Nighttime relaxation

The dream of a good night’s sleep

Without enough sleep, you can't function in everyday life.(Bild: MARIDAV/stock.adobe.com)

Relaxed sleep is important for our well-being, health, and performance. But restful sleep does not have to remain a dream. Read here to find out about the different sleep phases and cycles and what you can do to ensure a good night's sleep.

It is not uncommon for us to get too little or poor quality sleep. Our night's rest often falls victim to the "pressure to succeed" – true to the motto: "I can sleep when I'm dead." But sleep is not wasted time – it is a necessity. Those who don't sleep well at night feel the consequences the next day. At night, our brain processes what we have experienced during the day. New memories are formed during deep sleep, and existing ones are consolidated.

No performance without a good night's sleep: Sufficient, good-quality sleep is an important basis for our physical and mental health and provides the foundation for a successful day. A healthy night's sleep is necessary for us to function properly – it ensures a good mood and a healthy immune system. It is therefore important that we sleep long enough and well enough. The amount of sleep we need varies from person to person. But it also depends on the stage of life we are currently in.

According to sleep researcher Thomas Wehr, the body releases growth hormones during sleep. However, if these vital processes are disrupted by lack of sleep, the entire organism collapses. This was clearly demonstrated in an experiment: rats that were prevented from sleeping by biologists died. "Healthy sleep is a luxury that everyone can afford," says psychotherapist Doris Zöser, explaining what aspects you should consider in order to organize your sleep well.

How sleep works physiologically
Our biorhythm controls day and night. Like a clock, we have times when we are awake and productive, and other times when we are tired and restful. If you have trouble getting out of bed in the morning, it could be that you have not found your optimal sleep rhythm. Everything is controlled by the receptors in our eyes: when light enters our bodies through our eyes in the morning, it stimulates the receptors on the retina.

The nerve cells transmit the impulses to our brain and signal the pineal gland to stop producing and releasing the sleep-promoting hormone melatonin. Cortisol is released to get us going and tense our muscles. As a result, the concentration of adenosine increases, which builds up sleep pressure. This is distributed throughout the day, increases, and is ideally at its highest in the evening before bedtime.

Sleep phases and sleep cycles
It is important to know that we go through several sleep phases at night and that a sleep cycle lasts approximately 90 minutes. A sleep cycle is divided into three different sleep phases: light sleep, REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, and deep sleep, which is longest at the beginning of the night and becomes shorter and shorter towards the end. During light sleep, the heart rate slows down, breathing becomes calmer, and the muscles begin to relax. Our emotions are processed during the REM phase. This is when we dream and process issues that are on our minds.

Nächtliche Erholung

Tipps für erholsameren Schlaf

• Dunkler, ruhiger & gemütlicher Schlafplatz
• Licht abends dimmen
• Aufstehzeiten definieren
• Ganze Schlafzyklen einhalten
• Gedanken steuern und gegebenenfalls eine To-do-Liste schreiben
• Einschlafroutinen etablieren
• Auf üppiges und fettiges Essen verzichten

The most important phase is deep sleep, which is responsible for regeneration and the immune system. It is comparable to brushing your teeth for the brain: Scientists at Bar-Ilan University in Israel have found that deep sleep helps the body repair damaged DNA. Anyone who gets less than 1.5 hours of deep sleep is robbing the brain of the time it needs to restore its genetic material.

Stick to your bedtime and wake-up time
It is important to always stick to full sleep cycles and get up at the same time every day. For example, if you want to sleep through 6 sleep cycles and get up at 6 a.m., you should go to bed at 8:30 p.m. so that, adding 30 minutes for falling asleep, you are asleep by 9 p.m. If you go to bed later in the evening, it is not a problem as long as you maintain the entire sleep cycle and get up at the same time. This would mean that you go to bed at 10 p.m., only have 5 cycles of sleep, but get up again at 6 a.m.

The right sleep routine

• Ventilate and darken: A cool, dark, and cozy bedroom can help us fall asleep faster. The body temperature drops, and the body is prepared for sleep.
• Be sure to dim the lights and reduce screen time.
• It is better to avoid heavy meals and alcohol in the evening.
• The same routines before bedtime allow the body to relax more quickly—whether that's a bath, a walk, or a good book is entirely up to you.
• To stop your mind racing, to-do lists can help you prepare for the next day. In general, the thoughts we have at the end of the day have a huge impact on the quality of our sleep. Make it a routine to think of three nice things that you experienced during the day.

By the way: waking up at night is completely normal! Up to 20 times, in fact. This is probably due to evolutionary reasons: it was the only way our ancestors could be sure that their surroundings were still safe and warm. If you still feel like you've slept through the night, it's because you can't remember waking up.