每個人都走在體驗生命的路上。有些現象一直存在，只是我們早已習以為常，無感於心。就像呼吸這樣自然的行為，我們從未特別察覺它的存在，彷彿它應該理所當然的持續下去。

大多數人自小在母愛中成長，母愛就像空氣一樣自然而然，直到自己成為母親，或直到失去母親，才會驚覺那份愛的珍貴與無可替代。

健康亦然。它是一種沉默的存在，不會主動發聲，直到危機現身、警訊出現，人們才猛然回頭關注。

生活中許多與健康息息相關的日常，我們卻因長期處於集體偏誤的文化中，錯誤解讀、甚至忽視了它們的真義。

在這些誤解之下，「必須」變成僵化的教條，而「可以忽視」反而成了通行的默許。

舉例來說，有不少腸道腫瘤案例，是因患者進食後反覆嘔吐、突發食慾消失，才讓本人與家屬驚覺不對勁。

「吃才能健康」這句話，幾乎成了大眾無條件接受的養生信條，但「吃了沒排出來」這件事卻常被忽視，而這類忽視不是偶發，是普遍現象。

 

與「必須」相對的，是「可以忽視」，當我們將應該重視的事當作可有可無，反而把可忽略的事視為絕對必要，失衡與失控便成為必然。

我們對「吃」的認知，往往只停留在與食物親密互動的片刻愉悅，卻忽略了食物進入體內之後的旅程。那正是能量失衡、內分泌紊亂的起點。

那麼，睡眠可以忽視嗎？雖不是每個人會提出這個問題，但幾乎每個人都曾在生命旅途中否定過睡眠的價值。

我們不知道，這項每日自然發生的活動，其實蘊含著無可取代的重要性。我們甚至未曾意識到，犧牲睡眠會影響排便、削弱免疫系統，甚至折損壽命。

 

我們從小被灌輸的「必須」，傷害了身體「真正的需要」，這就像我們曾被告知「有學歷才有出路」，但現實卻不一定如此。

許多人生真理，需要時間與歲月來驗證。我們在日子的累積中明白曾經誤信的觀念原來經不起考驗，越文明的社會，這種錯置的價值就越常見。

有多少人是因為長期犧牲睡眠而悄然耗盡生命？這無法統計，但可以確定的是，這絕對是一種可怕的常態，就像在醫院無法檢測出的「異常」，卻是身體實實在在的控訴。只不過，身體怒吼歸身體怒吼，當事人往往繼續熬夜，依舊日夜顛倒過活。

電與電燈，是現代文明帶來的便利象徵，同時也成了摧毀健康的遠端力量。說來諷刺，富蘭克林與愛迪生這兩位發明先驅，某種程度也成了現代人睡眠危機的「催化者」。

然而，讓我們真正認識睡眠意義的，卻是那些無數夜以繼日投入實驗的睡眠科學家。面對這些來自睡眠研究的科學證據，我們不能再像對醫療盲從那樣，把主導權交給外在。事實證明，長期服用安眠藥者的睡眠品質，往往每況愈下。

 

我不知道有多少人對睡眠有足夠的覺知，如果你是其中之一，我誠摯地建議你：請加深你的感知，也請提醒你所關心的人，從價值觀的源頭開始重新調整。

「太累了」與「該睡了」，本質就不相同。當你在工作中瞬間入睡，或在沙發上不知不覺睡著，被問起時，你的本能反應多半是：「我太累了」。但其實，這是一種身體強烈而自然的睡眠需求，就像嬰兒安穩的睡在母親懷裡，或老人安詳的打盹，並非因為疲憊不堪，而是因為身體懂得主動接管。

我們習慣用理性分析飢餓感，剛剛說不餓的自己，卻能瞬間吃完整個便當；別人問起，我們也會本能回答：「剛才不餓，現在餓了。」

「必須」與「可以忽視」本就是大腦建構出來的兩極，各說各話也一直都是人類大腦的專長，可是當這些堅持與身體的真實需求南轅北轍，健康危機自然接踵而至。

我們口中說的，往往不作符合事實。這是人類社交中的通則：情面要顧，面子要撐。可是，就在大腦忙著顧全場面的同時，身體卻像熱鍋上的螞蟻，焦躁難安。

 

愛自己不是自私，而是一門高階的生命課題。年輕時我們拒絕受教，直到熟齡，才有機會痛悟：原來人生最該學的，是善待自己。

如果行有餘力，我們都能走上街頭日行一善。可是行善不一定只是利他，也可以是對自己的善意。

感謝斷食，讓我深刻熟悉身體的語言，不僅找回了自己，也恢復了對睡眠的敬重。

從身體的角度呼籲：請善待自己，讓「日行一善」的第一步，從睡眠開始。

睡眠的重要性，足以凌駕任何日程。八小時，是睡眠的公約數，沒有任何事，值得你用它來犧牲夜間對自己的款待。

進化在我們的身體裡留下了深刻而謹慎的提示：地球與人類是生命共同體，晝夜節律與健康早已簽下了精緻的契約。

真正修好睡眠這門功課的人，必然是懂得修養生命的人。

 

（睡眠是最佳良藥）

 

Sleep: A Daily Act of Kindness

Every person walks the path of experiencing life. Some phenomena have always existed, but we’ve grown so used to them that we no longer feel their presence. Take breathing, for example—so natural that we rarely notice it, assuming it should go on effortlessly.

Most of us grow up enveloped in a mother’s love. Like air, it feels innate—until we become mothers ourselves or lose our own, only then do we realize how precious and irreplaceable that love truly is.

Health is the same. It exists in silence, without making a sound. Only when crisis strikes or warning signs appear do people suddenly turn their attention toward it.

Many aspects of daily life are closely linked to health, yet, shaped by long-standing collective misconceptions, we often misinterpret—or worse, ignore—their true meanings. Under these misinterpretations, what must be done becomes rigid dogma, while what can be ignored turns into a widely accepted norm.

For example, many cases of intestinal tumors are only discovered when the patient begins vomiting after meals or suddenly loses their appetite—only then do they and their families realize something is wrong.

The belief that “eating keeps you healthy” has become an unchallenged wellness creed, but the fact that “what’s eaten must also be eliminated” is often overlooked. And this oversight is not occasional—it’s widespread.

The opposite of must is neglectable. When we treat what matters as optional, and what’s trivial as absolutely necessary, imbalance and dysfunction inevitably follow.

Our understanding of eating often stops at the fleeting pleasure of food in our mouths, ignoring the journey it takes once inside the body. Yet that internal journey is where energy imbalance and hormonal chaos often begin.

So, can sleep be ignored? Perhaps not everyone asks this question explicitly, but nearly everyone has, at some point, dismissed the value of sleep in their life’s journey.

What we fail to recognize is that this daily, natural event holds irreplaceable significance. We often overlook how sacrificing sleep disrupts bowel movements, weakens immunity, and even shortens lifespan.

The “musts” we were fed since childhood often go against what the body truly needs. Much like the saying “a degree guarantees a future,” which reality doesn’t always support, many life truths only reveal themselves over time.

We eventually come to understand—through lived experience—that many beliefs we once blindly accepted cannot withstand the test of time. And the more “civilized” a society becomes, the more these misplaced values tend to flourish.

How many lives have quietly burned out due to long-term sleep deprivation? There’s no way to count. But what’s certain is that it has become a terrifying norm—like an “abnormality” that hospital tests can’t detect, yet one the body screams about in earnest. Still, despite the body’s outcry, people keep staying up late, their day and night reversed.

Electricity and light bulbs are symbols of modern convenience, yet they also act as distant forces that sabotage health. Ironically, pioneers like Franklin and Edison have—unknowingly—become catalysts of today’s sleep crisis.

But the real illumination on the value of sleep has come from tireless sleep scientists who work day and night on their experiments. In the face of such evidence, we must no longer hand over our authority to the outside world, as we so often do in medicine. Studies show that those who rely long-term on sleeping pills often see a steady decline in sleep quality.

I don’t know how many people truly understand sleep, but if you’re one of them, I urge you: deepen your awareness. Remind those you care about to re-evaluate their values from the source.

“I’m exhausted” and “I need to sleep” are not the same. When you suddenly doze off at work or fall asleep on the couch without noticing, you’re likely to say, “I was just too tired.” But in truth, it’s the body’s powerful and natural urge for sleep—like a baby peacefully resting in its mother’s arms, or an elder taking a gentle nap. Not because they are exhausted, but because their bodies know when to take over.

We often rationalize hunger, saying “I wasn’t hungry just now,” yet moments later finish an entire meal. When asked, we instinctively say, “I wasn’t hungry earlier, but now I am.”

“Must” and “neglectable” are constructs of the mind—opposing poles created by the brain. Holding contradictory views is a human specialty. But when such mental stubbornness diverges from the body’s real needs, health crises are inevitable.

What we say often doesn’t reflect the truth. This is the nature of social interaction: we save face, we play along. But while the brain works to preserve appearances, the body is like an ant on a hot pan—restless and uneasy.

To love oneself is not selfish. It’s a high-level life lesson. In youth, we reject such lessons. Only in maturity do we come to this painful yet liberating realization: that the most vital subject in life is learning to treat ourselves kindly.

If we have the strength, we can go out into the world and do good for others. But good deeds don’t always have to be altruistic—they can begin with self-compassion.

Thanks to fasting, I’ve come to understand the language of my body more deeply. It helped me rediscover myself—and to restore my reverence for sleep.

So let this be a call from the body: treat yourself well. Let the first step of your daily act of kindness begin with sleep.

Sleep deserves to outweigh any item on your schedule. Eight hours is the golden mean. Nothing is worth sacrificing your nighttime sanctuary.

Evolution has left behind clear and cautious messages in our bodies: Earth and humanity are one ecosystem. Circadian rhythms and health have long signed a delicate pact.

Those who truly master the art of sleep are the same ones who have learned to cultivate their life well.