Sleep Well, Stay Healthy

This year, the World Sleep Society has issued a global call to action to promote and recognise how good sleep hygiene is essential for our health and wellbeing.

As part of this, they are hosting World Sleep Day on Friday 17 March 2023, which involves a range of activities and other ways to promote and celebrate healthy sleep.

The theme ‘Sleep is Essential for Health’ focuses on how people tend to recognise things such as eating healthily and moving their bodies as signs of good health, while things such as sleep are often overlooked.

Sleep is a behaviour that is the very foundation of a person’s physical, mental, and social wellbeing, which is why it is so important that it becomes more commonly considered an essential behaviour for overall good health.

Everyone needs sleep. We know this, and yet many of us have problems with getting a good night’s rest. Whether it’s being able to get to sleep initially, or staying asleep for a long enough amount of time, it is a common stressor for many of us and it can be affected by many things in our lives.

If you feel your sleep hygiene could be improved, or if sleep issues are affecting your daily life, it’s important to know that support is out there, and there are teams who can help you learn techniques to take control of your sleep.

Dealing with mental health issues can affect how we sleep, and in turn, poor sleep can negatively impact how we are feeling. Speaking to a professional mental health expert could therefore be a great first step to take when addressing your sleep concerns.

If you are a resident in the East Riding of Yorkshire, please consider contacting your local Emotional Wellbeing Service. They offer free and confidential appointments to all adults who may benefit from Talking Therapies such as Counselling or Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT).

You can contact the service via:

Text TALK to 60163

Call: 01482 335451

Refer Online: https://iaptportal.co.uk/erew.html

Website: www.humberews.co.uk 

The local Hull Health and Care Partnership recommend the following to help improve your sleep: https://www.hullccg.nhs.uk/sleep-soundly/

You could also ask for advice from your GP.

Other useful resources to help you better understand your sleep include:

• Sleep and Tiredness – NHS https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/sleep-and-tiredness/
• Insomnia – NHS https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/insomnia/
• Relaxation Tips – The Sleep Charity https://thesleepcharity.org.uk/information-support/children/relaxation-tips/
• Hull and East Riding SEND Sleep Service - https://www.kids.org.uk/hull-and-east-riding-send-sleep-service

Sleep Support – MIND Charity https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/sleep-problems/useful-contacts/