O'FALLON— Daylight Saving Time ended on Sunday, November 1, 2020, at 2 a.m. Many people look forward to this opportunity each fall to set their clocks back one hour (i.e., “fall back”) to gain an additional hour of sleep.
Getting an extra hour of sleep on a Saturday night is a nice benefit to the time change. But the care team at HSHS St. Elizabeth’s Sleep Disorders Center encourages people to use this time change to recognize how they feel when they wake up, feeling more refreshed and alert with the extra hour of sleep, which hopefully motivates people to prioritize their sleep to optimize their health.
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According to American Academy of Sleep Medicine, sleep is one of the three pillars of a healthy lifestyle along with nutrition and exercise. Healthy sleep is essential to your physical health and mental health, improves your memory and focus, and promotes personal and public safety.
Adults, on average, need seven or more hours of sleep each night. Children need eight to ten or more depending on their age. Sleep is just as important as the air you breathe.
Here are some recommended sleep tips to get a good night’s sleep.
- Be consistent. Go to bed at the same time each night and get up at the same time each morning, even on the weekends.
- Limit the use of electronics one hour prior to bed to prepare bodies and brains for sleep.
- Avoid large meals, caffeine, and alcohol before bedtime.
- Make sure your bedroom is quiet, dark, relaxing, and at a comfortable temperature.
- Avoid watching TV in the bedroom prior to sleep.
- Avoid using devices that emit light – smart phones, tablets and computers, etc. Blue light emitted by these devices resets the clock in the brain which can delay sleep.
- Get some exercise. Being physically active during the day can help you fall asleep more easily at night.
If tips like these are not helping you feel fully refreshed in the mornings, it could be a sign of a sleep disorder. There are approximately 80 different types of sleep disorders and sometimes the cause has nothing to do with actual lack of sleep.
If you have concerns about sleep patterns, or difficulties falling or staying asleep, talk to your primary care physician to request a referral to HSHS St. Elizabeth’s Sleep Disorders Center. Overnight and day-time sleep studies are performed in a hotel-like setting at 791 Wall Street (behind UrgiCare) in O’Fallon.
For more information about healthy sleep habits or sleep disorders, visit cdc.gov/sleep.
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About HSHS Medical Group
HSHS Medical Group is the physician organization of Hospital Sisters Health System (HSHS). Launched in 2009, HSHS Medical Group is a critical component of the HSHS Care Integration strategy, which focuses on bringing physicians, technology and patients together to improve the overall health of our communities. Today, HSHS Medical Group is comprised of over 1,300 colleagues in locations throughout Central and Southern Illinois. HSHS Medical Group is powered by the Franciscan history of the Hospital Sisters of St. Francis, and our faith-based identity led us to the single most important tenet of the HSHS Medical Group philosophy — patient-first care. For more information about HSHS Medical Group, visit HSHSMedicalGroup.org.
About Hospital Sisters Health System
Hospital Sisters Health System’s (HSHS) mission is to reveal and embody Christ’s healing love for all people through our high quality, Franciscan health care ministry. HSHS provides state-of-the-art health care to our patients and is dedicated to serving all people, especially the most vulnerable, at each of our 15 Local Systems and physician practices in Illinois (Breese, Decatur, Effingham, Greenville, Highland, Litchfield, O’Fallon, Shelbyville and Springfield) and Wisconsin (Chippewa Falls, Eau Claire, Oconto Falls, Sheboygan and two in Green Bay). HSHS is sponsored by Hospital Sisters Ministries and Hospital Sisters of St. Francis is the founding institute. For more information about HSHS, visit www.hshs.org. For more information about Hospital Sisters of St. Francis, visit www.hospitalsisters.org.
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