How Metro Life is Stealing Your Rest

From the humming of late-night traffic and cars to the glowing street lights and billboard signs, metro cities are alive 24/7. When the city never sleeps, its residents pay the price. So, if you live in a lively city, you will always be exposed to noise, artificial lighting (streetlights) and the hustle of daily life. These small disturbances can wreak havoc on your bodys natural sleep cycle, making it difficult to sleep. Add to this, the constant pressure to stay connected to your friends lives by checking emails, doomscrolling on social media and catching up on your favourite movies/shows will only make things worse for your sleep cycle

Apart from waking up tired every morning and experiencing grogginess and lethargy, chronic sleep deprivation can impact your health, giving you long-term health issues like heart disease, anxiety and depression. Ironically, the very city that makes it so appealing to residents keeps its people up all through the night. In a city that never sleeps, you can still protect yourself and get good quality sleep. Heres how:

Lets Explore The Science Behind Sleep Deprivation In Cities:

Your body has an in-built 24-hour biological clock that tells you when you need to sleep, wake up, eat and go about your day. It is called the circadian rhythm, and it does all this by responding to the cues of nature - natural light and darkness. Hence, your body feels tired and sleepy at night (due to the darkness) and awake every morning (due to the natural sunlight). However, in a bustling metropolis rife with artificial lighting, noise from vehicles and digital distractions, your circadian rhythm is more often than not thrown off course. Here are some of the key factors that silently affect your sleep:

1. Lights Wont Guide You To Sleep:

With streetlights, billboards, neon signs and building spotlights, the city is never truly pitch dark at night. Exposure to these artificial lights, also known as ‘light pollution, affects your melatonin production in the brain. Melatonin is a hormone which helps you feel sleepy at night; without it, your body will remain alert and find it difficult to drift off to sleep.

2. Noise Pollution:

Even if you live in a colony or a quiet street, you cant escape the sound of vehicles, construction work or loud neighbours. These infuriating nighttime disturbances will affect your sleep cycle and prevent you from achieving deep sleep, the type of sleep your body needs to recharge itself.

3.Digital Distractions:

Thanks to the hustle culture of city life, workload has become more demanding than it was during our grandparents' era. For many people, answering emails at night, attending meetings at odd hours and working after office hours has become the norm. These practices eat into your sleep time and make it more difficult to relax at night. Additionally, some people might indulge in ‘revenge bedtime procrastination, a practice which involves voluntarily staying up late, despite the consequences (fatigue, tiredness, moodiness and feeling groggy). They might stay up late doomscrolling, or watching movies and their favourite TV shows.

4.Work-Life Balance:

Most jobs in metro cities are highly stressful, with tight deadlines and long hours of commuting. This will add to your stress levels and create a work-life imbalance, which will hamper your sleep quality.

Heres How Sleepless Nights Are Impacting Your Health:

Chronic sleep deprivation has short-term and long-term effects, which slowly chip into your mental and physical health over time. They are listed below:

• Weaker Immunity: Your body repairs and recovers when you sleep. This will keep you healthy and able to tackle any health problems.
• Reduced Cognitive Function: Lack of sleep can affect your creativity, decision-making skills and memory.
• Mood Swings: Sleep deprivation is linked to moodiness, irritability, anxiety and even depression.
• Heart Problems: Chronic sleep deprivation is linked to high blood pressure, heart issues, strokes and cancer.
• Weight Gain: Lack of sleep affects your hormone production, leading to overeating and weight gain.

A lack of sleep doesnt just affect you in the short term, it has long-term side effects too.

How Can You Get Good Quality Sleep In A City That Refuses To?

Luckily, with a few lifestyle changes and willpower, you can reclaim your sleep even in the middle of a bustling city that never will, heres how:

• Limit your screen time: Your smart devices (TV, phones, etc) emit a blue light that affects melatonin production. Melatonin is a natural hormone that helps regulate your sleep cycle, making you feel tired at the end of the day and awake after resting. Hence, it's important to keep your devices away from you, at least one hour before sleeping.
• Blackout curtains: Invest in a blackout curtain to block any streetlight from entering your bedroom. You can also use an eye mask to help you sleep better.
• Create a routine: Before you go to bed, create a soothing routine like reading a book, meditating, light yoga, stretching, listening to calm music to help your body unwind and drift off to sleep.
• Eat light: Having a light dinner will help you sleep easily. Consuming a heavy meal before bed can cause bloating and discomfort, making it difficult to fall asleep.

Conclusion:

Life in the city is exciting, thrilling and fast-paced. Rife with skyscrapers, smooth roads and advanced infrastructure, while city life is convenient and offers a chance of a better standard of living. It has a darker side too, robbing you of one of the most important aspects of health - your sleep. We hope this blog helps you combat sleepless nights by improving your sleep quality and helping you sleep better. After all, in a city that never sleeps, you need to be the anomaly.