28 hours in bed: The S-word moms can’t afford to miss.

I had 28 hours of it within a 48-hour period. Almost a full day of the most important S-word that every woman needs now and again. It was hot. I was delirious. I’ve been walking around with a goofy grin on my face all day… because I got some. I got some big time. SLEEP.

Yes. S-L-E-E-P. (What ‘S-word’ did you think I was talking about?!?)

By now you may’ve read about my escapade to reverse my cranky attitude with a secret shot of somethin’ somethin’ in my latte. That worked for about a day, but I was soon back to my cranky mood.

Why. Why? Why was I so cranky? 

Because I was tired. I’ve learned: Whenever I get really, really tired (physically, mentally or emotionally… mostly when all three traits poop out at the same time) my body starts to shut down. I literally brown out. My throat spontaneously swells up and feels like there are a million knives jabbing into my vocal chords for no reason. My body turns achey and makes my arms and legs tingle (not in a good way). The inside of my head feels gray and fuzzy and foggy, like there’s a sharp pointy thing pricking the center of my mind and radiating out. I get tired in a most serious way… a way that fools me into thinking I’m really, really ill.

I’m guessing this happens to you too? Unfortunately, none of us are getting the amount of sleep we need these days and we all know it. (Thanks parenthood and life…) Chronic sleep deprivation contributes to bone density loss, obesity, increased risk of stroke, increased risk for developing cancer, higher chance of heart disease, memory loss… and probably more scary things that we don’t even know about yet. At my house, we have the fabulous Marpac Dohm sound machines (the white noise does provide a more sound sleep for all of us) but I was past the point of sound machines.

So last weekend, we did something about my big developing need-more-sleep-or-else problem: My girls got sent to grandma’s house for a full day… while I slept. 28 hours worth of sleep.

I slept from 8pm (the night before) until 8am the next morning. I then returned to bed around 10:30am (when my husband took my girls to Sunday School) and didn’t wake up until around 3pm only because my stomach was growling. I got up, made a smoothie, then went back to resting…. awake, but still resting. I then went to bed again at 8pm that night and woke up around 7:30am the next day.

The following day felt like a day I’ve never had before in my life… ever. My body felt… alert, awake, painless and happy. My mind felt clear… CLEAR… no fuzz at all. I didn’t get angry about anything (except for a small incident involving my children not listening to me in the grocery store, but that doesn’t count). Just for good measure, I drank a few glasses of water with fresh lemon squeezed into it to for a boost (you know, that whole alkaline-balance thing everyone talks about). My world opened up after my self-induced hibernation. (No joke: 28 hours?!?!)

So, I challenge you for this upcoming weekend: Send the kids somewhere and SLEEP. It might seem counterproductive. It might seem like a waste of valuable babysitting hours. It might seem lazy. I promise you: It will boost your productivity, happiness and ability to function and cope will all demands of parenthood. Make an effort to SLEEP… even if you just commit to going to bed at 9pm two nights out of the week. It’s worth it.

“Sleep is a magical thing,” my husband told me. I’ll take it over the other ‘S-word’ any day (sorry, hun. love ya).

You up for the challenge?

DISCLOSURE: Marpac graciously sent my family two complimentary Dohm sound machines with no requirement of mention on this blog. All experiences and opinions are my own.