At some point in our lives we have tried everything strategies to fill the dream Lost, hours late for an assignment, running errands or watching a marathon of our favorite series Netflix.
While people on Earth struggle with delayed sleep, astronauts on Earth International Space Station They suffer from long working hours, forcing them to skip leisure time from time to time.
Members spend hundreds of minutes on space missions, researching how to grow plants hundreds of kilometers from their planet NASA They resort to some useful tricks to spend countless minutes in the world of dreams without any problems.
International Space Station crew members can wake up 'fresh as a cucumber' thanks to NASA flight surgeons and scientists who came up with the following ways to improve a more natural circadian rhythm.
Do you have sleep problems?
These methods will help @NASA_Astronauts Disruptions to your natural sleep cycle can help you sleep better, and they can also help you: https://t.co/FjdUfnEnfz pic.twitter.com/XA4nKCQMIy
– NASA in Spanish (@NASA_es) December 27, 2023
Sleep and wake schedules
Creating a schedule that takes into account a person's circadian rhythm and individual sleep habits is the first tool to improve sleep quality and function optimally throughout the day.
To guarantee effective adaptation, it is essential that these schedules integrate guidelines regarding lighting, nutrition, and physical activity.
Sleep education and training
To promote healthy sleep hygiene, it is important to be aware of those factors that affect the quality and duration of sleep.
Creating a proper exercise schedule, reducing light exposure from digital devices at night, and following a well-planned diet are practices that promote restful sleep.
Sleeping environment
It is important that our resting place is not surrounded by distractions that affect our rest process.
For the astronauts, their private cabins reduce the chance of interference from other crew members.
In addition, there are special straps to keep crew members from floating while resting.
the light
ISS astronauts switched from traditional public lighting modules (GLAFor its abbreviation in English) Solid State Lamp Modules (SSLA)
The latter allows changing the intensity of the light depending on the preferences of the team members.
Drugs that reduce sleep and alertness
On the ISS they use a hormone called melatonin, which helps regulate day and night cycles.
Additionally, adaptation to unusual schedules is easy.
Cognitive-behavioral sleep therapy
Cognitive-behavioral therapy techniques (DCC) Sleep is an essential tool for team members to navigate daily challenges.
These include psychological strategies such as preparing before bed, maintaining sleep hygiene, using structured relaxation techniques, and cognitive restructuring.
Sleep CBT aims to help group members break unwanted sleep-related habits.
Instead, adopting practices and techniques that promote relaxed relaxation is encouraged.
Pharmacological interventions
In some cases, astronauts may use sedatives, hypnotics, and sedatives to help them relax.
They are used after the individual has tried previous options.
It should be noted that in order to know how the astronaut's performance is under the influence of drugs, they are used in space after many tests carried out on Earth.
With information from NASA
