Sleep and Physical Therapy, Working Together For Wellness

Quality Sleep For a Better Recovery

Most people underestimate the importance of good quality sleep when recovering from an injury or surgical procedure but this shouldn’t be the case. You actually need to get more rest during these times to help your body heal. Medications and physical therapy alone may not be able to provide everything you need to promote a speedy recovery.

So how does sleep fit into all these? What role does it play on the rehabilitation process? Fred’s Beds YOUR leading mattress store in Cumming, GA discusses how getting quality sleep can help heal injuries and aid in recuperation.

Why Is Sleep Important?

Sleep plays a crucial role in our lives and general well-being. Good quality sleep is important since it:

• Promotes cardiovascular health and helps prevent high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, heart failure, and other chronic diseases.
• Boosts the immune system and reduces the risk of disease.
• Enhances glucose metabolism and prevents excessive weight gain and the risk of Type 2 diabetes.
• Facilitates better learning and improves memory.
• Enhances the overall quality of life by reducing symptoms associated with a lack of good quality sleep (e.g. irritability, moodiness, impatience, inability to concentrate, anxiety, and depression).
• Maximizes athletic performance by improving speed, accuracy, reaction times, and mood.
• Helps the body heal itself. As muscles relax during sleep, they receive more blood flow and nutrients critical for repair and rejuvenation. Additionally, the pituitary gland releases growth hormones as the body enters the deep sleep stage to stimulate muscle growth, repair, and regeneration.

How Can You Get Enough Sleep?

Unfortunately, most people don’t get enough sleep. Whether it may be due to a hectic lifestyle or impossible workload, the medications you take, lack of exposure to natural daylight, or other issues, lack of sleep can lead to a number of unpleasant health consequences and may affect your body’s natural healing abilities.

Is there something you can do to turn the odds into your favor? Fortunately, there are several ways to induce a night of more restful and restorative sleep. At Fred’s Beds’ here’s what we recommend to ensure you get a good night’s sleep every night.

1. Keep to a schedule. Establish your body’s natural sleep-wake pattern by going to bed and waking up at about the same time each day, including weekends and holidays. For best results, aim for at least 7 to 8 hours of sleep.
2. Establish a relaxing bedtime routine. Take a bath, read your favorite book, listen to soothing music, or do some relaxation exercise to induce drowsiness.
3. Create the perfect environment. Keep the bedroom cool, dark and quiet to induce quality sleep.
4. Avoid unhealthy habits that may affect sleep quality. Avoid caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine at least 4 to 6 hours before going to sleep and avoid smoking when it’s close to bedtime. Electronic devices should also be turned off 30 minutes before retiring for the night. Also, don’t go to bed feeling hungry or too full since it may make sleeping difficult.
5. Use a good quality bed. The bed you use can have a profound effect on the quality of your sleep so choose a high-quality bed that best suits your preferences. While choosing a mattress can be a matter of personal choice, a medium-firm mattress may help you sleep better through the night. Another great option to consider is an adjustable bed. These special beds can be set to offer the most supportive and comfortable sleep positioning, as well as make getting in and out of bed a lot easier for those in physical therapy.

Looking for the Right Bed? We’ve Got You Covered!

Sleeping well after sustaining an injury or undergoing a surgical procedure can be a challenge, especially if you don’t have the right bed. At Fred’s Beds, we will help you address this problem so you can help your body heal itself. We have everything you need so visit our mattress store in Cumming or give us a call at 770-628-5875 to get a high-quality mattress that fits your needs and budget. We are open Monday through Friday from 10 AM to 6 PM, and Saturday from 10 AM to 5 PM.

Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and be part of our engaging social media community.