What a difference a good night’s sleep makes! I just rolled out of bed after a solid 11 hours of zzz’s. “Kids, it’s safe to come out of your rooms! Mommy’s OK now!”
It’d literally been days since I’d been able to make that statement because a string of late evenings, 3 a.m. interruptions and early mornings have had my patience ready to commit hari-kari and my family ready to hit the Our Lady of Perpetual Peace speed dial.
My body simply refuses to function properly when I don’t get at least eight quality hours. Headaches, nausea and an acute sense of pettiness envelop me until I can find a dark, quiet place to lie down. Sure, I can fake it and continue on about my business as if nothing is wrong, but inside I am judging my husband, children and complete strangers for their inequities and blaming everyone for my misery. And I can’t hold all that crazy in forever, so inevitably by evening I’m passive-aggressively trying to garner support and sympathy through childish rants. Though theatrically impressive, it’s really quite pathetic.
Of course, I’ve known how important sleep is for years, but it wasn’t until recently that Doo understood. He attended a conference on how people can be happier in the digital age and learned that, although volunteering, exercising and building relationships are key, the No. 1 thing a person can do is sleep. Aha! Validation at last!
This past week, sleep deprivation reared its ugly head, pushing me to the brink of an emotional and physical breakdown. But I’m back now. What a difference a good night’s sleep makes!
Peace out.
