What New Yorkers want most this Christmas — sleep

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By Jackie Berg

Tired? Many are, according to an Ocere survey which ranks New York among the highest sleep-deprived markets in the country.

Residents here lost 25.1 of sleep hours weekly last year, which is 3.7 hours higher than the national average, but we live in a state populated by overachievers, right?

The national average is 21.4 hours a week.

If you’re wondering about the top dog, Mississippians ranked highest (29.5 hours lost weekly).

Sleep has become a status symbol, according to the New York Times.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) consider sleeplessness a public health concern.

Good sleep helps brain plasticity, according to animal studies.

Poor sleep, on the other hand, will “make you fat and sad, and then will kill you,” according to NYT reporter Penelope Green.

No amount of coffee can make up for the kind of sleep lost over the last 18 months.

Don’t tell that to anyone in the crowded morning coffee shop lineup, who stand among the thousands who’ve helped New York rank number 17 among the nation’s Top 20 coffee markets.

As good as that morning jolt is, it isn’t a cure all.

That’s unwelcome news for millennial moms, like Katie Jones, a mother of two grade schoolers, both of whom have been impacted by exposure to the Delta variant and related quarantine periods this year.

“I thought things were going to get much better this fall,” says Jones, an avid coffee drinker who consumes ‘gallons’ weekly.

“Although the worries have changed, my stress level is higher than ever,” she says.” So is my coffee bill.”

And that’s before the holidays.

Add in her kid’s upcoming two-week semester break, several holiday events and three extended family gatherings and things really get “interesting,” according to Jones, who says the logistics of it all seem to be ever-changing.

“No one knows who will really end up coming for dinner,” laughs Jones. “Until the day of, I don’t know whether I’ll actually be seating four or 50.”

AVOID HOLIDAY HAVOC

Malia Glover, the general manager of three New York-based Your CBD Store locations in Vestal, Horseheads, and Liverpool, expects to see increased foot traffic from busy holiday hosts like Jones.

“Although our Black Friday and Small Business Saturday specials will attract many gift givers, people really seem to appreciate our focus on sleep education and the importance of self-care,” says Glover.

Many consumers are already on overload, according to mental health experts who report that stress and sleep deprivation levels already at an all-time high, are expected to climb even higher over the next several months.

Although it might seem counterintuitive, the holidays may be a very good time to do less and enjoy more.

Hitting the proverbial off button is a good way to combat stress, according to sleep experts who report that although we have more leisure time than ever, we don’t employ it well.

Too many of us prefer to remain in a perpetual state of work.

Even those with more time to play make a job out of finding bigger and better leisure activities, according to a recent BBC report.

Simplicity, it seems, is out of vogue.

MAKE-UP SLEEP IS A MYTH

With sleep shortages at an all-time high, there may be no better time than now to rethink our post-pandemic habits.

Why?

Sleep is not a commodity. It cannot be caught-up over a long weekend.

While sleeping in a morning or two can help with so-called sleep debt, it is often not enough, according to the Sleep Foundation, which reports it can take up to four days to recover from just one hour of lost sleep.

A full recovery might take up to nine days, according to sleep specialists.

Sleep is critical to stress reduction, according to health experts at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), who recommend that parents get at least seven hours or more of restful sleep nightly.

The better we sleep, the less we worry, according to a University of Pennsylvania study, which found that just seven consecutive days of bad sleep (4.5 hours) contributed to subjects feeling stressed and mentally exhausted.

“A good night’s sleep can do wonders from helping people overcome fears to enhancing their problem-solving skills,” says Glover. “It’s Mother Nature’s reset button and has the capacity to restore our brain and body in a mere seven to eight hours.”

When we lose sleep, we become outright antisocial, according to a UC Berkeley study conducted in 2018 that pointed to sleep loss as a major contributor to America’s loneliness epidemic.

Even just a few good nights of sleep a week can help restore your mood, according to a Harvard.edu report.

With the holidays approaching, one thing is clear. Moms (and Dads) need a break. Ask Katie Jones.

Editor’s Note: Jackie Berg is the publisher of the Health Hub, and co-founder and CMO of CBD Marketing Hub l Cannabis Marketing-Hub. To learn more about the company visit their website: cbdmarketinghub.com

The Your CBD Store-Horseheads is located on 3317 Chambers Road (14845). Call (607) 442-0114 or visit their facebook page for more information.

Find the Your CBD Store-Vestal location on 1901 Vestal Pkwy E. Ste 1b (13850). Call (607) 444-3048 or visit their facebook page for additional info.

Visit the Your CBD Store-Liverpool located on 676 Old Liverpool Rd #8 in Liverpool (13088). Call (315) 870-9933 or visit their facebook page for additional information.

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