Good quality sleep can be surprisingly difficult to find. Just when you
need to sleep the most, you spend hours trying to get to sleep or wake
up countless times during the night. When you’ve had a bad night’s
rest you feel exhausted the next day as well as irritable, depressed,
and lacking in focus. If you want to sleep more deeply, try some of these
strategies for a better bedtime.
- Keep active during the day and make sure you get at least 20 minutes exercise
– if you cannot do it all at once, you can split it into smaller
chunks as it all counts. Any activity is good, even doing the cleaning
or working in the garden. Avoid working out late at night because strenuous
exercise close to bedtime can disrupt your sleep.
- Get to bed at the same time each night and wake up at the same time. When
you stick to a consistent schedule your body clock functions more effectively
and you get better quality sleep. Try to keep to the schedule even at
the weekends.
- If you need to nap during the day, make sure you do so earlier in the day
rather than later and keep it short so you don’t disrupt your nighttime sleep.
- Try to manage stress during the day and especially in the time leading
up to bed. If you cannot sleep because you are busy focusing on worries
or things to do, write these things down in a journal and commit to thinking
about them in the morning, and not at night.
- Try meditation or yoga before bed to calm down, unwind, and clear your
mind. You can also try deep breathing, which has a relaxing effect on
your body and mind.
- Sleep in a cool room and wear socks to bed if you suffer from cold feet
– cold feet can prevent you from falling asleep easily.
- Keep your bedroom restful, calm, quiet and dark for sleep. Keep clutter
to a minimum and paint the walls a restful color. If you cannot get rid
of outside noise like traffic, wear ear plugs.
- To get a better night’s sleep, banish the pets to their own beds.
It is hard to sleep deeply when you have a paw or a tail in your face.