Whether you realise it or not, you are not getting enough sleep. Recent studies have led researchers to conclude that insomnia is far more common than previously believed and its effects are far more reaching. Our generation with all its technological distractions has been the major factor behind the insomnia epidemic.


It affects children, adolescents and adults alike, in all walks of life thereby increasing several diseases, while decreasing performance and effectiveness in the work place.

Sleep is essential to life. Laboratory animals die young if they are deprived of deep sleep, and so do humans.

The American Cancer Society in a survey, concluded that those who sleep six hours or less have 30 per cent higher death rate than those who sleep eight hours, even if they had no other health problems.




'The beginning of health is sleep'


There are endless theories behind sleep-how, when, where and why we sleep! For years scientists who have studied sleep concentrated on observing and describing the cycles, phases and patterns of sleep. Dreams have also been studied extensively, induced, analysed and interpreted ad infinitum, not only by scientists but by fortunetellers and soothsayers throughout the ages.

Between the dream phenomenon and the sleep cycles of the infamous REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep and the non-REM sleep, scientists seemed to have concentrated on all else except the fundamental purposes of sleep.



Why do we sleep


We sleep in order to rest and refresh our bodies. Well, not really! Scientists have yet to find any vital biological function that sleep restores.


The body does not need sleep; virtually all our organs continue to function efficiently without interruption, such as the heart, lungs, kidneys, liver, bones, etc. They do not need sleep. Why then is sleep such a major function, a necessity for virtually all members of the animal kingdom? Scientist simply don't know.


If it does not rest the body, then sleep certainly rests and refreshes the brain. There is no doubt that it is the brain that benefits from a restful sleep. Yet there is no agreement on the various forms of benefits that the brain takes. One thing scientists do agree upon is that sleep does improve memory. Memory is helpful at school, at work and at play.


The number of hours necessary for sleep to fulfil its function remains nebulous. You need as much sleep as will render you refreshed and revived the next morning. Whatever number of hours that takes, that is the precise number of hours you need. While some may feel totally refreshed after 3-5 hours sleep, others 6-7 hours, most researchers believe that this falls short of the necessary requirements; 8- 10 hours is more like it.

Sleep deprivation is what we all suffer from, decreasing the metabolic activity of our brain as well as decreasing in core body temperature, "a decrease in immune system function as measured by white cell count and activity and a decrease in the release of growth hormone." It is inconceivable that seven hours of sleep is not enough, but studies reveal that a week's duration of seven-hour nights leads to "impairment of cognitive work, requiring simultaneous focus on several tasks". Risky behaviour increases as sleep duration decreases. The sleep-deprived individual ignores the high cost of an action, focussing only on the limited benefits.
For decades experts believed that people required less sleep as they moved from infancy to adulthood but researchers were surprised to discover that teenagers require more sleep to perform optimally than do younger children.


In a recent US study, students who received the lower grades were the ones who had 25 minutes less sleep and went to bed 40 minutes later than students with better grades. Adolescents' lifestyle pattern as well as their unusual week day sleep phenomenon is reducing school performance everywhere and lowering academic standards. It is also undermining their health making them less alert, weary, expending greater effort.



The British journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine published a study by Australia and New Zealand where researchers reported that getting less than six hours of sleep a night "can affect coordination, reaction time, and judgement", posing a very serious threat to safety and well-being. The British Medical Association warns that impaired motor skills are not the only negative results from lack of sleep: stress, anxiety, depression, and taking unnecessary risks are among some of the adverse results of less sleep. Lack of sleep is behind more accidents than alcohol impairment, leading to emotional and psychological problems.



A good night's sleep seems to be the cure to many of the ailments of the 21st century. Though our needs may vary, we all benefit from a minimum of 8-9 hours sleep daily in order to restore the brain's energy. I can almost hear a guffaw from those of you who have slept less throughout your lives without any apparent loss. Consider this -- had you had that extra hour, two or three, of extended sleep, how much more effective and efficient your performance would have been. Such research studies pop up daily from academic and scientific communities throughout the world. The Dutch have also contributed to sleeplessness analysis with researcher Michel Varkavisser who found that about 20 per cent of the Dutch population regularly experience sleeping complaints resulting in work absenteeism, reduced ability to concentrate, fatigue, drowsiness, and a worse mood. A bad day at work results in more stress at home, "relationships suffer, kids react, people are hurt and angry." The result is more stress.



The National Science Foundation, last January, in a US poll concluded that only 50 per cent of Americans get a good night's sleep each week. The most common sleep disorder is characterised by: Difficulty in falling asleep or staying asleep: Waking up early with inability to fall back to sleep again: Waking up feeling tired and unrefreshed from poor quality sleep.


Researchers around the world agree on two things: Sleep is necessary for the well-being of the human race, and the human race as a whole is not getting enough sleep.




So, what are we going to do about it? Off to bed


First, here are 10 dos and donts that could help you achieve nature's sweet restorer -- that balmy sleep. It is considered "better than medicine", and more effective than the sweetest lullaby:

- Do not turn your bed into your office -- bed is for sleep.

- Go to bed and get up the same time each day, including weekends.

- Avoid daytime naps.

- Avoid alcohol at night, and definitely do not use it to help you sleep.

- Avoid caffeine (coffee, tea, cola, chocolate) after mid- afternoon.

- Eliminate tobacco close to bedtime.

- Exercise regularly throughout the day; avoid exercise at night.

- Keep the bedroom cool and comfortable.

- Give yourself at least an hour to unwind and relax.

- Dim the lights, read a little, or watch TV, or have a glass of warm milk or a non-carb snack, if you must.

And so, goodnight! Embrace "the cool kindliness of sheets that soon smooth away trouble".

The amount of sleep required by the average person, is just five minutes more!

Anonymous

thnx alot never

Remembrance of Allah (Dhikr)



What deed is better than giving gold and
silver? According to the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), it is dhikr, which means remembrance of Allah (God).

Dhikr is a form of worship that comes after the ritual Prayer (salah) and reading Qur’an in importance. While salah has to be performed at certain times and under certain conditions of purity, dhikr can be made any time, any place. It can be done by repeating certain formulas to extol and praise Allah, or it can be just thoughts of Allah in one’s heart.

Islam does not require anyone to torture himself in order to reach a high stage of spirituality. Nor does he have to shun everything of this world. Rather, one can be close to Allah (God) by frequently remembering Him with his lips and heart, even as he is busy with his daily tasks.

Dhikr can also take a more distinct form such as tasbeeh, which is extolling Allah. This is usually done by counting on the fingers or on prayer beads (called sibhah) and repeating phrases such as “Subhan Allah” (Allah is Sublime), “Al-Hamdulillah” (all praise to Allah) and “Allahu Akbar” (Allah is Greatest) thirty-three times each. Then the Muslim says, “Laa ilaha illa Allah. Wahdhu. La Shirika lahu. Lahu al-mulk, wa lahu al-hamd, wa hua ‘ala kulli shay’in qadeer.” (There is no god but Allah. He is One. He has no partner. To Him is the dominion and all praise, and He has power over all things.)

Other formulas found in the Sunnah of the Prophet can also be used in dhikr as well. When these formulas are repeated with the lips and also felt in the heart, they are a type of meditation that puts the Muslim in touch with his Lord, strengthens him, and relieves him of stress.

A Love Story

A man and a woman were married. It was large celebration. All of their friends and family came to see the lovely ceremony and to partake of the festivities and celebrations. A wonderful time was had by all. The bride was gorgeous in her white wedding gown and the groom was very dashing in his black tuxedo. Everyone could tell that the love they had for each other was true.

A few months later, the wife comes to the husband with a proposal: "I read in a magazine, a while ago, about how we can strengthen our marriage." she offered. "Each of us will write a list of the things that we find a bit annoying with the other person. Then, we can talk about how we can fix them together and make our lives happier together."

The husband agreed. So each of them went to a separate room in the house and thought of the things that annoyed them about the other. They thought about this question for the rest of the day and wrote down what they came up with. The next morning, at the breakfast table, they decided that they would go over their lists.

"I'll start," offered the wife. She took out her list. It had many items on it. Enough to fill 3 pages, in fact. As she started reading the list of the little annoyances, she noticed that tears were starting to appear in her husbands eyes. "What's wrong?" she asked. "Nothing" the husband replied, "keep reading your list." The wife continued to read until she had read all three pages to her husband. She neatly placed her list on the table and folded her hands over top of it.

"Now, you read your list and then we'll talk about the things on both of our lists." She said happily. Quietly the husband stated, "I don't have anything on my list. I think that you are perfect the way that you are. I don't want you to change anything for me. You are lovely and wonderful and I wouldn't want to try and change anything about you."

The wife, touched by his honesty and the depth of his love for her and his acceptance of her, turned her head and wept.

IN LIFE, there are enough times when we are disappointed, depressed and annoyed. We don't really have to go looking for them.We have a wonderful world that is full of beauty, light and promise. Why waste time in this world looking for the bad, disappointing or annoying things when we can look around us, and see the wondrous things before us?

I believe that WE ARE HAPPIEST WHEN we see and praise the good and try our best to forego the mistakes of our loved ones. Nobody is perfect but we can find perfection in them to change the way we see them. It is necessary to understand the difficulties and be a helping hand to each other... THAT BRIGHTENS THE RELATIONSHIP

Hay guys
hope you liked this story
it is not mine for sure i didn't write that .. i just search for thing like that
and here is the story of today
it is kinda long . so if you decide to read .. you gotta read it all
Hope you like it








The Old PHONE


When I was quite young, my father had one of the first telephones in our
neighborhood. I remember the polished, old case fastened to the wall. The shiny
receiver hung on the side of the box. I was too little to reach the telephone,
but used to listen with fascination when my mother talked to it.

Then I discovered that somewhere inside the wonderful device lived an amazing
person. Her name was "Information Please" and there was nothing she did not
know. Information Please could supply anyone's number and the correct time.

My personal experience with the genie-in-a-bottle came one day while my mother
was visiting a neighbor. Amusing myself at the tool bench in the basement, I
whacked my finger with a hammer, the pain was terrible, but there seemed no
point in crying because there was no one home to give sympathy.

I walked around the house sucking my throbbing finger, finally arriving at the
stairway. The telephone! Quickly, I ran for the footstool in the parlor and
dragged it to the landing. Climbing up, I unhooked the receiver in the parlor
and held it to my ear. "Information, please" I said into the mouthpiece just
above my head. A click or two and a small clear voice spoke into my ear.

"Information."

"I hurt my finger..." I wailed into the phone, the tears came readily enough now
that I had an audience.

"Isn't your mother home?" came the question.

"Nobody's home but me," I blubbered.

"Are you bleeding?" the voice asked.

"No," I replied. "I hit my finger with the hammer and it hurts." "Can you open
the icebox?" she asked.

I said I could.

"Then chip off a little bit of ice and hold it to your finger," said the voice.

After that, I called "Information Please" for everything. I asked her for help
with my geography, and she told me where Philadelphia was. She helped me with my
math. She told me my pet chipmunk that I had caught in the park just the day
before, would eat fruit and nuts.

Then, there was the time Petey, our pet canary, died. I called, Information
Please," and told her the sad story. She listened, and then said things
grown-ups say to soothe a child. But I was not consoled. I asked her, "Why is it
that birds should sing so beautifully and bring joy to all families, only to end
up as a heap of feathers on the bottom of a cage?"

She must have sensed my deep concern, for she said quietly, "Paul always
remember that there are other worlds to sing in."

Somehow I felt better.

Another day I was on the telephone, "Information Please." "Information," said in
the now familiar voice. "How do I spell fix?" I asked.

All this took place in a small town in the Pacific Northwest. When I was nine
years old, we moved across the country to Boston. I missed my friend very much.
"Information Please" belonged in that old wooden box back home and I somehow
never thought of trying the shiny new phone that sat on the table in the hall.
As I grew into my teens, the memories of those childhood conversations never
really left me.

Often, in moments of doubt and perplexity I would recall the serene sense of
security I had then. I appreciated now how patient, understanding, and kind she
was to have spent her time on a little boy.

A few years later, on my way west to college, my plane put down in Seattle. I
had about a half-hour or so between planes. I spent 15 minutes or so on the
phone with my sister, who lived there now. Then without thinking what I was
doing, I dialed my hometown operator and said, "Information Please."

Miraculously, I heard the small, clear voice I knew so well. "Information."

I hadn't planned this, but I heard myself saying, "Could you please tell me how
to spell fix?"

There was a long pause. Then came the soft spoken answer, "I guess your finger
must have healed by now."

I laughed, "So it's really you," I said. "I wonder if you have any idea how much
you meant to me during that time?"

I wonder," she said, "if you know how much your call meant to me. I never had
any children and I used to look forward to your calls."

I told her how often I had thought of her over the years and I asked if I could
call her again when I came back to visit my sister.

"Please do", she said. "Just ask for Sally."

Three months later I was back in Seattle. A different voice answered,
"Information." I asked for Sally.

"Are you a friend?" she said.

"Yes, a very old friend," I answered.

"I'm sorry to have to tell you this," she said. "Sally had been working
part-time the last few years because she was sick. She died five weeks ago."
Before I could hang up she said, "Wait a minute, did you say your name was
Paul?" "Yes." I answered.

"Well, Sally left a message for you. She wrote it down in case you called.

Let me read it to you." The note said, "Tell him there are other worlds to sing
in. He'll know what I mean."

I thanked her and hung up. I knew what Sally meant.

Never underestimate the impression you may make on others.

Whose life have you touched today?

Why not pass this on? I just did....

Lifting you on eagle's wings. May you find the joy and peace you long for.

Thanx Amira ... Actually i don't know who is the writer
but i will try to get some information about him
i hope you liked that one .. it is really amazing one
and i hope to see some other posts from other members

i am shocked that no one answered or posted any comment
i had decided that i wont post more stories till anybody say anything
but here is it another wonderful story

Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room. One man was
allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the
fluid from his lungs. His bed was next to the room's only window. The other
man had to spend all his time flat on his back. The men talked for hours on
end. They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their
involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation.
Every afternoon when the man in the bed by the window could sit up, he
would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could
see outside the window.
The man in the other bed began to live for those one
hour periods where his
world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the
world outside.

The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake. Ducks and swans played on
the water while children sailed their model boats. Young lovers walked arm
in arm amidst flowers of every color and a fine view of the city skyline
could be seen in the distance.
As the man by the window described all this in exquisite detail, the man on
the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine the pictures scene.
One warm afternoon the man by the window described a parade passing by.
Although the other man couldn't hear the band - he could see it. In his
mind's eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive
words.


Days and weeks passed.
One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths only to
find the lifeless body of the man by the window, who had died
peacefully in
his sleep. She was saddened and called the hospital attendants to take the
body away.
As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man asked if he could be moved
next to the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after
making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone.
Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first
look at the real world outside.
He strained to slowly turn to look out the window beside the bed.
It faced a blank wall. The man
asked the nurse what could have compelled
his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this window
The nurse responded that the man was blind and could not even see the wall.
She said, "Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you."


Epilogue:
There is tremendous happiness in making others happy, despite our own
situations.
Shared grief is half the sorrow, but happiness when shared, is doubled.
If you want to feel rich, just count all the things you have that money
can't buy.
"Today is a gift, that's why it is called the present."

Al-batool
Nice to see you here again ... remember i am the poem guy
anyway ... very nice story ...and very nice way of writing
i hope you check the stories i posted and drop me a line telling me what do u think ...

thinking meat ????l
hahahahahha
funny
i m eagerly waiting for thr rest of the story

hay guys take this
and don't stop posting ur opinions !!!



My mom only had one eye.
I hated her... she was such an embarressment... my mom ran a small shop
at a flea market. She collected little weeds and such to sell...
anything for the money we needed.... she was such an embarressment.
There was this one day during elementary school... it was field day, and
my mom came. I was so embarressed. how could she do this to me?
I threw her a hateful look and ran out.

The next day at school... "Your mom only has one eye?!?!" ..and they
taunted me. I wished that my mom would just dissappear from this world
so I said to my mom, "Mom.. why dont you have the other eye?! if you're
only gonna make me a laughingstock, why dont you just die?!!!"
my mom did not respond... I guess i felt a little bad, but
at the same
time, it felt good to think that i had said what i'd wanted to say all
this time... Maybe it was because my mom hadnt punished me, but i
didnt think that i had hurt her feelings very badly.

That night... I woke up, and went to the kitchen to get a glass of
water. My mom was crying there, so quietly, as if she was afraid that
she might wake me. I took a look at her, then turned away, because of
the thing I had said to her earlier, there was something pinching at me
in the corner of my heart. Even so, I hated my
mother who was crying out
of her one eye. so i told myself that i would grow up and become
successful, cause I hated my one-eyed mom and our desperate poverty..

Then I studied real hard. I left my mother and came to Seoul and
studied, and got accepted in the Seoul University with all the
confidence i had.

Then, I got married. I bought a house of my own. Then i had kids, too...
Now i'm living happily as a successful man. I like it here because it's
a place that doesnt remind me of my mom. This happiness was getting
bigger and bigger, when....

What?!
Who's this?!
...It was my mother...
..Still with her one eye.
It felt as if the whole sky was falling apart on me. My little girl ran
away, scared of my mom's eye, and i asked her,

"Who are you?!"
"I dont know you!!!" as if trying to make that real. I screamed at her,"
how dare you come to my house and scare my daughter!"

"GET OUT OF HERE! NOW!!!"

And to this, my mother quietly answered, "oh, i'm so sorry. i may have
gotten the wrong address," and she dissappeared out of sight.

Thank goodness... she doesnt recognize me.. i was quite relieved.

I told myself that i wasnt going to care, or think about this
for the rest of my life. Then a wave of relief came upon me...

One day, a letter regarding a school reunion came to my house.
so, lying to my wife that i was going on a business trip, I went. After
the reunion, i went down to the old shack, that i used to call a
house...just out of curiosity. There, I found my mother fallen on the
cold ground, but I did not shed a single tear. She had a piece
of paper in her hand.... it was a letter to me.

My son...
I think my life has been long enough now..

And... I wont visit Seoul anymore...
But would it be too much to ask if I wanted you to come visit me
once in a while? I miss you so much.. and I was so glad when I heard you
were coming for the reunion. But i decided not to go to the school.
...For you... And i'm sorry that i only have one eye, and i was an
embarressment for you. You see, when you were very little, you
got into an accident, and lost your eye. as a mom, i couldnt stand
watching you having to grow up with only one eye... so i gave you mine... I
was so proud of my son that was seeing a whole new world for me, in my
place, with that eye. I was never upset at you for anything you did..
the couple times that you were angry with me,.. I thought to myself,
'it's because he loves
me..'

My Son... Oh, My Son...