The coronavirus outbreak has developed into a major disruptor of day-to-day life that’s affected business, education, and sleep quality. For example, it’s forecasted the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) loss in the U.S. alone during the COVID-19 pandemic could reach 2.4%, according to Statista. Related financial problems can also trigger a wide range of health conditions like sleep disorders due to stress, anxiety, and depression.
Various studies suggest that sleep deprivation among the general public is worsening due to people’s coping mechanisms during these tough financial times. They include lifestyle factors like psychological stress, screen time, and alcohol drinking. It’s more important than ever to get a full night’s sleep to boost health and wellbeing.
COVID-19 and the Global Economy
It’s still unknown what the total financial impact of the coronavirus disease on the worldwide economy will be. However, it’s already been devastating to countries’ economies.
The respiratory disease has resulted in over 75 million (December 2020) cases throughout the world, according to the World Health Organization. Pharmaceutical companies are rushing to develop safe and effective vaccines to fight the coronavirus.
Retirement Savings
The global financial crisis has also affected retirement savings in several ways:
- Saving reduction and drop in compound interest earned
- Fraud, scams, and cyber-attacks targeted at retirement savings schemes
- Decrease in value of retirement savings assets due to falling markets
- Work disruptions due to virtual offices and telecommuting
- Rise in liabilities due to dropping retirement savings’ interest rates
- Individuals’ decreased capacity to contribute to retirement savings
- Lower wages and higher unemployment rates
Global Response
Countries throughout the world have implemented short-term and long-term solutions. This includes policies to protect pension funds and other retirement savings plans.
The top priorities have included goals like protecting private systems (funded and private). These steps have also attempted to safeguard future retirement income from the COVID-19 outbreak.
Even when you’re in a financial crisis, it’s important to make sleep a priority. Here are some helpful tips:
Both are important. Make sure to get 7 to 9 hours of sleep every night, with few exceptions. Besides that, you should also get quality sleep.
Here’s a guideline. Since most dreams happen during “deep sleep” or rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, if you have several dreams during the night, you’re probably cycling through the stages of sleep multiple times and avoiding sleep deprivation. That’s a good thing!
If you’re having financial worries or problems, then it’s important to avoid thinking and talking about them just before bedtime. Yes, these are real issues in your life.
However, if you can’t get a full night’s sleep, you’ll be less prepared to deal with the problems the next day. In his self-help book How to Stop Worry and Start Living (1948), Dale Carnegie recommends living in “day-tight compartments.”
The key is to avoid all stress-related issues in your after-dinner chats. It could cause a vicious cycle of stress, anxiety, and insomnia.
There might be underlying causes of your financial anxiety that are not actually linked to personal, business, or national finances. This could include childhood experiences that influenced your ideas about money, according to Healthline.
Thinking about your past experiences with money can help to recall subtle lessons learned about money matters. For example, maybe a relative gave you a monetary birthday gift as a child and told you not to waste the money. In the future, this could cause you shame and anxiety about wasting money or financial failure.
Here are some steps you should consider:
Getting More Sleep with Less Money
Even when you’re in a financial crisis, it’s important to make sleep a priority. Here are some helpful tips:
Get the Right Sleep Quantity and Quality
Both are important. Make sure to get 7 to 9 hours of sleep every night, with few exceptions. Besides that, you should also get quality sleep.
Here’s a guideline. Since most dreams happen during “deep sleep” or rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, if you have several dreams during the night, you’re probably cycling through the stages of sleep multiple times and avoiding sleep deprivation. That’s a good thing!
Ditch All Money Talk
If you’re having financial worries or problems, then it’s important to avoid thinking and talking about them just before bedtime. Yes, these are real issues in your life.
However, if you can’t get a full night’s sleep, you’ll be less prepared to deal with the problems the next day. In his self-help book How to Stop Worry and Start Living (1948), Dale Carnegie recommends living in “day-tight compartments.”
The key is to avoid all stress-related issues in your after-dinner chats. It could cause a vicious cycle of stress, anxiety, and insomnia.
Address the Real Causes of Anxiety
There might be underlying causes of your financial anxiety that are not actually linked to personal, business, or national finances. This could include childhood experiences that influenced your ideas about money, according to Healthline.
Thinking about your past experiences with money can help to recall subtle lessons learned about money matters. For example, maybe a relative gave you a monetary birthday gift as a child and told you not to waste the money. In the future, this could cause you shame and anxiety about wasting money or financial failure.
Create a Sleep-friendly Atmosphere
Here are some steps you should consider:
- Decrease bedroom temperature to slightly cool
- Eliminate loud indoor/outdoor sounds
- Try to find a decent mattress.
- Try sleep aids like sleep apps, eye masks, and earplugs.
- Use curtains, blinds, and dimmer switches to darken rooms
- Listen to “white noise,” like quiet music or nature sounds.
- Add natural/organic beddings to your bed.
Set a Regular Bedtime
It’s important for the human body to experience consistency in terms of sleep. This helps the “internal flock” to function properly as part of its biorhythms.
Is it practical to fall asleep at the same time every night? Not really, but you can set a sleep schedule, so your bedtime and wake-time are approximately the same every day. That also goes for weekends and holidays!
One of the main benefits of these options is you’ll be more likely to get a full 7 or 9 hours of sleep. For example, if you go to bed at 9:00 PM, you’ll probably wake up at around 5:00 PM, which works out to 8 hours of catching Zzzz’s.
Maintain a bedtime schedule to help you start winding down about one hour before bedtime. This can help you doze off faster and forget about any financial problems until the next day.
Decrease Screen Time
This includes both big screens and small screens. Turn off your TV sets at least two hours before bedtime and stop looking at desktop/laptop//smartphone screens at least one hour before bedtime.
What’s the big deal? The LED lights often contain “blue light” that can prevent you from nodding off during the day—but also dozing off at night.
Energy-saving LED light bulbs can also emit blue light. So it’s best to also avoid exposure to their artificial light like TV screens for at least a couple of hours before sleeping.
Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Everyday Life
Viral pandemics like the current one can cause stress and anxiety levels to sky-rocket. It’s understandable to worry a bit about job stability, school closings, and the coronavirus disease itself.
However, these situations can cause issues like stress and anxiety. Required actions to contain the virus such as quarantine restrictions, lockdowns, and social distancing can also cause feelings of loneliness and isolation, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
These mental health issues can even cause a lack of sleep. Not getting enough shut-eye can then cause various results, including:
Higher healthcare costs
Lower mental performance
Motor vehicle accidents
Decreased academic performance
Sleep and Money
There seems to be a close connection between financial stability and seep quality. A recent State of America’s Sleep study showed that financially well-off Americans were among those getting more sleep.
Meanwhile, there were some other interesting findings. About two-thirds of those with sleep problems were anxious about their financial future. Meanwhile, over 50% live paycheck-to-paycheck.
Conclusion
When dealing with a global crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic, some financial anxiety about the loss of control and an uncertain future are normal. On the other hand, it’s more important than ever to get enough sleep on a comfortable mattress to boost your immune system, improve mental health, and forget about money problems. Tomorrow is another day!
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