7-14 累而不眠

Unable To Fall Asleep Though Tired

 

Why is it so difficult to fall asleep when you are overtired? There is no one answer that applies to every individual. But many people fail to note the distinction between fatigue-physical tiredness--and sleepiness, the inability to stay awake. It’s possible to feel “tired” physically¹ and still be unable to fall asleep, because while your body may be exhausted², you don’t feel sleepy. To fall asleep, you need adequate time to unwind¹, even if you feel fatigued³. It’s not so easy to simply “turn off.”

 

According to Carl E. Hunt, director of the National Center on Sleep Disorders⁴ Research in Bethesda, Maryland, most people do not allow themselves sufficient deceleration².

 

Lack of sleep complicates⁵ matters even more. Experts say adults need at least 7 to 8 hours of sleep a night to function properly. When you get less sleep than that on consecutive⁶³ nights, you begin to accrue⁷⁴ “sleep debt.” As sleep debt increases (and functionality decreases), your body experiences a stress response and begins to release adrenaline⁵. Now a vicious cycle has been created: You experience the feeling of being more and more tired, but your body is increasingly stimulated⁸. “Power sleeping” for more hours on weekends is only a temporary solution. “There is no substitute for getting a good night’s sleep on a regular basis,” says Hunt.

 

Most of us, however, don’t get the sleep we need. According to the 2002 National Sleep Foundation, Americans sleep an average of 6.9 hours per night during the week, and 58 percent of adults experience symptoms of insomnia⁹⁶ a few nights a week or more.

 

注释：

1. unwind [7Qn5waind] vi. 放松，松弛，变得不紧张

2. deceleration [di:7selE5reiFEn] n. 减速(度)

3. consecutive [kEn5sekjutiv] a. 连续的

4. accrue [E5kru:] vt. 获得；积累

5. adrenaline [E`dre:nElaIn] n. [生化] 肾上腺素

6. insomnia [in5sCmniE] n. 失眠；失眠症

 

累而不眠

 

为何你劳累过度却又如此难以入睡？这并没有一个可适用于每一个人的统一答案。但很多人都未注意到疲倦（身体上的劳累）和困倦（无法保持清醒状态）之间的区别。身体上感到“劳累”却仍然无法入睡是可能的，因为你的身体可能感到疲惫，但你不觉得困倦。要入睡，你得有充足的时间来放松，即便你已感到疲倦。要想一下就“转而入睡”，没那么容易。

马里兰州贝塞斯达全国睡眠紊乱研究中心主任卡尔·E·亨特说，大多数人都没有给自己充分的舒缓时间。

缺少睡眠使事情变得更为复杂。专家们说，要使身体机能运转正常，成人每晚至少需要7～8个小时的睡眠。如果你连续数晚睡眠都少于这个时间，你就要开始负上“睡眠债”。当睡眠债越积越多（同时身体机能减退），你的身体将做出压力反应，开始释放肾上腺素。这样就形成了一个恶性循环：你感觉越来越累，但你的身体受到的刺激却越来越强。周末猛补几个小时的觉只是权宜之计。“有规律地每晚睡一个好觉，这是不可替代的，”亨特说。

然而，我们当中大多数人并未睡足我们所需的觉。根据2002年全国睡眠基金会的数据，美国人一周内平均每晚睡眠为6.9个小时，58％的成年人在一周或更长的时间内总有几晚有失眠症状。

 

1 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

2 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

3 fatigued   

adj. 疲乏的

参考例句：

• The exercises fatigued her. 操练使她感到很疲乏。
• The President smiled, with fatigued tolerance for a minor person's naivety. 总统笑了笑，疲惫地表现出对一个下级人员的天真想法的宽容。

4 disorders   

n.混乱( disorder的名词复数 )；凌乱；骚乱；（身心、机能）失调

参考例句：

• Reports of anorexia and other eating disorders are on the increase. 据报告，厌食症和其他饮食方面的功能紊乱发生率正在不断增长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The announcement led to violent civil disorders. 这项宣布引起剧烈的骚乱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 complicates   

使复杂化( complicate的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• What complicates the issue is the burden of history. 历史的重负使问题复杂化了。
• Russia as a great and ambitious power gravely complicates the situation. 俄国作为一个强大而有野心的国家，使得局势异常复杂。

6 consecutive   

adj.连续的，联贯的，始终一贯的

参考例句：

• It has rained for four consecutive days.已连续下了四天雨。
• The policy of our Party is consecutive.我党的政策始终如一。

7 accrue   

v.(利息等)增大，增多

参考例句：

• Ability to think will accrue to you from good habits of study.思考能力将因良好的学习习惯而自然增强。
• Money deposited in banks will accrue to us with interest.钱存在银行，利息自生。

8 stimulated   

a.刺激的

参考例句：

• The exhibition has stimulated interest in her work. 展览增进了人们对她作品的兴趣。
• The award has stimulated her into working still harder. 奖金促使她更加努力地工作。

9 insomnia   

n.失眠，失眠症

参考例句：

• Worries and tenseness can lead to insomnia.忧虑和紧张会导致失眠。
• He is suffering from insomnia.他患失眠症。