“You’ll feel better after a good night’s sleep” – Well, it may not be quite that straight-forward, but it certainly helps!
Our body has an evolutionary, adaptive sleep-wake cycle called a ‘circadian rhythm’ which can lead to all kinds of physical and mental health problems when disrupted. Exam stress during adolescence, parenting young children, and irregular shift work are just a few examples of things that can wreak havoc on our circadian rhythms and resulting wellbeing. So how can we help re-establish a natural rhythm through behaviour, to help us sleep better at night time?
Hotel room comfort with good sleep easy relaxation lifestyle of Asian girl on bed have a nice day morning waking up, taking some rest, lazily relaxing in guest bedroom in city hotel.
Find some time to get outside during natural daylight, especially in the mornings. Aim for at least half an hour outdoors each day to help with sleep later on in the day, if you can.
Try to make sure that you have a regular bed time and get up time. This includes weekdays as well as the weekend.
Avoid exercise in the two hours before you go to bed.
If you tend to wake up in the night to use the bathroom, try to drink less liquid in the evenings. This particularly applies to the two hours before you go to bed.
Eating late in the evening has the effect of raising body temperature as our stomachs start working to digest and absorb our food. The sugars produced give us a boost of energy and fats are harder to digest, which does not help us sleep. Try to finish eating at least two hours before bed, and also avoid over-eating close to bedtime.
Alcohol and caffeine can interfere with sleep so try not to drink too much of these in the afternoon or evenings.
Try to ensure that you don’t fall asleep if you are resting, and also try to rest somewhere other than in your bedroom. Find another room that is quiet and relaxing to rest in.
Make sure that you have a comfortable bed and that your bedding is not too thick in the summertime or too thick in the wintertime, to allow your body to regulate temperature correctly.
If you wake up in the night and have trouble going back to sleep, leave the bedroom and only go back and try to sleep again when you’re tired again (yawning would be a good sign of this!). this may be around 45 minutes after you have initially woken up. Try to occupy yourself away from the mobile phone screens during this time, or use a yellow light filter when doing so.
Other factors that can impact our ability to get a restful night’s sleep include stress and anxiety, depression, and other physical health conditions. If these are a possible concern for you, or sleep tips and techniques haven’t helped you improve the quality or quantity of your sleep, then it may be time to speak to your healthcare professional about CBT for insomnia.
