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睡眠可以成就，也可以摧毁你的健康。我们的身体需要这个神秘的机制来进⾏排毒和修复。⻓期睡眠不好，你也就不可能身体好，不管你的饮⻝和运动有多么完美。
Sleep can make or break your health. It is the mysterious built-in mechanism for our body to repair, restore, detoxify and heal. Without consistent good quality sleep, you simply cannot have optimal health. You cannot eat or exercise your way out of bad sleep.
睡眠影响我们身体的⽅⽅⾯⾯，因为没有好的睡眠，整个身体就无法正常运⾏。睡眠不⾜将会增加你患上各种慢性病的⻛险，包括⼼脏疾病，忧郁症，糖尿病，老年痴呆和癌症。⼀个晚上没有睡好就可以让你⾎糖增⾼，胰岛素抵抗增加。
Sleep literally impacts every single aspect of your health, because without the repair and restoration, the system cannot function well. Lack of sleep increases your risk of multitude of chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, depression, diabetes, Alzheimer's, cancer, etc. Even one night of bad sleep leads to increase in blood sugar and insulin resistance.
因为我以前⻓期失眠，所以对此感受深切。我尝试过很多治疗失眠的⽅法：中药，针灸，补品，冥想，在绝望的时候甚⾄还尝试过安眠药。但真正的扭转是在我全⾯改善了身体状况之后。
I know this all too well, as I was a lifelong insomniac. I’ve tried so many thing: Chinese herbs, acupuncture, supplements, meditation, and even sleeping pills at desperate times. But not until I worked on my health holistically did I start to see real improvements.
不管你的失眠有多严重，总是有办法可以改善的。关键是要找到问题根源。也许会花⼀些时间，也许需要专业⼈员的帮助，但总是有办法的。我们会在以后的睡眠系列⾥讲到关于睡眠的⽅⽅⾯⾯，但今天让我们看看最基础的睡眠知识，以及如何可以缩短入睡时间。
No matter how much you have suffered from insomnia, you can get better. You need to find out the root causes. It may take some time, it may require some professional help, but you will get better. We will cover every aspect of sleep in our “Sleep Series”, but today let’s start with the basics of sleep and how you can fall asleep faster.
脑电波在你睡觉的时候会经过5个阶段：前两个被称作 ”浅度睡眠“， 第三和第四阶段被称为”深度睡眠“， 第五个阶段是快速眼动睡眠（REM）。⼀个好觉应该有5个睡眠周期，从浅度睡眠开始，以快速眼动睡眠结束。
When you sleep, your brain waves go through 5 stages, two of which are considered “lightsleep”, two of which “deep sleep”, and REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep. Ideally you have 5 cycles of sleep each night, which starts with light sleep and ends with REM.
下⾯这个图给你⼀个⽐较直观的认识。（橘⾊：未⼊睡；灰⾊：浅睡；深蓝⾊：深睡；浅蓝⾊：快速眼动睡眠）
The following histogram gives you some idea. (orange: awake; gray: light sleep; dark blue: deep sleep; light blue: REM).
深度睡眠是身体修复期，这个时候你身体⽅⾯的损伤会得到修理和康复。⼤部分的深度睡眠发⽣在晚上的前三分之⼀。快速眼动睡眠是大脑修复期，这个时候你的记忆会得到巩固，短期记忆被转化成⻓期记忆。这种睡眠很大一部分发⽣在晚上的最后三分之⼀的时间。所以如果你在清晨被突然惊醒，往往会感觉头昏脑胀或昏昏欲睡。
Deep sleep is physically restorative sleep, when you repair the injuries and damages received by the physical body. You can see most of it happens in the first third of the night. REM is mentally restorative sleep, when memory gets consolidated, short memory is moved to long term memory, etc. A bulk of it happens in the last third of the night, which is why you feel groggy and experience brain fog if woken up abruptly in the morning.
每个睡眠周期⼤约为⼀个半⼩时，所以理想的睡眠⼀般会在7到8个⼩时之间。⼀般来说，浅度睡眠应该占整个睡眠的50-60%， 深度20-25%， 快速眼动20-25%。
Each sleep cycle lasts around 1.5 hours. which is why we always say 7 to 8 hours of sleep is optimal. Generally speaking, light sleep should be about 50-60% of your total sleep, deep sleep about 20-25%, and REM 20-25%.
如果你有失眠问题，往往是睡不着：被称作⼊睡型失眠；或者是经常苏醒，或者是醒得特别早， 被称作维持型失眠。当然你也可能两种情况都有。
If you have sleep problems, you probably have difficulty either falling asleep: called 'onset insomnia', or staying asleep, waking up either too frequently or too early: called 'maintenance insomnia', or you may have both.
⼊睡型失眠往往是因为因为焦虑和压⼒引起的⽆法放松，切断思绪；⽽维持型失眠则有可能是⼀些慢性问题导致，⽐如荷尔蒙失调，过多咖啡因，体内毒素过多等等。
Onset insomnia usually comes as a result of difficulty in shutting down the brain. But maintenance insomnia could reveal more chronic issues such as hormonal imbalance, caffeine overuse, toxic overload, etc.
不管你的失眠是什么原因造成的，（我们以后会⼀⼀展述），每个⼈都会从下⾯的这些基本睡眠卫⽣知识⾥得到⼀些启示。
No matter what reasons lie behind your sleep misery, which we will delve into in the future, all of us can benefit from some basic sleep hygiene.
保持卧室凉爽
Keep your bedroom cool
温度低⼀些意味着更好更深的睡眠。即便是夏天，也应该尽量把温度维持在20度到24度之间。如果担⼼电费太⾼，可以在⻛扇的前⾯放⼀盆冰块，会对降温有所帮助。
Cooler temperature means deeper and better sleep. Even if in the summer time, try to keep the temperature between 68 F and 75 F (20 C to 24 C). If electricity bill is a problem, put a big shallow bowl of ice in front of the fan, which helps bring the temperature down.
如果你住在美国，可以试⼀下叫做Chilipad的床罩。它可以调节你床垫的温度，⽽且可以两边温度不⼀样。我还没有试过，但知道这个产品⼝碑极好。
If you live in the US, you may also want to consider a cooling mattress pad called Chilipad, which allows you to control the temperature of your bed, and you can even have two different temperatures for the two sides. I have not tried it myself, but have read raving reviews.
保持卧室⿊暗
Keep your bedroom dark
卧室应该⽤遮光效果好的窗帘。也许你觉着早上的光线没那么强，但你的身体对光的敏感度要⽐你意识到的⾼很多。你还可以在睡觉的时候⽤⼀个轻⽽透⽓的眼罩。我⽤眼罩已经好⼏年了。刚开始的时候有点不适应，但现在没有它我倒不习惯了。旅⾏的时候更是必备。对我很有帮助。
Always use light blocking curtains for the bedroom. You may not think the morning light is bright, but your body is a lot more sensitive to light than you realize. Better yet, put a light, breathable eye mask when you sleep. I’ve been sleeping with an eye mask for years now. After the first few days of getting used to it, I now cannot go to bed without it, and I bring it on all my trips. It has been greatly helpful.
不要过晚使⽤咖啡因
Consume your stimulants early in the day
如果你喝咖啡或茶的话，尽量不要太晚喝。咖啡因在你的身体内⾄少停留3到5个⼩时之后，才能过滤掉⼀半。另外⼀半不会让你过度兴奋，但却⾜够让你难以⼊睡。
If you are a coffee or tea drinker, make sure you don’t have your last cup too late in the day. Caffeine has a half life of 3 to 5 hours, which means it takes this long to eliminate half of the caffeine from your body. However, the remaining half may not make you jittery, it could make it difficult for you to fall sleep.
因为⼈体各异，所以还需要注意你个⼈的身体反应。所有的睡眠课程和书籍都会说最后一杯咖啡或者茶应该在下午两点之前喝。我曾经遵循这个建议很⻓时间。当午饭后的疲惫来临时，我会⽤咖啡来提提神，告诉自己反正还不到两点。但我的睡眠⾮常不好，所以第⼆天午饭后感觉累的时候，会再去喝⼀杯。这个恶性循环持续了很久，直到我意识到两点钟对我来说太晚了。多年之后，我的基因测试确认我的咖啡因代谢确实很慢。所以现在如果我喝咖啡或茶的话，都是在上午⼗点之前。
But it’s always a good idea to listen to your body. The general suggestion for caffeine cut-off is 2pm. I followed this rule for quite a long time. When the afternoon lull hits after lunch, I usually reached for a cup of coffee, telling myself it’s still ok. But I had terrible sleep. I felt tried the next day as a result, then I grabbed coffee again after lunch. This vicious cycle went on for quite a while, until I realized 2pm is way too late for me. Years later, my genetics testing confirmed that I have very slow caffeine metabolism. Now my caffeine cut-off is 10am, if I drink any at all.
晚饭不要太晚
Avoid eating dinner too late
最好在睡觉前3个⼩时吃完晚饭。这可以避免⻝物的消化影响睡眠。对于有胃灼热和胃酸返流的⼈来说，这个尤其重要。
Try to finish dinner 3 hours before your bed time. This helps avoid food digestion interferes with your sleep. For people with heartburn, acid reflux or other digestion issues, this is especially important.
你的身体完全可以在很⻓时间内不⽤进⻝。如果你在睡觉前感觉⾎糖低，很有可能你有需要关注的⾎糖失衡问题。如果你真的觉得需要进⻝，可以吃个⽔果或者⼀些⽣蜂蜜。
Your body is capabler of going without fuel for much longer than you realize. If you feel sugar low before going to bed, it’s very possibly an indication of blood sugar imbalance issue, something you need to work on separately. But if you do feel you are hungry and need something before bed, try to have a piece of fruit, or some raw honey.
清空⼤脑
Do a worry-dump before going to bed
很多⼈⽆法⼊睡的原因是脑⼦⾥思绪太多。那么多东⻄需要做，需要担⼼，所以思来想去没法⼊睡。以前我闭上眼后总是会先列⼀堆我需要做的事情。现在我在床边放⼀个笔记本，把所有需要想的东⻄都⽤笔写下来，包括需要做的事情，让我担⼼的事情，解决问题的计划等。我把它叫做“焦虑转移”。将那些让你焦虑的事情从脑⼦⾥搬到纸上可以让你突然感觉轻松。
The reason for a lot of people with onset insomnia is the racing mind. With all the things we have to worry, it is hard to shove them out of your mind when you go to bed. The first thing I used to do after I closed my eyes was making a mental to-do list. Now I keep a notebook right by my night stand, and wrote down the things on my mind before going to sleep. This could be a to-do list, things that worry me, ways I plan to deal with those worries. I call this a worry-dump. Moving things from your mind to a piece of paper can be very liberating.
让你的⼿机去睡觉！
Put your electronics to bed!
我把这点放在最后, 因为它实在是太重要了！是的，你的⼿机，电脑，平板都有睡觉的时间，要比你的睡觉时间早很多！
I keep this one to the last, because it is super super important. Yes, you need to put all your electronics to bed first, earlier than your bed time!
所有这些电器产⽣的蓝光对我们的⽣物钟有极⼤的⼲扰，让你⽆法睡个好觉。⽣物钟是个很⼤的话题，以后我们会讲到。在我对蓝光和⽣物钟做研究之前，我经常是⼯作到晚上，然后关机刷⽛洗脸上床，躺在那⾥困惑我为什么总是睡不着。
The blue light emitted from screens greatly damages our ability of having a good sleep through interfering with our circadian rhythm, which is a big topic in itself that we will discuss in the future. Before I learned how bad the blue light is, I was working on the computer late at night. Then after I got up, cleaned myself, went to bed, I lay there wondering why I could not fall asleep.
你的⼿机和电脑睡觉的时间⽐你的睡觉时间应该⾄少早两个⼩时。当然，这对生活在现代社会的我们听起来有些难以做到。我也觉着很难，但我会在睡觉前⾄少⼀个⼩时关掉所有的屏幕。
The ideal time your electronics go to bed is two hours before your bed time. I know, that sounds like a tall order for anyone living in this modern era. I myself find it difficult too, but I have committed to turning off everything at least one hour before bed.
那你在这⼀两个⼩时内能做些什么呢？⼀些建议：
What are you going to do during these one or two hours? Here are some suggestions:
· 想想哪些事情你不需要⽤⼿机或者电脑，准备孩⼦第⼆天的午餐？收拾房间？洗⾐服叠⾐服？放在这个时候做。
· Think about the things you need to do that do not require a computer, phone, or tablet, and do them before bed. Need to prepare lunch boxes for your kids? Need to tidy things up? Need to fold laundry? Save these things for those two hours.
· 泡个热⽔澡，或者泡泡脚，⽽且对睡眠质量会有所帮助。
· Take a warm bath or soak your feet. Both will help with getting more sleep later.
· 做⼀些⼊睡前伸展或者瑜伽可以帮助你放松。
· Bed time yoga is perfect for winding down your mind.
· 冥想或者其它呼吸练习也是放松的好⽅法。
· Do some meditation or breathing exercises.
· 出去散散步。
· Take an evening walk.
· 准备第⼆天做饭需要⽤的材料，⽤保鲜盒放在冰箱⾥。
· Cut up things you need to cook the next day，store in Tupperware and put them in fridge.
· 和家⼈下下棋。
· Play a board game with your family.
· 读⼀本纸质书或者杂志。
· Read something in paper.
另外，我还强力推荐买⼀副抗蓝光眼镜。我有两幅：⼀副⽩天⽤，⼀副晚上⽤。
Something else I highly recommend are blue-light blocking glasses. I own two pairs: one for day time, and one for night time.
⽩天的眼镜会防⼀部分蓝光。晚上的眼镜是红⾊镜⽚，可以防蓝，绿和紫光线。研究显示这些波⻓的光线会抑制身体⽣产褪⿊素的能⼒。没有⾜够的褪⿊素，你就很难⼊睡，很易醒来。这些眼镜对我睡眠的帮助真是太大了。
The day time one blocks some of the blue light. The nigh time one has red lenses and blocks blue, green and violet wavelengths of light at night. Studies have shown that these light suppress your body’s ability to produce melatonin, which leads to difficulty in falling asleep and staying asleep. These glasses have been a life saver for me.
我们会在以后很深⼊地探讨睡眠这个话题。但我希望今天的⽂章⾄少可以给你⼀些帮助。
Sleep is a topic we’re going to delve into a lot later. But for now, I hope you find this helpful.
参照：
References：
· Dr. Mark Hyman Sleep Master Course
· Dr. Micheal Breus Get Better Sleep Class
· “No More Sleepless Nights” by Richard Wilson
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