My family had another Christmas of grieving this year. In our household, December is swiftly becoming synonymous with loss, absence and bereavement. But since my father died at Christmas two years’ ago (I wrote about the debilitating impact of grief here) , I’ve read many books and studies of grief. We’ve come a long way…
CAN WE IMPROVE OUR SLEEP – REALLY?
I’ve had what sleep guru Matthew Walker would call insomnia for about 25 years now: lengthy night awakenings, at least three times a week (there are other types of sleeplessness, but this is mine). In one of his recent podcasts (#30: Insomnia Part 5) he explained that this may be the result of faulty wiring…
How time and hormones impact weight gain and sleep as we age
Unless we’re working out like a superhero, we’re likely to feel the passage of time as the body softens. Change in body composition is one of the most obvious markers of ageing, however hard we work to age well. On average, we gain a pound and a half (700g) each year during our 40s and…
WHAT’S IMPACTING YOUR SLEEP AND A FREE YOGA NIDRA SESSION
How are you sleeping? Annabel and I both feel anxiety about the conflict in Ukraine is really impacting our sleep. I’ve been having weirdly vivid dreams too. Quality sleep is a key pillar of our Age-Well Project so I’ve rounded up the latest research on the subject to share with you. I’ve included some practical…
ARE YOU GETTING ENOUGH LIGHT? ENOUGH DARK?
Have you noticed the longer, lighter days? Isn’t it lovely? But are you spending sufficient time outdoors? Or in a sunny spot? Are you turning off Netflix/your laptop/your phone when darkness falls? If you are, bravo! If not, you might want to read on. There’s a fair bit of science here, so scroll to the…
WHEN TO FALL ASLEEP – AND FOR HOW LONG?
I’ve been thinking about sleep recently. We all know it’s important. But how important? And what else should we know? Three years ago, when I met Professor Hornberger, an expert in dementia and ageing, he was adamant that the quality of sleep mattered most – not the quantity. He explained the importance of slow-wave sleep…
WHY THE TIMING OF OUR EATING AND MOVING MATTERS
No sooner have we mastered exercise and eating – by which I mean we’re eating the rainbow, walking daily and lifting a few weights – than those pesky scientists discover it’s timing that matters. OK I exaggerate. But recent studies suggest that when we move is almost as important as how we move, with new…
WHY WRITING BY HAND IS GOOD FOR YOUR BRAIN, A PRIZE DRAW TO SPUR YOU ON, AND SIMPLE STUFFED PEPPERS
Has anyone else noticed the surging number of people writing in public? In London, where I walk beside the River Thames every day, I’ve become increasingly aware of people sitting on benches, writing. Not playing with their phones or ipads, but writing by hand in note books and on paper. I began lamenting the loss…
SLEEP IN THE TIME OF CORONA
How are you sleeping in these days of Covid? A straw poll on a recent Zoom call with friends revealed everything from ‘sleeping like a baby’ to ‘I’m up at 3am every night sanitising door handles’. Much to my surprise, I’m sleeping better than I’ve done for years, with less traffic noise and work-related stress…
HOW I SOLVED MY SLEEP PROBLEMS
How do you sleep? Annabel and I compare our nightly tallies: obsessively texting each other, ‘I got seven hours!’, ‘I lay awake all night’, ‘I woke up at 5am’. You get the picture. Sleep has become a midlife obsession for us, and we’re not alone. 80% of Brits suffer from lack of sleep, which costs…
