04 January 2011

Jr Creative Advice: Get some sleep. . .


Sleep for me ranks right up there with exercising to let my thoughts simmer and evolve into better campaigns. There is no need to compete with others about how much sleep you aren't getting, it doesn't make you more productive or even more creative. 

Psychologists and other scientists who study the causes of sleep disorders have shown that such problems can directly or indirectly be tied to abnormalities in the following systems:

Physiological systems
Brain and nervous system <-- meaning crappy advertising
Cardiovascular system
Metabolic functions
Immune system <-- which is why you get sick easy

Furthermore, unhealthy conditions, disorders and diseases can also cause sleep problems, including:
Pathological sleepiness, insomnia and accidents
Hypertension and elevated cardiovascular risks (MI, stroke)
Emotional disorders (depression, bipolar disorder)
Obesity; metabolic syndrome and diabetes
Alcohol and drug abuse
(Dinges, 2004)

Groups that are at particular risk for sleep deprivation include night shift workers (aka Creatives), physicians (average sleep = 6.5 hours a day; residents = 5 hours a day), truck drivers, parents and teenagers. (American Academy of Sleep Medicine and National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Working Group on Problem Sleepiness. 1997).

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