According to the National Sleep Federation's 2007 Sleep in America Poll, American women are unbelievably tired. Sixty percent say they don't get
enough rest most nights of the week, and 43 percent report that
daytime sleepiness interferes with their regular activities. Thirty percent of all pregnant women are rarely to never getting adequate rest - and we all know how much sleep new mothers are getting (sleep? whassat?). Forty percent of all women claim to have sleep disorders, with working mothers (i.e. every mother), and single, working women reporting the highest instances of insomnia.
I had no idea that so many women out there are as tired as I am. This explains a lot. It's especially disturbing to read that so many moms and moms-to-be are coming up short in the sleep department. Being with the kid/s all day, and the constant mediation, the meals, the clothes, the snacks, the driving, the fighting, the whining, the naps, the lack of naps, the diapers, the hand washing, the stories, the baths... it just never ends. And it's so hard. I don't know about you, but when I'm tired, it's worse than hard - it's like I'm parenting underwater. The exhaustion just sucks the air right out of me, rendering me much less effective and understanding than I normally would be.
So, what are we doing about our collective exhaustion? Exactly the opposite of what we should be doing, according to the NSF. We spend the last hour before bedtime watching TV, doing household
chores, or on the computer - all activities that make
it harder to fall asleep. Most sleep doctors recommend slowing down in
that pre-sleep hour, avoiding stressful activities, and dimming lights. Most sleep doctors are not willing, however, to come over and fold the laundry, unload the dishwasher, write our blog posts, make lunches, clean the cat box, or catch us up on what's happening on The Office - so I'm not sure where that leaves us.
Except tired. Always tired.
