Beauty and Personal Grooming

After a severe bout of neck pain hit me hard, I began my search for the perfect neck pillow to improve my sleep. As someone who has struggled with cervical discomfort, I knew that proper neck alignment was key to recovery. Having previously shared my recovery journey—including stretches, posture fixes, and lifestyle changes—in How I Recovered from Sudden, Agonizing Neck Pain , I hoped a specialized pillow would be the final step toward lasting relief. The Temporary Fix: A Folded Bedsheet Initially, I swapped my regular pillow for a folded thick bedsheet. While not a long-term solution, this DIY hack brought gradual improvement and underscored the importance of proper neck alignment. However, lingering discomfort pushed me to invest in an ergonomic neck pillow—a decision I now regret. Buying a Neck Pillow? Here’s Why You Should Think Twice The ₹649 neck pillow I purchased on Amazon (now discontinued, but similar models exist) failed miserably. Marketed as a memory foam solution with a...

Being a night owl is associated with a host of health risks. Recent studies have found that night owls or people who stay up late are more likely to die early compared to morning larks who rise early. But being a night owl has some advantages also. [ Source ] Night owls are found to be creative, smart and with better reasoning skills. They are also found to have more mental stamina than early birds. Early risers have a distinct advantage in terms of health over the night owls.

Insomnia is a condition that affects your normal sleeping patterns. If you stay up late because you find it difficult to sleep, then you may have insomnia. Averagely, an adult requires between 7 to 8 hours of sleep to function well. Losing sleep hurts your health.

If you have a tendency to put on weight, better keep a watch on your sleeping hours. A Canadian study has found that too much or too little sleep could lead to unhealthy weight gain.

World Sleep Day was celebrated on March 16th . A restful night sleep spanning 7-8 hours leaves us feeling refreshed and  healthy. It enhances your beauty, helps you maintain healthy body weight, keeps your mind calm and peaceful, decreases your risk of cardiovascular diseases and so on and so forth.  You just can't get enough of enumerating the health benefits of adequate sleep. It's that important.

Sleep deprivation has drastic consequences on health . Short sleep can lead to hypertension, diabetes, higher levels of bad cholesterol, obesity, brain fogginess, memory loss, inability to learn and retain new information, poor judgement and a host of other health problems.  But did you know that sleeping for long hours is also not healthier either?   In any case, it is not a healthy practice to loll in bed for long hours . Anything in excess is always bad, including sleep.   While there is no conclusive proof to show that long sleepers are shy, introverts or over-anxious types , long sleepers are at a risk of several other health issues such as stroke, cardiovascular disease, diabetes etc.  A recent  research  has also found that  sleeping for more than nine hours a night is associated with having bad dreams / nightmares . S tephanie Rek at the University of Oxford and her colleagues performed one of the largest ever studies of nightmares in the...

J asks : Whenever my exams are round t or the corner, I find I cannot sleep at nights. In other words I have exam phobia and exam insomnia or sleeplessness. My family doctor has prescribed mild tranquilizers but these are of no help. What can I do? Response : Apparently, anxiety over your approaching exams robs you of your sleep. Tranquilizers can only artificially sedate your nerves. It is wiser to tackle the root of your insomnia problem: anxiety and stress. A good night’s sleep is absolutely essential for a good memory and to recall whatever you have read easily and quickly. Spending sleepless nights before the exams can take a toll on your physical and mental abilities and not help you perform your best. So make some lifestyle changes and try some of these tips and measures to tackle your sleeplessness and tension.

The Centers For Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 20 to 50 million people in the United States have sleep related issues. Peaceful nights of sleep could however spell improved focus at work, less overall health concerns and a happier you . Before turning to prescription medication, try the following suggestions to fall asleep faster, stay asleep longer and wake up feeling more rejuvenated.

I remember reading somewhere that long sleepers tend to be shy, introverted and of worrying nature. Long sleepers are those who need to have at least 9 or more hours of sleep to feel adequately well-rested and refreshed. True, excessively long sleep (for more than 10 hours)  is linked to a host of health issues; read one of the earlier posts on this topic. But as long as this oversleep is not due to any underlying medical condition, it isn't such a cause for worry.

Puffy, red eyes aren't attractive on anybody. If you often find yourself pulling late nights and surrounded by people at work or school who ask what's wrong or why you look so tired, it might be time to adjust your sleep routine. Getting more sleep ensures that your eyes will look brighter and healthier, and the rest of you will feel better, too! There are lots of small steps you can take to improve your sleeping habits. Here are a few of the easiest tips to implement.

It is something we can't live without, yet with hectic lifestyles becoming the norm, less of us are getting the amount of sleep we need to function. You may feel like a zombie the next day, but too little sleep can leave you looking a bit ghoulish as well. And, unfortunately, this isn’t just my impression - Swedish researchers explored this phenomenon in 2011 (1) .

Stress and anxiety sometimes induce transient insomnia. I'm sure this has been experienced by most of us. When unpleasant events shatter your peace of mind, your sleep is affected. While some may have trouble falling asleep, others may have disruptive sleep cycles where they get frequently awakened by nightmares. And lying awake whilst everyone else is sleeping blissfully can be very torturous. I had mentioned about this ordeal in one of my previous posts.

Snoring is the unwelcome visitor that shakes us awake in the middle of the night. The rumblings coming from one partner's side of the bed cause the other partner to toss and turn as resentment builds. Not only does snoring have a negative effect on our sleep and health, it contributes to relationship problems.

Sleep apnea, a Latin term and a serious and fairly common sleep disorder, means “without breath.” For patients with sleep apnea, the individual involuntarily stops breathing over and over during the night. This disorder can also cause episodes of another condition known as hypopnea or “slow breathing.” Hypopnea causes the patient to take very shallow breaths or abnormally slow breaths also often causing him to wake many times during the night resulting in unrestful sleep.

When you are overstrained and exhausted either physically or mentally, you cannot fall asleep easily and quickly - it's a fact!  That was the case with me a few days back. On that day I had not only walked 4-5 kilometres but also read a deep philosophical book that I found intriguing.  I was feeling tired and it was around 10:30 PM that I decided to grab some shut-eye. An hour passed by and I wasn't getting any sleep. My eyelids were heavy and droopy and I felt  wooly-headed too but strangely sleep eluded me. Now this certainly wasn't the time for home-remedies such as hot foot bath or a  glass of  hot milk . So I just lay on the bed tossing and turning. After what seemed like a long time, I glanced at the alarm clock only to find that it was already quarter to two! Here I was wide-awake when almost half the world was in a deep slumber.

Sleep is very important not only for beauty, but also for the well-being of an individual. If you are one of the sleep-deprived, you need to learn yoga poses to help you sleep better. When you perform yoga poses, the biochemicals in the body are released which aids in restful sleep. Yoga is good for the spirit, mind, and body. With continued practice, you can address the sleep disorders or problems effectively.

Image Credit A True Sleep Masks Function   A sleep mask can be a very helpful tool for men and women who have trouble sleeping at night.  Their main purpose is to block out light that may distract someone when trying to fall asleep.  Any other benefits are small and only a secondary function to light reduction.  Although companies may claim their masks have several healing abilities, the truth is, most are ineffective and cannot provide much additional help. There are several types of sleep masks all ranging in price and quality.  Although the differences may not affect the ability to fall asleep, they can cause undesirable results concerning wrinkles and puffiness around the eyes.

Literally all of us have heard someone end a conversation by saying, "I've got to go. I really need to get my beauty sleep (or rest)." And while we may initially chalk it up to merely being a cute thing to say, did you know that there is actually a lot of validity to how beauty and sleep work hand-in-hand when it comes to helping you to look your absolute best?

Worldwide experiments show that sleep deprivation can be one of the factors contributing to weight gain. When you do not sleep for the required number of hours at night, you will run low on energy. As a result, you feel sleepy at work, which instantly tempts you for one or more cups of hot coffee, and a doughnut or a hot burger for triggering that energy shot. Later, it may so happen that you skip the gym and reach home by taking some food for your family, because you have no time to cook owing to overwork. Finally, you sleep late at night that deprives of adequate sleep.

When you’re just not catching enough zees, the lack of REM reboot will begin to show, particularly on your face.  Your skin will become ashy and those dark circles that you loathe will seem more pronounced than ever.  Plus, you’re just going to start to look tired after a while, not only from drooping eyelids and a vacant expression, but from the slump of your body.  Even if you can’t seem to get your full recommended eight hours a night (who can these days?) you don’t want to look like you’re burning the candle at both ends.  So here are just a few beauty treatments that will have you looking restored, rested, and revitalized in no time.