A new, practical guide to improving your sleep – by Rob Hobson
Rob Hobson’s years of struggling with insomnia, and his journey to overcoming his sleep problems, have led him to write ‘The Art of Sleeping’, an accessible, practical guide to improving your sleep and overall wellbeing.
The UK is in the midst of a sleep deprivation epidemic, with data from the National Sleep Council showing more than a quarter of people struggle to get to sleep on a regular basis, and a third suffer from insomnia. Rob states that the issue is compounded by the fact that “Many people underestimate the importance of sleep”. They accept and learn to live with the symptoms of lack of sleep, “masking them rather than getting to the root of the problem”.
Whilst coping with or ignoring the symptoms of fatigue may seem commendable and even necessary in our increasingly 24-hour society, it is actually having a very damaging effect on our health and even our economy. As Rob notes in his book: “Sleep is essential, and is undoubtedly one of the key pillars of good health.” A lack of sleep doesn’t just leave us feeling tired and a bit lethargic, it can have serious implications on conditions and diseases that ultimately damage our long-term health. Research shows that regular sleeplessness can increase the risks of being affected by obesity, depression, dementia, strokes, heart attacks, cancer and diabetes*. The UK loses 200,000 working days a year to absenteeism caused by lack of sleep at a cost of around £30billion each year**.
Helpfully, Rob’s book breaks down the art of sleeping into three pillars, giving the acronym BED; Behaviour, Environment and Diet. This simplifies what can otherwise seem like a daunting issue to try and tackle. It enables readers to assess their current sleep base across these three key areas and then identify what simple changes need to be made – and how.
Happiful, the mental health and wellbeing magazine proclaim that “If you lie awake wondering how to get a good night’s sleep” then ‘The Art of Sleeping’ by Rob Hobson “could be the answer to all your problems”.
Lights out.
*The business of sleep – How sleeping better can transform your career’ by Professor Vicky Culpin published 8th March 2018. ** https://publichealthmatters.blog.gov.uk/2018/01/30/is-lack-of-sleep-affecting-your-work/Dr Justin Varney, Posted on Public Health Matters, 30 January 2018