The pandemic induced an onslaught of stress among Americans, with U.S. adults currently being at their most stressed ever. It’s been two full years since the dawn of COVID-19, and the virus’s wrath is making us restless – literally.
As the stress threatens to topple, it takes down sleep with it. In a study correlating sleep and stress, results showed that 57% of U.S. adults are unable to catch their Zs due to active minds with 49% reporting inability to get sufficient sleep due to anxiety more specifically. Sleepless nights are increasing the demand for remedies. 28% of Americans reported having taken non-prescription sleep treatments while 19% reported having started prescribed medications since COVID-19 first surveyed the earth in 2020.
Insufficient sleep has been found to directly intensify poor decision-making. This primarily manifests in an impaired ability to make rational financial decisions, hurting the wallets of the sleep-deprived. Poor sleep defects impair driving decisions as well, with inadequate sleepers being at a 200% increased risk for car accidents than their well-rested counterparts.
The advantages of good sleep are many. To start, adequate sleep decreases fatigue and lethargic feelings. Catching enough Zs also acts as a stress reducer, giving good sleepers more peace of mind and physical ease. Lastly, a crucial benefit in our current state of global health, sleep improves immunity, boosting immune responses to the germs and viruses that roam and infect.
Investing in better sleep can start with upgrading the sheets that swaddle you and the comfort level of your pillows, to facilitate a deeper and more serene sleep. Speaking to this, Jenny C. Yip, PsyD., a speaker, author, spokesperson, and American Board of Professional P{psychology clinical psychologist, says, “Since high-quality bedding provides more comfort, it translates to getting more quality sleep”. Though many fail to see the practicality in attaining higher-quality bedding, proof exists that higher-end covers produce high-quality sleep.
Investing in wellness feels like a hefty short-term investment, but its long-term payoffs prove its worth. Hiring personal trainers, whose rates average between $50 and $100 USD per hour, can prevent injuries and prevent the advancement of weaknesses – some of which would appear later in life and others with the potential to produce additional setbacks. Counseling and therapy, whose session rates start at $50 USD per hour, offer much-needed emotional consolation in times of distress and can help mediate the repercussions of stress and anxiety that can injure other aspects of our lives.
Ease your stress and ditch the sleepless nights by allocating time and energy for self-care and investing in bedding that provides ultimate comfort. Together, we can put the restlessness to an end.
