Festival of Sleep Day

Stop what you’re doing and clear your calendar, because January 3rd is the Festival of Sleep Day. During the holiday period, we tend to do a lot of partying and very little sleeping. No one really knows who founded this holiday, but they clearly had a profound appreciation for sleep. This day was originally encouraged so that people could catch up on some much-needed sleep and just relax. It provides people with a set time to recover and recoup.

Once upon a time sleep used to be separated into two parts throughout the day. People would use the time in between the first and second sleep to relax and socialize. For centuries this was the routine, until it was disrupted by the invention of artificial light and the Industrial Revolution. People were now able to work longer days, pushing their sleeping times, and thus socializing was moved to before going to bed. The working day in this newly industrialized world began to eat into the sleeping time of business people and workers, just like it does today.

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Sleep is a basic human function and helps us recharge for the next day. Catching enough of these vital z’s can help prevent fatal events from happening. Sleep increases our concentration, alertness, problem-solving and improves memory and learning. It is also super important for our health as well. Lack of sleep has been known to cause many mental and physical health problems.

So really, the person who created this day, had all our best interests at heart and only wanted to keep everyone healthy. Therefore it’s only respectful to celebrate this day and just relax. The best way to do this is simply by sleeping, maybe take a nap if you can. Even just relaxing in PJ’s is a great option! Why not help someone else get a few extra winks by taking a few things off their plate? However you choose to celebrate, this holiday is one not to be missed.