In 2022, saying that we’re stressed beyond capacity is a huge understatement. Two weeks to “flatten the curve” turned into two months and then two years where we lost loved ones and had our own vitality threatened on a massive scale. It seemed that 2022 promised to be different, but the end of the pandemic was eclipsed by record high inflation and the potential for a third world war. 

All of this is piled onto an already overly connected society in which we are always available, always multitasking, and always have work emails and other demands at our fingertips. It’s absolutely no wonder why the majority of us are overly exhausted, without having had any physical exertion. As goes the mind, so goes the body, and our minds are very rarely getting the downtime they need to function at full capacity. 

Americans also tend to simply not take advantage of the rest available to them. Although 2 out of 3 employees report desperately needing a vacation, less than half of us actually take them. It’s standard for us to get 10 paid vacation days every year (a pittance compared to vacation days in other parts of the world, but we’re often too stressed out to take those days off to unwind. We fear being replaceable at work, stress over the cost, or find it too overwhelming to plan the trip. 

The irony is that all this lack of rest for the sake of staying productive and vital, actually causes us to be less effective than we would be if we were getting proper rest. Not only that, but it takes a serious toll on our health. In fact, those who get 6 hours or less per night increase their mortality rate by 13%, compared to  those who get 7 hour or more. This lack of sleep also increases the chance of obesity. Even an hour lost per night lends to weight gain over the course of a year. 

Getting the proper rest should be paramount in our list of priorities, right up there with all the “things” we have to accomplish on a daily basis. Of course we also need to consider the quality of our sleep, which relies heavily on external factors such as the material, colors, and thread counts of our sheets and blankets. 

Getting adequate, and great quality rest, is often enabled by creating the most restful environment.