A Productive Day

The day is nearly over on my country mile and I'm feeling pleased with wrapping up an important stage of a huge project.  If all goes as planned, it will create a lot more work for me but should help solidify my status as a writer on mental health and related topics.

Today I sent out to Manitoba newspapers, via email, nine press packages that I and the publicity director of the Canadian Mental Health Association put together over the last couple of months. We're hoping to Spread the Word (that's what the project is called) about mental health, demystify the issues, and eradicate the many stigma that still exist about mental illness.   See my past posts under the mental health label on the sidebar.

What has allowed me to be so productive today is something that I often write about in my mental health columns.  I had a good night's sleep last night.  And, although I was a little sluggish in the morning (side effect of my arthritis meds), by mid-afternoon I was ready to tackle this major stage of my project.  I survived a few formatting problems without getting overly discouraged (encouraged by some major assistance from "the squire") and had no trouble executing each necessary step over and over patiently.

Did you know that while we're sleeping our brains rebuild their supply of serotonin, dopamine, and all the other neurotransmitters we need to regulate our emotional balance throughout the day?  No wonder we're crabby, easily discouraged, or even weepy when we're short on sleep.  

It's ironic that one of the main symptoms of many mental health problems is a significant change in sleep patterns.  The one leads to the other, which then leads back to the first.  I know that when I've had too many nights of little or no sleep, I become depressed or anxious, often both.  I find no energy or enthusiasm for anything but what's absolutely necessary; I get forgetful; I have less patience or have to work much more intentionally at being patient; and my chronic pain issues get worse.

But even one night of at least eight hours of restful sleep is all it takes for me to feel energetic, cheerful, hopeful, patient, and creative.  My pain is often reduced after catching up on my sleep and I'm actually in a mood to admit that this long, cold, and very snowy winter is pretty sometimes, especially here at the end of my country mile. 

Then I don't mind nearly as much that I have to stay inside and work on the many projects that I was feeling discouraged about when I was so short on sleep.  And I love the feeling of having achieved something on my long to-do list, just as I did today.