James' World 2

Click the link below the picture

.

Imagine it’s a Sunday night, and you have a busy day planned for tomorrow, filled to the brim with non-negotiable errands, meetings, and deadlines. You’re exhausted, and yet, even though you know you should get to sleep, you just can’t seem to turn your brain off. Your mind is going a mile a minute… and before you know it, the clock reads 3:00 a.m. You eventually fall asleep, but the next day, you can tell your brain isn’t operating at full capacity as you struggle to get through your to-do list. That night, you aim to get to bed early and clock a full night’s sleep—but you’re anxious about all the tasks you were supposed to get done that day. Before you know it, it’s 3:00 a.m. again.

If the above scenario sounds familiar, you may have fallen victim to the vicious cycle of sleep loss and procrastination. And you’re not alone: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that roughly one in three adults in this country aren’t getting enough sleep. And without proper sleep, carrying out important projects and tasks can be damn near impossible… which can, in turn, make it even harder to fall asleep on following nights.

How sleep loss can lead to procrastination

According to neuropsychologist Sanam Hafeez, PsyD, sleep is an opportunity for the brain to rejuvenate and repair itself. While you may swear up and down that you can operate with just a few hours of shut-eye and a strong cold brew, the brain needs between 5.5 and 7.5 hours of sleep nightly in order to reap its full cognitive benefits.

“The body still needs sleep, even if you think you don’t need it,” says Dr. Hafeez. “When you sleep, your cells regenerate, and they help the neurons communicate with one another. If that’s not happening, how does your brain know what to do? Different parts of the brain, instead of working in tandem, are now doing their own thing.”

When we don’t get enough sleep, says Dr. Hafeez, our brains can only handle the absolute bare minimum. Executive functions—aka the mental processes that help us make decisions, pay attention, regulate our emotions, and carry out projects requiring concentration—take a serious hit when we get too little sleep.

This lapse in executive function makes it difficult to practice self-control and see tasks through to their completion—a mindset ripe for procrastination. Even when we’re well-rested, it’s natural for our brains to seek out immediate gratification and resist complex, hefty tasks. But studies show that sleep deprivation’s impact on cognitive function can lead to heightened impulsivity, risk-taking, and poor decision-making, such that procrastination (especially on tough or important tasks) becomes the more appealing choice.

.

Image: W+G Creative

.

.

Click the link below for the article:

https://www.wellandgood.com

.

__________________________________________