The secrets of successful sleeping

你知道睡眠中的奧秘嗎？

導讀：你有沒有因為睡眠障礙（sleep disorders）而感到煩惱？經常失眠？或一覺醒來還是覺得昏昏沉沉？高質量的睡眠可以讓你更好地去學習和工作。下面就讓我們來探尋一下睡眠的奧秘以及改善睡眠障礙的有效方法吧。

According to a recent study, sleep problems are not just tiring and frustrating, they can also cause health problems, raising the risk of heart disease and stroke.

最新研究顯示，睡眠障礙不僅會使人感到困倦疲乏、心情沮喪，還能引起諸如心臟病和中風等健康問題。

Here, we examine some of the most common and explain how to tackle them.

這里，我們分析了幾種最為常見的睡眠失調癥狀，并提出相關的解決之道。

Waking too early

早醒

Dr Stanley, a sleep expert says, “Waking too early is one of the classic signs of depression, though no one knows why.” Changes in your environment can also wake you too early, as we wake easily in the morning anyway as sleep becomes lighter.

睡眠專家斯坦利博士表示：醒得太早是患上抑郁癥的一個典型特征，盡管其中原因還無人知曉。“環境的改變同樣可以令你醒得過早，早上變得更易醒，我們的睡眠也會變得更淺。

'You almost certainly won't wake up for the first three hours of night as you are deeply asleep,' says Dr Stanley. 'But later sleep is much lighter and more prone to be disturbed by noises.'

斯坦利博士說：”在夜間睡眠的頭三個小時里，由于身體正處于深度睡眠狀態，你幾乎不會醒來。但之后的睡眠就會變得越變越輕，也會更易受到噪音的干擾。“

What you can do:

解決之道：

'The big caveat is that if you feel fine during the day then whatever's happening isn't a problem,' says Dr Stanley. If you think the issue is insomnia, speak to your doctor.

斯坦利博士說：”特別提醒，如果一天下來你都感覺良好，那么不管發生什么事都不是問題。“但如果出現了失眠現象，就要跟醫生說了。

Walking / talking in your sleep

夢游/夢囈

'Everyone is capable of sleepwalking or talking,' explains sleep expert Dr Stanley. 'The conscious part of your brain can be deeply asleep while other bits, such as the area controlling movement andnavigation, are still awake.'

睡眠專家斯坦利博士解釋道：”每個人都可能夢游或夢囈。大腦中的意識層處于深度睡眠狀態時，其他部分，如控制運動和導航的中樞可能仍在工作“。

The problem can run in families, but it can also be triggered in anyone when sleep is partially disturbed, meaning part of their brain is awake.

夢游/夢囈可能會遺傳，但任何人都有可能因大腦的部分區域還未休息，導致睡眠部分受擾而患上這種病。

One trigger is alcohol, which lightens sleep. Parasomnia is also common in children as their nervous system is still developing. It can also be brought on by medications, such as some antidepressants, or by different drugs interacting.

酒精也是誘因之一，它會減輕睡眠程度。睡眠異常在兒童中也很普遍，因為他們的神經系統正在發育。抗抑郁藥等藥物或不同藥品的相互作用也可能引起夢游/夢囈。

What you can do:

解決之道：

The advice is to try to work out the triggers which disturb full sleep （such as alcohol）， check side-effects of medication with your GP and check if the problem runs in your family.

建議：找出影響充分睡眠的因素（例如酒精），同醫生一起檢查藥品的副作用，檢查是否有家族遺傳史。

Teeth-grinding

磨牙

Likely cause: Known as bruxism, teeth-grinding varies from jaw clenching to ferocious grinding that wears teeth down to stumps. It is usually due to genetics or stress.

可能的誘發原因：雖說都叫磨牙癥，但磨牙的情況各不相同，從牙關緊閉到瘋狂磨牙直到牙齒只剩殘根。磨牙通常是由遺傳或壓力造成的。

What you can do:

解決之道：

'Treatment is important, as people who grind their teeth have dental problems but also tension headaches,' says Dr Stanley.

斯坦利博士說：”治療很重要，因為磨牙的人通常同時患有牙病和緊張性頭痛。“

Usual treatment is a gum shield, though some people grind through these. If teeth-grinding is caused by stress, then the cause should be addressed.

通常的治療是戴一個牙齦保護罩，雖然有一些人也會磨穿保護罩。如果磨牙是由于壓力引起的，那就設法緩解壓力。

Nightmares

噩夢

Likely cause: Stress may be a factor, but otherwise they are a random occurrence.

可能的誘發原因：壓力有可能導致噩夢，但除此之外，做噩夢是一個隨機事件。

'Nightmares are luck of the draw,' says Dr Stanley. 'We all dream four or five times a night, but only remember them if we wake up during or just after them. So we are all probably having disturbing dreams and just not remembering them.'

斯坦利博士說：”是否做噩夢全憑運氣。正常人一晚上要做四五次夢，但只有在做夢時醒來或剛做完夢時，我們才記得住夢到了什么。所以我們都有可能做噩夢，只是不記得罷了。“

What you can do:

解決之道：

People often associate nightmares with stress, which then makes them more anxious.

人們通常把噩夢與壓力聯系在一起，這讓他們感到更加不安。

Although stress can cause you to wake up more, remember we all have bad dreams all the time. Try to improve your sleep so you wake up less often.

雖然壓力會讓你醒得更頻繁，但是記住所有人都總會做惡夢。努力改善你的睡眠，醒來的次數就會減少。