Life Purpose Helps You Sleep Better

Can having a sense of purpose improve your sleep? In this episode, we look at the connection between purpose, faith, spirituality, and rest. Purpose does not work like a sleeping pill, but it can reduce mental noise, lower rumination, and give your nervous system a clearer reason to settle down at night. We also explore why exhaustion can make spiritual connection harder, and why sometimes better sleep starts with asking one simple question: What am I waking up for tomorrow?

Transcript

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Welcome back to Night Shift with Justin S. King, how to transform your life one night at a time. Night is from an idea which was discussed on School of Greatness podcast with Dr. Michael Bruce, which was published May 22nd. It's Lewis Howe's podcast. And the question that Lewis asked Dr. Bruce was this does having a purpose help you sleep better? And Dr. Bruce didn't have a specific answer to that. He said it's not a question they ask when they're doing research, is what your purpose is. But there are actually studies that show that purpose seems to protect sleep because it gives the mind a place to land. When your life feels aimless, your brain keeps searching at night. And when your life has direction, your nervous system has less unfinished business to solve. There were two studies we were able to find that showed having a purpose in life, whether spiritual or some kind of higher calling, reduced odds of sleep disturbances by 16% over a four-year period. The authors define a purpose as a sense of meaning, direction, or goals for the future. Another study in review in sleep health showed that religious adults tend to show healthier sleep outcomes, likely through lower psychological distress, lower substance use, lower stress exposure, and lower psychological arousal. So the hard truth is that if your body feels unsafe, purpose alone may not fix your sleep. Trauma, anxiety, caffeine, bad sleep habits, and bad routines can still affect your sleep. So the question for tonight is to examine what is your purpose? The simplest thing is to do tonight is what is your purpose for tomorrow? What are you waking up towards? Tomorrow, what's your purpose tomorrow? My mentor Coop Blackson would say your purpose is this exact moment. There's a few different ways and methods out there that people use to find a purpose. You can just tonight ask yourself, what is your what is my purpose as you fall asleep? I think I discussed this on a previous episode. You could check out the book, Reclaim Your Power, or if you want to take a real deep dive. I do do a coaching for a three-day program called Soul Purpose Intensive, where you examine your life through different lenses, and by the end you come out with a deeper purpose in life. It's a program I participated uh in myself a a few years ago. And now I help coach in that same method. I think the the easiest thing to do is just to meditate on it, think about it, and if nothing is coming to you, your purpose is to grow and to expand and to live in alignment with things you know now that align with your conscious. That's it for tonight's episode of Night Shift. My name is Justin S. King. Entrepreneurs find peace tonight, tomorrow, and for the rest of their lives through sleep optimization, motion regulation, and discovering their purpose. Good night.