CommonHealth Weekly Wellnote- Importance of Physical (Passive) Rest

Don’t underestimate the importance of physical (passive) rest: Many Americans are caught in the grind of work, family responsibilities, and ongoing stress. However, it’s important to prioritize adequate rest and quality sleep in your everyday life. Rest and sleep are two different things, but both are equally important to your mental, emotional, and physical health. Plus, prioritizing rest can actually improve your quality of sleep.

Rest is any behavior aimed at increasing physical or mental well-being. It can be active, such as going for a walk outside, or passive, such as taking 10 minutes to sit down and breathe deeply. We will look at active rest in a future Wellnote. Today, we will look at passive rest, which includes sleeping and napping.

Unlike rest, sleep is something your body cannot function without. Sleep is a mind-body state in which individuals experience sensory detachment from their surroundings. It is an essential body function and impacts every system, from cognitive function to immune health. Quality sleep can help us reset, recover, and recharge. It’s absolutely vital to brain function, memory, concentration, immune health and metabolism. It’s recommended that adults get seven to eight hours of sleep each night, but the quality is just as important as quantity. Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep is the most restorative of the five sleep cycles. At least 1/4 of your sleep should be spent in the REM cycle. 

How can you ensure that you get enough quality sleep each night? Here are a few tips:

• Avoid caffeine in the afternoon and evening.
• Stick to a consistent sleep schedule, even on the weekends.
• Set your thermostat between 60 and 70 degrees at night.
• At least one hour before bed, swap screen time for a relaxing activity such as reading, bedtime yoga, or a relaxing bath.

For questions regarding this week’s communication or the CommonHealth program, please reach out to your respective campus coordinator below: 

• Alexandria –Kathy Clement  (KClement@nvcc.edu) or Najeeb Baha (NBaha@nvcc.edu)
• Annandale – Matthew “Tank” McCarl (mmccarl@nvcc.edu)
• Fairfax/College Staff – Dahlia Henry-Tett (DHTett@nvcc.edu)
• Loudoun – Tammy Wagner (TWagner@nvcc.edu)
• Manassas – ThuyTien Ngo-Nguyen (TNgoNguyen@nvcc.edu)
• Medical Education Campus (Springfield) – Beverly Tsikata (btsikata@nvcc.edu)
• Woodbridge – Amira Alexander (AAlexander@nvcc.edu)

Submitted by:
Dahlia Henry-Tett, HR-Chief Wellness Officer, DHTett@nvcc.edu