“To sleep, perchance to dream…” So goes the famous quote from Shakespeare’s Hamlet, but for many of us who deal with disorders such as insomnia, the sentiment may feel more like “Perchance to sleep…”
According to the Sleep Foundation, adults between the ages of 18 and 64 need seven to nine hours of sleep per night, while adults 65 and over need seven to eight hours. And yet “35.2 percent of all adults in the US report sleeping on average for less than seven hours per night,” says the site.
Whether it’s because of teeth-grinding (bruxism), sleepwalking, nightmares, or just straight-up insomnia, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute warns that not getting enough sleep “is linked to many chronic health problems, including heart disease, kidney disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, stroke, obesity, and depression. Sleep deficiency is also linked to a higher chance of injury in adults, teens, and children.” Read more…
