]] not having energy to do their jobs > - [[💡 Exiles|Exiles]] running around when we're trying to sleep > - [[💡 Exiles|Exiles]] Having access to us in our dreams > This does have benefits, like being more aware of our [[💡 Exiles|Exiles]]. However, [[💡 Protector Parts|Protectors]] are getting bypassed, and [[🔑 If bypassed, protectors can and often will retaliate]]. > > Improving sleep will likely involve moving toward [[the Goals of Internal Family Systems]]. Because if we have fewer [[💡 Burdens 🪨|Burdens 🪨]], less reactive [[💡 Parts|Parts]], or even if we've gotten better at [[🕯️ Unblending|unblending]], we can probably rest easier. And the better sleep we get, the easier [[💡 Emotional Regulation|Emotional Regulation]] becomes. The [[💡 Vicious Cycle]] becomes a [[💡 Virtuous Cycle]]. ##### Benefits of Sleep A full list of all the things sleep does for us would be massive. - [[💡 Brain#Improve Brain Health|improves our brain health]] - Relieves [[💡 Stress]], [[💡 Anxiety]], [[💡 Fatigue]], [[💡 Grief|Grief]] [[💡 Heartbreak]] - [[Immune System]] health - [[💡 Emotional Regulation]] - Facilitates [[⭐️ Learning]], [[💡 Neuroplasticity]], [[💡 Neurogenesis]], and [[💡 Recoding|Memory Consolidation]] - Lowers [[💡 Inflammation]] - [[💡 Amygdala#Decrease Amygdala Activity|Decrease Amygdala Activity]] - Better [[💡 Executive Function]] ![[🦮 How to Improve Sleep]] [^1]: