Sleep 101

The sleep diary: a tool for transforming your nights

The TNDO sleep diary is not just a chart, it’s an ally that has proven its effectiveness time and time again, to help you get back to a fulfilling, recharging night’s sleep.

Whether you’re a young person or a healthcare professional, this diary is an indispensable tool for finding the right levers to act on sleep.

It’s all about taking the time to note down the information in the table, to become aware of your lifestyle habits that impact on sleep, by answering short questions every night for 7 to 14 days.

Sleep, which some people mistakenly regard as a nocturnal interlude, turns out to be of crucial importance to overall well-being, including mental health. Understanding the subtleties of your own sleep can be the key to a balanced life, especially for young people, whose nocturnal habits change with puberty.

This is where the sleep diary comes in.

HERE ARE THE 8 QUESTIONS OF THE SLEEP DIARY AND HOW TO ANSWER THEM:

They take into account mood, quantity and quality of sleep, as well as lifestyle habits during the day that can affect sleep (e.g. exercise, screen time, stress).

For it to be effective, one condition must be met: you must take this time for yourself every night. Keeping your motivations in mind can be a great help in persevering: the diary gives you an informed look at yourself, allowing you to step back and draw up a personalized game plan for getting back to satisfying nights’ sleep.

1) Today I feel ______? (in shape, sad, stressed, etc.)

The first question invites you to describe today’s mood in one word, an emoji or a drawing. Paying attention to your mood can reveal ways to improve your sleep.

2) Am I satisfied or not with my sleep last night?

A simple “Yes” or “No” will suffice here, or you can opt for a scale from 1 to 10. The important thing is to keep the same way of evaluating satisfaction throughout the period you fill in the diary.

3) What time did I get up?

A very simple question, like the next ones (questions 4 and 5). A tip for maximum accuracy is to have a notebook near your bed, to record the time you woke up and the time you went to bed.

4) What time did I go to bed?

5) What time did I fall asleep?

6) How many hours did I sleep?

(Actual time = C – A, where C is the time I fell asleep and A is the time I got up)

Remember that teenagers need an average of 8 to 10 hours of sleep a night.

7) I took a ___ minute nap.

Here’s a reminder of the rules of the art of napping:

  • It should last 10-20 minutes at most. If you can’t manage that, then you need to do a full 90-minute sleep cycle – no less, no more.
  • It should take place in the early afternoon at the latest, otherwise you risk interfering with night-time sleep.
  • It should not replace a night’s sleep, just as a snack is not a meal.

8) Notes on my lifestyle:

Are there any habits, activities or events in the young person’s day that influence sleep?

Remember

  • Regular exercise can promote quality sleep.
  • Meditation can help reduce stress and anxiety, which in turn helps sleep.
  • Consumption of caffeine, alcohol or cannabis, or unbalanced use of screens, can disrupt sleep.

Download the journal in PDF format
Back to sleep 101

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Wednesday, March 20
11:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. (Eastern time)

CHOOSING BEDDING THAT IS AS COMFORTABLE AS TIGHT JEANS.

In general, humans need to feel comfortable and secure to freely indulge in sleep. That’s why you need your sleeping environment, basically your room or your bed, to fit you so you can sleep well. We are all different and so is what makes us feel good and safe.

However, we know that what invites sleep in general is an environment that:

  • is dedicated to it (just sleep)
  • is cool
  • is dark
  • is not noisy

It’s not a cave, but it’s your space, your personal space where you feel safe enough to abandon yourself in the arms of Morpheus (a Greek god, no less).

The devil is in the details, everything can be thought of or rethought in your room (or simply your bed). Do you like your mattress, pillow and bedding? Do the colors of your walls and your decorations make you want to dance on your bed or lie in it peacefully? What are your light sources? Alarm clock? Screen? A lamp? Disco ball? In general, a cool room temperature makes for a good night’s sleep, but some people are big, heavy comforters even in the summer, while others sleep like a stranded whale at the beach even if it’s 15 degrees.

Your room, your space, your style.

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TRUE

In experiments on beauty, scientists showed their participants photos of people and asked them to say who looked fitter, more attractive, healthier, etc. Some photos were of people who said they were tired and sleep-deprived and others of people who were rested (with or without dark circles, for example). Some photos were of people who said they were tired and sleep-deprived and others of people who were rested (with or without dark circles, for example). The result: the photos of people who had enough sleep and said they were in good shape were the ones that were judged more attractive than the others. The moral of this story? Sleep is the beauty trick of the century! Well, it doesn’t make a great video “tutorial”, we agree, but at least your natural “glow” doesn’t pollute your face or the planet.

PS: No animal was mistreated for this question.

Read more
Sleeping during the day, as well as at night, is important to be at your best physically and mentally. It can be a very effective way to recharge your batteries. It’s not for nothing that we call it a power nap. Your brain, your muscles and your growing skeleton will thank you. Beware of drowsiness because it tells you that you are lacking sleep. You know, it’s when you sleep in class or in other places that aren’t suitable for sleep. Drowsiness is a sign that it’s time to make adjustments to your day and night sleep. Why not add planned naps to your schedule? There’s no age limit to the benefits of napping, it’s good for kids and adults alike, but there are rules to mastering the art of napping:
  1. No more than 10-20 minutes you will sleep, short nap will be (or 90 minutes to do a full cycle, no less, no more – set an alarm).
  2. Before your evening meal, thou shall nap, otherwise beware of your night sleep that will escape you.
  3. Thou shall sleep at night, for a nap does not replace the restorative sleep of the night, just as a snack is not a meal.
  4. Attentive you will be if sleep takes hold of you and makes you fall asleep anywhere and anytime and especially where you shouldn’t, in your classes for example. The nap that comes without warning is a sign that you lack sleep, that you suffer from drowsiness. You need to take action and take care of yourself.
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FACING MONSTROUS CREATURES

Nightmares are dreams that are as frightening as seeing someone lose their teeth while eating ice cream. Joking aside, the emotions they generate are sometimes so intense that they can make it hard for you to go back to sleep right away, and night after night. After “facing monstrous creatures”, the most common dreams among young people are “being physically assaulted”, followed by “falling” and “being late”. We know this thanks to researchers like Mathieu Pilon (the one behind TNDO) who has read and analyzed tons of dreams and nightmares in his sleep lab.

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true

Lack of sleep affects academic performance because sleep is important for your attention and memory.

First of all, just like a fellow student who keeps clicking his pen, lack of sleep disrupts your ability to concentrate in class. For example, how can you remember that the Quebec Act was passed in 1774 if your attention was not there?

Lack of sleep also affects what you have learned during the day because it is thanks to sleep that everything is recorded on your internal hard drive. Basically, no matter how much you study, if you don’t sleep, it won’t stick.

If you want to shine in school like a star in the night sky, sleep is your best ally.

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8 TO 10 HOURS

Everyone is different, but it seems that teenagers need 8 to 10 hours of sleep per night. Yes, not everyone needs the same amount of sleep. While Harry functions well on less sleep, his friend Ron needs more to feel good. And what about Hermione and her “time-turner”!

It’s nature’s way! Diversity of people and their sleep needs. The key is to aim for restful sleep and to feel good. Do you know how many hours of sleep you need to recharge your batteries?

That said, why do cats sleep so much? It’s a relic of the days when these felines had to hunt for their meals. With so much sleep in their pockets, cats had the energy they needed in case they had to run long distances to catch prey.

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