If you are having trouble falling asleep, then unfortunately, you are just one of almost 70 million Americans who have trouble sleeping. An astonishing 30-40% of our fellow countrymen complain about insomnia symptoms.
Many factors contribute to your sleep, including bad habits that you develop over time. Changing these can often be the difference between a good night’s rest and an unpleasant one.
There are several things you can do to improve your sleep. This will help you feel more refreshed the next day and increase your overall energy levels.
Stick to a Sleep Schedule
Keeping a regular sleep schedule helps your body get into the habit of settling down at a certain time each night and waking up at a certain time each morning. Eventually, your internal clock will align with this pattern, making it easier for you to fall asleep and wake up without too much fuss.
Getting enough sleep is essential for maintaining your health and well-being, so it’s worth doing what you can to make sure that you’re getting the right amount of rest. But sometimes, adjusting to a new sleep schedule can be difficult.
It can take up to two weeks for your body to adjust to a new schedule. And that adjustment can be impacted by a number of things, including shift work, travel, and jet lag.
Avoid Stimulants Late in the Day
Taking a stimulant late in the day can also disrupt your natural sleep cycle, which can make it harder to fall asleep. This is because a stimulant can inhibit your body’s adenosine receptors, which are responsible for promoting sleepiness.
To avoid these effects, try to avoid caffeine as much as possible. It is also recommended that you consume your caffeine on an off-and-on basis, rather than in a single dose.
Get Regular Exercise
Exercise is one of the best things you can do for your health, and it also improves sleep. It can help you fall asleep faster, stay asleep longer and wake up feeling more rested the next morning.
Physical activity increases the time your body spends in deep sleep, the most restorative stage of sleep that helps with immune functions, muscle recovery and memory processing. It can also boost your mood, increase self-esteem and relieve stress.
A quick brisk walk, for example, can get your blood pumping and boost your energy levels so you’re more likely to sleep better at night. You don’t have to train hard to reap these benefits – just 30 minutes of moderate exercise five times a week, or two 15-minute sessions, will get the job done.
You can also boost your quality of sleep by exercising before bed. This raises your heart rate and body temperature, which signals to your brain that it’s time to go to sleep. But don’t work out too close to bedtime, because vigorous cardio workouts can disrupt your sleep patterns.
Avoid Eating Before Bed
Whether it’s because you’re starving or simply craving a snack, eating a large meal or evening snack close to bedtime can negatively impact your sleep quality. This is because food prompts the release of insulin, which signals that your body is awake and may interfere with your circadian rhythm or the sleep-wake cycle.
Eating too close to bedtime can also lead to indigestion, weight gain and acid reflux that keeps you up at night. To avoid these issues, experts suggest limiting meals to three hours before bedtime and choosing healthier alternatives that are high in nutrients and low in calories.
If you do eat a meal close to bedtime, stick with small portions. This will help you control your appetite and reduce hunger cravings throughout the day.
Limit Screen Time Before Sleep
It may be tempting to use screen time to unwind and relax, especially after a long day, but limiting it before bed can help you improve your sleep and fall asleep faster. The blue light emitted from screens suppresses the production of melatonin, a hormone that signals it’s time to sleep.
It also increases the amount of time it takes to fall asleep and reduces the quality of sleep. Research has shown that even as little as 90 minutes of evening screen time can have a negative impact on sleep.
Limiting screen time before bed can help you and your children get a better night’s rest. Make sure you establish a relaxing bedtime routine that includes activities that don’t involve devices with screens, like reading, singing or playing games.
If limiting screen time before bed isn’t possible, consider investing in blue light glasses that filter out the blue light from digital screens. These glasses are becoming increasingly popular and can significantly reduce the amount of blue light you are exposed to before bed.
Take Time to Unwind
Taking time to unwind can be difficult to find in this fast-paced world, but it’s just as important as eating well and exercising. In fact, many people end up burned out due to their inability to make themselves a priority on a regular basis.
One of the most common reasons that we have trouble getting to sleep is worry, which can lead to a buildup of stress that can interfere with restful sleep. By learning how to control your worrying habit and taking time to process your thoughts before you head to bed, you can stop the domino effect that makes it even more difficult to get to sleep.
Another way to unwind is to listen to calming sounds such as rain, waves or waterfalls. They help your body relax and reduce your heart rate, which helps you to fall asleep more quickly.
Create a Sleep-Friendly Environment
The environment in your bedroom is a crucial factor in helping you get a good night’s rest. It should be dark, quiet, comfortable and interruption-free.
Light is a key element that can send wake-up messages to your brain and disrupt your sleep. To combat this, dim the lights in your bedroom before bed.
Noise is another major contributor to poor quality sleep. If you live in a neighborhood with a busy street or have a neighbor who likes to play guitar late into the evening, try investing in products that help drown out outside sounds.
Temperature and humidity are also important factors in sleep, so make sure to keep your room cool and dry. High humidity can cause the air to feel hotter than it is, preventing you from falling asleep.
Try Guided Meditation
Guided meditation is a great way to calm your mind and body before you sleep. You can find guided meditation in many different forms, including podcasts, online music services and even in-studio classes.
The key is to focus your attention on the present moment. This may involve focusing on your breathing, counting or a simple task that takes your brain elsewhere.
Meditation can help you relax your body and mind, reducing stress, improving blood pressure and lowering cholesterol and hemoglobin A1C levels in the blood. It also helps your parasympathetic nervous system regulate activity.
Practicing meditation on a regular basis can improve your ability to meditate and strengthen your focus. You might find it difficult to concentrate when you first start practicing meditation, but this can improve with time.
Before you begin your meditation practice, set up your tools in a quiet room. Avoid bright light and other distractions, as they can disrupt your concentration and prevent you from achieving a good meditation session.
Final Words
Make sure to have consistent sleep and wake times, stick to a calming pre-bedtime routine, reduce your exposure to blue light in the evening, avoid naps during the day, exercise regularly and manage stress levels.
Create an environment that promotes relaxation and peacefulness to promote a better sleep quality.In this way, you can establish healthy sleeping habits so that you can wake up feeling refreshed and energized.
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