Are you battling with restless nights or struggling to get a good night’s sleep after a tired day? While this is a common issue, you must sleep better for the proper functioning of your mind and body. In this blog, I am sharing 10 simple ideas that will help you sleep better and feel energetic to conquer the day as you wake up.
Quality sleep is essential for your physical as well as mental well-being. Many important functions of your brain happen during sleep.
According to studies, your sleep comprises two phases which are further divided into three stages. The body cycles through these stages 4 to 6 times every night. Each stage is important for relaxing and restoring your energy.
When you sleep better, it helps your immune system function properly and reduces your stress.
When you don’t get enough sleep, you can become irritable and lose your temper easily. This also increases your appetite for sugary and high-calorie food.
Prolonged sleep problems can also lead to serious health issues like high BP, mental health illness, diabetes, obesity, and heart disease. Thus, you must sleep deep at night without any interruptions.
Let’s know my 10 simple ideas to help you sleep better, faster, and more peacefully.
10 Simple Ideas that Will Help You Sleep Better and Faster
Quality and quantity of sleep, both are important to leading a healthy, happy, and longer life.
Thus, it is crucial that you sleep deeply and get proper rest.
Why is Sleep important? The Benefits of Sleeping Better
When you sleep better and deeper, you enjoy the following benefits:
- Helps you think clearly
- Improves your emotions
- Makes you more creative
- Keeps your heart healthy
- Maintains a healthy weight
- Reduces stress and anxiety
- Improves your productivity
- Keeps you alert and energetic
- Helps you to make logical decisions
- Improves your focus & concentration
- Enhances your problem-solving skills
- Improves your memory and your ability to learn
10 Simple Ideas for You to Sleep Better
Here are some ideas that I follow in my daily life to sleep better and faster at night. I hope they help you too.
1. Unplug from screens before bed
Gadgets harm your sleep cycle and can lead to sleep deprivation.
If you want to ensure a deeper sleep, you need to power off all your gadgets- phones, TVs, computers, and tablets at least one hour before bedtime.
It might become difficult for you to unwind before bed because of the need to check all the notifications and reply to messages constantly.
The hour before sleep should be screen-free as gadgets can be too stimulating for you if you are trying to get to sleep. This disrupts your body’s normal sleep-wake cycle.
The Blue light stimulates the brain, keeps you alert, and disrupts your circadian rhythm. Blue light suppresses the sleep hormone melatonin, making it even harder for you to sleep.
You can try the following to minimize the impact :
- You can minimize the blue light impact by turning the brightness down, applying nighttime settings, and using small screens. You can also try blue light-blocking devices.
- You can place your phone and laptop far away from the bed like in another room before bed if you face difficulty in disconnecting.
2. A wind-down routine
You can have a bedtime routine of about half an hour before sleep and practice good habits to get yourself ready for sleep.
You can include one or more relaxation techniques that signal your body that it’s time to wind down.
This can be anything like :
- Brushing your teeth
- Doing night skincare
- Getting into bedtime clothes
- Simple stretching and Yoga
- Diffusing lavender essential oil to create a calming ambiance
- Reading a book distracts your mind from daily stresses and helps you relax
- Anything you find relaxing, which tells your brain that your body is preparing to sleep
I love to do my skincare and read a book before bed. This helps me sleep better.
3. Consistent sleeping schedule
You need to go to bed at the same time every day and wake up at the same time. You can aim for 7-9 hours of sleep, which is followed on weekends too.
Your body will gradually start to adjust itself and this will help you doze off at the same time every night, making you sleep better and deeper.
4. Avoid caffeine and heavy meals
The food you intake plays an important role in the quality of your sleep.
You should avoid caffeine 6-8 hours before sleep as it stimulates the brain and reduces sleep by blocking adenosine receptors, which brings your body into alert mode instead of sleeping.
You can also avoid heavy, spicy, or acidic foods before bed and limit the liquid intake before bed.
I prefer light food for dinner and avoid taking any liquid or food before bed to relax my body and prepare it to sleep better.
5. Make your environment comfortable
It is important to have a quiet, dark, and cool environment that is conducive to making you sleep better.
The dark environment helps release the chemical in your brain called melatonin which tells your brain that it’s time to sleep.
You can use a comfortable mattress and pillows, maintain a cool room temperature, and minimize noise and light to create the perfect sleep environment.
6. Avoid intense exercise right before sleep
Regular physical activity helps to improve sleep quality but, you need to avoid intense exercise close to bedtime as it puts your body in wake mode.
You can try out something relaxing and less stimulating like yoga, or stretching. This will relax both your body and mind as it promotes a sense of calm.
7. Deep Breathing exercises and visualization
Deep, slow, and rhythmic breaths help you calm your mind and relax your body.
You need to focus on your breath as you inhale and exhale and visualize stress and tension leaving your body.
If you simply observe your thoughts and sensations without judgment, it will help you get into a state of relaxation and prepare your body for sleep.
I try to do Anulom Vilom (inhalation and exhalation in opposite directions) for 5 min while lying in bed. This helps me get into a deep sleep state.
8. Take a warm bath or shower
A warm bath or shower is a great way to relax and decompress at the end of a long day.
If you take a shower at night, one or two hours before going to bed, it can help you achieve the ideal sleeping temperature.
It helps your muscles to relax and improves your sleep quality.
This also helps in releasing the sleep hormone melatonin which makes you sleep quickly.
9. Expose yourself to bright sunlight in the morning
You need to spend time outside in sunlight as your body’s internal clock is regulated by light exposure.
Spend more time outside during daylight. You can take your work breaks and go for a walk in the daytime or eat by a sunny window.
You need to get 30 minutes of natural light exposure every day to help normalize your circadian rhythm.
To achieve this, you can also keep curtains and blinds open during the day, and try to move your desk closer to the window. Natural light needs to enter your home and workspace as much as possible.
I go for a 10-minute walk in the evening as I usually spend my time inside working in front of a laptop that limits my sunlight exposure. This freshens up my mind.
10. Follow the 10-3-2-1 method
If you could follow any one technique from this list, it should be the 10-3-2-1 method.
These are specific activities that lead you to bedtime as follows:
- 10 hours before bed: No more caffeinated drinks
- 3 hours before bed: No more heavy meals or food
- 2 hours before bed: No more work. Engage in relaxing activities to give yourself mental rest.
- 1 hour before bed: No more screen time on phones, TVs, and laptops as blue light disrupts the body’s sleep cycle
Conclusion
Prioritizing your sleep has become so important in this busy life that it is no longer a luxury but a necessity. Many of you just toss and turn at night and struggle to sleep better. You cannot neglect it if you want a healthy and longer life.
I hope you will be able to work on getting peaceful sleep by using these techniques. Your body and mind will thank you if you incorporate these simple ideas into your life. This will help you relax and prepare you for a peaceful night’s sleep.
Find the methods that work best for you and start practicing them regularly. Slowly you will find that your sleep cycle has improved and you wake up with more energy, freshness, and happiness.
Make an effort today to adopt these simple habits to sleep better and bring an end to those sleepless nights.
So, what steps are you going to take first?
