You are trying to sleep but your mind is buzzing. You can immediately list off 20 things you need to get done as soon as you wake up in the morning but you need a good night sleep in order to do those things well. We are all familiar with the distressing fatigue that happens after a poor night sleep. However, no matter how much you try to shut your brain down and lull yourself to sleep, it does not seem to be happening.
One third of Americans have reported struggling to get enough sleep and 40% of adults and children in the UK suffer with sleep problems. When I was younger, I could fall asleep on demand, all I need do is find a comfortable position and I was off. As I got older however, I have an experiential knowledge of just how frustrating it can be when you can’t sleep.
So here are 7 tips that I have found helpful to catch the ever elusive snooze.
Warm bath/shower just before bed
Taking warm shower or bath before bed has been shown to increase how quickly people fall asleep as well as the chance of a good night rest. Having a warm shower about an hour or two before bed increases blood circulation to the extremities and the skin allowing the body to loose heat and cool down. The effect of the cooling helps to initiate sleep.
Essential oils
Since essential oils are known to be helpful for relaxation, this effect can be used to aid sleep. You can use any oil of your choice but bear in mind that some are invigorating and can leave you awake. Lavender is one scent that I have found to be very helpful in this way.
Go to bed when you start to feel sleepy
Being aware of your circadian rhythm can help you go to bed at the right time which will increase your chances of falling asleep and staying asleep. Staying awake beyond the point when you start to feel sleepy will make it difficult to fall asleep.
Determine how many hours of sleep you need
The 8 hours of sleep is more of a generalisation and most of us do need around that amount. Howbeit, we sleep in cycles of 90 minutes. This is why even when you’ve had more than 8 hours you still wake up tired and groggy — you have broken the sleep cycle. It is important to determine how many 90 minutes cycle your body needs to feel well rested.
Apps like SleepCycle can help you figure out when to go bed and when to wake up and over time you will be able to tell how many cycles you need.
Keep a notebook/journal at your bedside
Sometimes, what keeps me awake is the sheer amount of thoughts and ideas in my mind. It is when I want sleep that those great ideas strike. Trying to keep those ideas in my mind so as not to forget them keeps me awake and I end up processing them driving me further away from sleep. If you write the ideas down however, you can free your mind to fall asleep. Someone once said, “the mind is for creating ideas, not for keeping them.” As you know writing those ideas in your phone is not such a great idea, not only will the bright light keep you awake, the risk of distraction is very high.
Get low brightness motion sensor lights
We wake up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom and what do we do? Switch on the light, if sleep is already hard to come by, that light has just reduced the chances of getting back to sleep. Motion sensor low lumen lights located at the bottom of the wall near the baseboards mean that the light is not in your face but you can still see what you are doing.
Warm milk
Milk contains tryptophan, an amino acid that is essential in the production of melatonin and serotonin. Melatonin is a hormone produced by the body in response to darkness making you feel sleepy, while serotonin is a neurotransmitter responsible for mood, cognitive reasoning and memory. Also, eating foods rich in tryptophan such as cheese, chicken, sunflower seeds and peanuts can also help to induce sleep.
There is a time for many words, and there is also a time for sleep.
― Homer
