[My Note: I had to use this photo because it was just so stinkin' cute!]
Sleep. It seems so natural. I think sleep problems started when we became a more "office/business" oriented society and moved away from being farmers. There are lots of advantages to being an agrarian society. Physical labor reduces anxiety and induces fatigue. A perfect formula for sleep.
Now, we spend billions of dollars a year on sleep aids. What are we doing to ourselves and how did we get into this mess? There's a history here.
Now, we spend billions of dollars a year on sleep aids. What are we doing to ourselves and how did we get into this mess? There's a history here.
About 30 years ago, I read this incredible book called Home by Witold Rybcszynski. He detailed the evolution of our "home" life. It was fascinating. There was a time when people's farm animals lived with them, in the downstairs areas (I guess it was a stable). Glad we don't do THAT anymore. It was an unexpectedly fascinating book.
In the period prior to 1800, we slept communally, hence the "Roll Over" song! Rooms and beds were shared mostly because of space, but likely also due to the lack of sufficient heat in the cooler months. In most of the world, people still sleep communally.
People's physical sleep patterns were different. Two periods of sleep, punctuated with an hour or so in between, were the norm. Not sure "why" that was the case. In those times, most people had no luxuries, worked all the time and their lives were precarious. Everything they did and every decision they made was about survival.
People's physical sleep patterns were different. Two periods of sleep, punctuated with an hour or so in between, were the norm. Not sure "why" that was the case. In those times, most people had no luxuries, worked all the time and their lives were precarious. Everything they did and every decision they made was about survival.
During the mid-to-late 1800's, the Victorian era, communal sleeping was frowned upon due to hygiene and the extreme social propriety of the time. Rooms that were dedicated to sleeping became common in North America and in Europe. In America, communal sleeping was limited to the settlements where one-room homes and very small homes that were built by homesteaders were common.
In the late 1800's, a single block of sleep replaced the "segmented" sleep of earlier times, especially in the West. Artificial light likely played a role. I think it was Edison who said that the widespread use of light bulbs caused sleep deprivation. Makes sense.
And then, of course, the intense industrialization of America made it possible for people to work the night shift. Computers came along and now, we're really in trouble.
And then, of course, the intense industrialization of America made it possible for people to work the night shift. Computers came along and now, we're really in trouble.
We saw what night shift work was doing to people, we began to wonder what was going on. In the early to mid-1950's, we started studying the brain and a physicist, not a neurologist, named Nathaniel Kleitman, helped to make the initial discovery of the rapid-eye movement sleep phase. Typical of humans, we saw sleep as something to be controlled in order to improve our health. Corporations and the military became involved and sleep research began in earnest in order to promote human efficiency.
Exploration of space, long-range jet travel, medical advances and just overall human endurance trials in sports and military maneuvers, made us wonder about the role of sleep. Technology is known to have a powerful effect on our sleep patterns. As little as two hours of nighttime exposure to computer screens affects our ability to get to sleep and stay asleep. We're not even sure how these devices will impact us for the long run. Everything in moderation...
Just do the best you can,
TTFN, Claudia
Follow me on Facebook at Dr. Claudia McCulloch
Just do the best you can,
TTFN, Claudia
Follow me on Facebook at Dr. Claudia McCulloch
