We all know getting a good night’s sleep is essential to our physical and mental health, but far too often we sabotage our own rest by falling back on unhealthy sleep habits. Fortunately, sleep hygiene is here to help. Sleep hygiene is a practice of setting yourself up for restful sleep through healthy habits. With a more solid sleep routine, you can look forward to better rest and improved well-being.
1. Unravelling the Secrets of Sleep Hygiene
Sleep is essential to overall health and well-being, but all too often, our sleep patterns are disrupted by low or poor sleep hygiene. Poor sleep can disrupt our physical, psychological, and cognitive functions, leading to fatigue, anxiety, and even depression. That’s why it’s so important to learn how to maintain good sleep hygiene.
Prioritise Regular Sleep Schedule: Aim to go to bed and wake up at the same time every day – keeping regular hours will help you establish a reliable sleep/wake cycle. You should also make sure your bedroom is the right temperature and noise levels are minimum.
Limit Naps: Taking naps during the day may help you feel more alert during the day, but too many naps can be counterproductive and can make sleeping through the night more difficult.
- Try to limit naps to less than 30 minutes.
- Avoid taking naps late in the day.
- Make sure that naps aren’t replacing unneeded night-time sleep.
Choose the Right Mattress: Choosing the right mattress is critical for comfortable sleep. Different mattresses are designed to provide different levels of support and comfort, so you’ll need to experiment and find the one that works best for you.
- Try different mattresses and find the one that works best for you.
- Choose a mattress that provides sufficient support and comfort.
- Replace your mattress every 8-10 years.
Cut Out Caffeine and Alcohol: Both caffeine and alcohol can negatively impact sleep hygiene. Caffeine should be avoided in the late afternoon and evening, while alcohol should be avoided at least two hours before bedtime. Make sure to steer clear of both when trying to achieve good sleep hygiene.
2. Get the Most Out of Your Slumber: Tips for Improved Sleep Quality
It’s no secret that a lack of sleep can wreak havoc on our physical and mental health, causing us to feel stressed, unfocused, and generally sluggish. To maximize your chances of feeling energized each morning upon rising, we’ve put together a few key tips that can help you squeeze in the best quality of sleep every night.
Power down your devices:
- Give yourself a 30 to 60 minute tech-free window before bedtime
- Shield your eyes and ears from blue light and any incoming notifications
- Put your phone in another room so you won’t be as easily tempted
Build new pre-sleep habits:
- You can reprogram your body to expect sleep at certain times.
- Find a peaceful routine such as drinking chamomile tea, reading a book, or taking a hot bath.
- Try calming stretches or yoga to relax your body and mind before bed.
Upgrade your sleeping environment:
- Keep the temperature in your bedroom on the cool side, as it can affect sleep.
- Eliminate any and all sources of noise and light.
- Invest in a comfortable mattress and pillow set, or consider using a pillow top.
By implementing the tips above, you can give yourself the gift of better sleep and wake up feeling refreshed and energized. But at the end of the day, everyone is different when it comes to sleep needs – so trust and be mindful of your own body.
3. Understanding and Improving Your Sleep Hygiene Habits
Good sleep hygiene is essential for your overall health and wellbeing. Taking the time to understand your sleep habits and creating healthy habits can help you get a more restful and productive night’s sleep.
Determine Your Sleep Patterns and Triggers
Take stock of your sleep habits and triggers. Track sleep and awakening times, caffeine and alcohol intake, eating times, exercise, and bedtime rituals. Identifying any disruptive activities or habits that have an impact on your sleep is the first step to improving your sleep hygiene.
Establish Regular Sleep Times
Develop a regular sleep schedule and make sure to stick to it, even on weekends. Having a regular sleep schedule helps stabilize your body’s circadian rhythm, which promotes healthy hormones, appetite, and metabolism. Avoid taking naps during the day, as they can make it harder to sleep at night.
Create an Optimal Sleep Environment
Creating a comfortable and calming environment is important for getting restful and restorative sleep. Some tips to create an optimal sleep environment:
- Keep your room as dark as possible by blocking light sources.
- Keep the temperature cool and comfortable.
- Turn off electronics such as computers, phones, and TVs.
- Use calming sounds with soothing music or white noise.
- Use air purifiers to ensure clean air circulation.
By understanding your sleep habits and triggers and making conscious effort to improve your sleeping environment, you can get a better night’s sleep and be more refreshed and energized every day.
4. Crafting a More Restful Sleep Routine for Optimal Health
We all know that sleep is essential for optimal health. Yet, so many of us succumb to the rituals of our own modern lives and no longer find ways to create and stick to a relaxing and restful sleep routine. Too often, we trade good sleep for the hustle and bustle of the day. But it doesn’t have to be this way.
Quality Sleep Is Within Our Reach
If you’re looking for some ways to write a more restful sleep routine and improve the quality of your sleep, consider some of the following things you can do:
- Take technology out of the bedroom. Leave TVs, mobile phones, iPads, and laptops in other areas of the home or use them cautiously to ensure that good sleep isn’t disrupted.
- Check out an engaging book or podcast. Take a few calm minutes to read a few chapters of a book or listen to a podcast before bed instead of scrolling through Instagram or watching late-night news.
- Plan ahead for the day. Make a list of five things you want to get done tomorrow or the next day, and then have a plan in place for tackling them accordingly. This will help to get the planning out of the way, and save the worries for tomorrow.
- Create a ritual. Establishing a sleep ritual before bed is an important part of any healthy sleep routine. Whether it’s writing in a journal, reading a few chapters of a book, or listening to some soothing music – having a ritual to help you relax and unwind is important in getting quality sleep.
Desensitize Until Morning
Aside from establishing a healthy sleep routine, it is also essential to take some time out of our day to relax and desensitize from the hustle and bustle of the day. This can involve things like doing yoga or engaging in some light stretching to help release any stress and tension accumulated throughout the day. Or maybe you take a couple of minutes for yourself to practice some mindfulness and reflective self-talk. Whatever the activity is, making time for yourself and desensitizing from the stressors of life is an important part of any healthy sleep routine.
Don’t Forget the Importance of Exercise
When it comes to crafting a more restful sleep routine, don’t shortchange the importance of regular exercise. Exercise plays an important role in helping to reduce levels of stress and anxiety, which can then help to improve the quality and duration of our sleep. Additionally, regular exercise can improve our overall health, physical fitness, and overall wellbeing.
Creating a sleep routine is essential to our overall health and wellbeing. With these tips, we can all start to write a more restful sleep routine and start getting the quality sleep we all deserve.
Sleep hygiene is key to achieving restful sleep and feeling your best. With these tips, you’ve got the tools to build good sleep practices, promoting better sleep over time. Make it a priority to practice these tips to reap the benefits of a good night’s sleep. Sweet dreams!
