Ep 174: Sleep, wellbeing and…thriving?

In this latest episode of our Thriving at Work series, we turn to the topic of sleep and ask: can you really be your best self at work if you haven’t had enough sleep?

Richard explores the topic of sleep through a wellbeing lens, explains why it’s so important for our wellbeing and looks at some of the ways we might be unintentionally sabotaging our own sleep. Sleep loss contributes to errors and accidents at work, interpersonal friction and conflict, not to mention a range of psychological and physical health conditions.

So why are we the only mammals who intentionally deprive ourselves of sleep?! Whether it’s ‘revenge bedtime procrastination’, drinking caffeine too late or attempting to sleep after working in bed, there are so many ways we can come between ourselves and a good nights sleep. In the 2022 YouGov Sleep Study, 87% of respondents said they used their phone or tablet within an hour of going to bed and 79% reported keeping their mobile phone in the bedroom with them. A quarter of this same sample reported going to bed a varying times during the week and one in eight reported regularly getting less than six hours of sleep per night.

In this episode, Richard outlines some of the most common barriers to sleep and explores some helpful habits you might like to explore while you make sleep the wellbeing priority it needs to be.

Thanks for listening!

Resources for this episode

Our ‘Thriving at Work’ hub: https://www.worklifesych.com/ThrivingAtWork

Fund out more about our Bitesized Learning courses on wellbeing topics like sleep here: https://www.worklifepsych.com/solutions/wellbeing/wellbeing-courses/

Sleep hygiene guidance from The Sleep Charity: https://thesleepcharity.org.uk/information-support/adults/sleep-hygiene/

The 2022 YouGov Sleep Study – some interesting data points about sleep habits in the UK: https://yougov.co.uk/health/articles/42957-yougov-sleep-study