Getting a good night of restful sleep is essential for physical, emotional and mental function throughout the day. We can cope with a night or two of disturbed sleep but when this continues, we start to feel the effects. To sleep better, good sleep hygiene could be the solution. But was is this exactly?
WHAT IS SLEEP HYGIENE?
Sleep hygiene is a routine of healthy sleep habits. It is something that parents try to teach their children. This can include encouraging children to enjoy quiet time before bed, for example, with a warm bath and a bedtime story.
As adults, we tend to fall out of this routine. Life is busy and so we don’t spend time ‘slowing down’ at the end of the day. And there are other pressures to contend with, such as smartphones and tablets drawing our attention to social media and other online destinations.
If you are having trouble getting to sleep or staying asleep (or both), it’s time to take a look at your sleep hygiene to start re-building a healthy going to bed pattern.
SLEEP HYGIENE TIPS
1) SET AND STICK TO A CONSISTENT SLEEP SCHEDULE
Remember when, as a child, you were told to go to bed at certain times? This is because setting a time for sleep is an important indicator for your brain to start slowing down its activity.
If you are having trouble sleeping, however, sleep experts suggest setting a consistent time for both going to bed and getting up. Adults need around seven to eight hours of uninterrupted sleep a night. And so, a consistent retiring and rising schedule will reinforce your body’s natural circadian rhythms.
2) DEVELOP A RELAXING BEDTIME ROUTINE
Your brain is one big supercomputer so, after a busy day, it has a lot of information to process. At the same time it does that, it needs to monitor the rest of your body’s systems.
Climbing into bed, shutting your eyes and expecting sleep to happen is a big ask. You need to give your brain signals that the time has come to start powering down.
Thirty to 60 minutes before you want to go to sleep, you need to start a bedtime routine that relaxes your brain and body:
- Enjoy a warm bath or shower. Warm water is naturally soothing and can help you feel soporific, perfect for nodding off.
- Try gentle stretches. This releases tension from muscles and can help to slow breathing, focusing your mind away from the day’s tensions too. If you have aches and pains, consider using a heat pad to ease them a little.
- Consider meditation. Perfect for really slowing the mind and brain down and releasing tension, meditation is a great skill to have.
- Soothing music. Listening to music can help to send relaxation signals to the brain but keep it soothing, calm and without lyrics.
- Read – reading also helps the brain to switch off. Grab your Kindle or a paperback, prop yourself up into a comfortable position and read for half an hour or so.
3) SWITCH OFF ELECTRONIC DEVICES
Switch off the laptop, the table and your smartphone at least an hour before bedtime so that you give yourself chance to unfurl after a long day.
It isn’t just about relaxing but about the blue light that these devices emit. Blue light is all around us – sunlight is a major source of blue light – but before bedtime, it can increase our alertness level just at the time that we want the brain to go into power-down mode.
4) MAKE THE BEDROOM MORE RELAXING
It could be that the environment that you are trying to sleep in is also not helping you fall and stay asleep. Your bedroom should be comfortable and calming. Your bed should be warm but not overly so, and used for sleep and sex only.
Start by de-cluttering your room so when you go to bed, you are not surrounded by loads of mess that distracts you. Your bedroom such be cooler than the rest of your home (around 18˚C) with the décor being neutral and warm. If you think you could do with raising your bed a little to help you get into a comfortable position, an adjustable power bed could save you a fortune on getting a new bed entirely. Alternatively, you could opt for a leg pillow for better night time posture.
DAYTIME HABITS FOR GOOD SLEEP
Daytime habits and activities also impact how well you sleep. But what does this actually mean?
- Exercise daily – half an hour of exercise daily can banish short-term trouble falling asleep. Even a half-hour walk around your local park during a lunch break can help in promoting better sleep habits. Limit exercise before bed, however, sticking to gentle stretches and meditation.
- Reduce or ditch caffeine. Caffeine is a natural stimulant and it’s found in many different food and drink products, such as energy drinks, tea, coffee and some hot chocolates. Ditching caffeine altogether or reducing the amount you consume during the day can really help with sleep hygiene. Eliminating it in the two to three hours before bed can certainly help too.
- Limit daytime naps. If you haven’t enjoyed a good night’s sleep, the temptation is to enjoy a nap during the day. If you normally don’t have a problem sleeping, this is not a bad idea. But poor sleep has been going on for some time, the daytime naps could be the cause of poor night-time sleep.
NOT TIRED? DON’T GO TO BED
Sleep experts suggest that if you aren’t tired that going to bed and lying there for hours is doing you more harm than good. But what we also tend to do is fight against tiredness. For example, if you are tired and ready to sleep at 9pm, then hit the sack so you enjoy a good night’s rest.
Experts also suggest that if you don’t fall asleep within 20 minutes of getting into bed, you should get up or at least read for a short period of time. Likewise, you could meditate to help your brain switch off.
IF POOR SLEEP CONTINUES
Poor sleeping patterns can affect your health and so if you are having trouble sleeping, and it’s a problem that is not remedying itself, then you should see your GP. There are also specialist sleep experts and sleep clinics who can help people deal with insomnia, the condition that refers to a long-term issue with sleep hygiene.
Alarm clock photo created by jcomp – www.freepik.com
Woman sleeping photo created by senivpetro – www.freepik.com