The Most Wonderful Time of Year

The lyrics of Andy Williams' song make me wonder. I'm no grinch, but the holiday season can also be a stressful and restless time of year. We tend to add so much extra stress to our lives during this season.

The day after Thanksgiving is the unofficial kick-off to the holiday season here in the United States. It amazes me that millions of people will overpack stores to buy a gift. Click on any news channel and you will see lines of people lined up for hours. Some will even camp out overnight to be the first in line when stores open.

Are any of these people getting their proper rest? Where do we draw the line that saving a few dollars on an item is worth risking our health?

Are we sacrificing our sleep?

The older I get, the more I ask myself, "Is this healthy?" This goes for all aspects of my life. During the holiday season, we tend to splurge in all areas of our life: food, alcohol, parties, and money. We also tend to get less sleep.

The holiday season is extra festive and it's human nature not to want to miss a thing. Friends and family want to gather. There's shopping and wrapping. Kids have their school holiday shows. There are holiday traditions that we "have" to do. It can become overwhelming, and we start to sacrifice our proper sleep in order to fit it all in.

There are 11 other months in the year

I have started to be realistic. Everything doesn't have to be done within this holiday season. There are 11 other months of the year to see family and friends. I used to be one of those traditionalists who had to scour the shopping mall for that perfect gift. The idea of using the internet to shop seemed impersonal.

No one will know where I purchased their gift. So why should I put that extra stress on myself? I hated turning down an invitation. Now I ask if we can postpone until after the holidays.

Extra weight leads to more apneas

Don't forget about all the extra food and alcohol we consume this time of year. I love my sweets, but I have learned that it's easy to add a few extra pounds during this time of year.

Unfortunately, the older I get, the harder it is to remove those newly added pounds. The extra weight causes me to have more apneas. I don't think we always correlate food and the quality of our sleep. But the extra weight can have an effect on our sleep. Alcohol also negatively affects our sleep.

Prioritizing our sleep

Like the lyrics in Andy Williams' song: "It's the hap-happiest season of all." Unfortunately, we can't do it all. First and foremost, don't stop prioritizing your health. That also means your sleep. Remember there are 11 other months in the year to visit with family and friends.

When living with a sleep disorder like sleep apnea, it's important to remain on our sleep routine. Because if we get off it, we can spend significant time trying to find it again. So enjoy the season and remember to prioritize your health.