Stress and Sleep

Meditation is one of the most consistently effective interventions for interrupting the stress-to-metabolic-dysfunction cycle. Sleep and stress may interact with rehabilitation-relevant lifestyle behaviours such as activity, diet, caffeine, alcohol and fatigue. The analysis will examine bidirectional relationships among sleep, stress, lifestyle and health components. Sleep and stress have a bidirectional relationship. Evening stress can predict shorter sleep that night, and poor sleep can increase next-day stress. Elevated cortisol raises blood glucose, raises insulin, and deepens insulin resistance. The trial is based on the premise that sleep and stress should be treated as linked therapeutic targets. Cortisol is characterized as the body's universal stress hormone and can be elevated by emotional stress, psychological tension, and high-stress lifestyles. Sleep deprivation is physiologically equivalent to acute stress, elevating cortisol and impairing growth hormone secretion. Chronic psychological stress and sleep deprivation are among the most underappreciated drivers of metabolic dysfunction. Reducing cortisol directly reduces insulin resistance. When sleep onset is delayed,…