Sleep and the Common Cold
Have you ever noticed how you suddenly feel completely exhausted after you catch a cold or flu? It’s almost as if you instantly have no energy. You feel as though you could literally sleep all day long if it weren’t for the nagging list of to-do’s and household responsibilities, not to mention your career, tugging at you every second.
So, what we tend to do when we get sick and we still have our numerous responsibilities hanging over our head, is we gas up on caffeine, dose up on cough and cold medicine (the non drowsy kind of course), and generally plow through if we can.
But sometimes that’s really not what we should be doing. Our bodies are very smart. If they are constantly telling us we need sleep, then we probably do need it, or at the very least we need to see what is wrong and making us so tired all of the time.
Sleep is so vital to our body’s well being that we must have it or we will literally die, become sick or go crazy without it. It is 100% required. It’s even more important when we are fighting off a cold or flu. Why is it especially important when we are sick?
Well, our bodies actually produce more of a hormone called cortisol when we don’t get enough sleep. Cortisol can actually impact our ability to fend off bugs that don’t belong in the human body. It also leads to less quality sleep, which just furthers the cycle of sickness and inability to fight off foreign invaders.
When we fall asleep, it’s almost as if our body goes in to mending mode. All of the beating up, the enviromental toxins, the mental exhaustion, the exposure to numerous germs and bacteria that can make us sick – that all takes a heck of a lot of work for the human body to do all day every day.
Sleeping is our body’s way of catching up and taking a breather. It is when the immune system gets to recharge, along with all the other bodily functions. Without sleep, we simply cannot fight off colds and flus the same way.
If you are having trouble sleeping, try taking a relaxant such as kava tea, chamomile tea, or a melatonin supplement. These are all natural ways to help the body relax and get a full night of restful and rejuvenating sleep to help your body shake off sickness faster.