Why YOU Need Sleep Too!

Your sleep and well-being is just as important as your baby's sleep! Chronic sleep deprivation for adults (less than 7 hours of sleep a night) actually suppresses your immune system according to a study published in the 2017 January edition of Sleep. It seems intuitive enough that our immune systems function best when we get enough sleep, but we really don't think about ourselves when we have our little ones to take care of. Well, it's also really hard to take care of your baby when you're sick, so getting enough sleep for you is super important too.

What happens is that when we get chronic short sleep (which easily happens when you have a baby), the programs in our bodies that are involved in the immune response of circulating white blood cells (the cells in our bodies used to fight sickness) shut down. So, when sleep deprived people (and even babies) are given a vaccine, like the the flu shot, they are more likely to get the virus. Maybe a lightbulb just went off and you thought, "Oh, maybe that's why the flu shot never works. I'm sleep deprived!" Well, it went off for me! The question is what can you do to try and get more sleep and stay a little more healthy this year? I'm going to try my hardest to turn off my light by 10pm... 11pm the latest! ;)  (Working mom that get's things done at night)

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Susie Menkes, PhD is a Certified Infant + Toddler Sleep Specialist through the Family Sleep Institute (FSI), and she is dedicated to helping families get their little ones to be healthy little sleepers. As a mom of two, she knows and understands what you are going through and is here to support, educate, and guide you on all matters related to sleep.