If you are like the rest of us, we are juggling as best we can all the things. Life, teaching kids, housework, keeping things sanitized, mental health and everything else that needs attention that was here before the pandemic began. Sleep is an important part of our health. Creating a bedroom space that supports this is extremely beneficial to each of us and our ability to crush our daily tasks.
5 Steps to Improve Your Sleep:
- Bedroom Environment. Darkening the room, so light does not get in first thing in the morning is a great addition to your environment. You can purchase temporary black out shades from Home Depot if you don’t have them already. They are easy to install and a great bang for your buck. Minimizing extra noise when you go to sleep, a noise machine can be helpful if you live in a space where there is high traffic. Making sure the temperature is ideal if you are a warm or cool sleeper. If there are two of you, perhaps you can compromise with some sheets that will be better suited for you both with a cooler set room. Quality sheets are a great investment in relaxing into your bed. If you have a humidifier and add oils, that can be a pleasant smell to drift off to with some nice lavender or eucalyptus.
- Limit Afternoon Caffeine. Caffeine about 6 hours before bed will really screw with your circadian rhythm over time. To optimize our natural melatonin in our body we want to capitalize on lowering our caffeine intake after about 3pm to really give our body the full support it needs to wind-down and rest in its natural state. Lemon squeezed in water is a great boost for your digestive system mid-day, that might be a good swap (we know it’s not the same, but hey, you’ll save a few calories and get better rest. Win-win)!
- Minimize Blue Light Exposure. Blue light can trick our bodies in thinking it is daylight longer than it really is. Ideally wrapping up screen time one to two hours before bed will give your body time to decompress from the day and the full external stimulus.
- Create Quiet Time. Reading, journaling, listening to music, a bath, meditation, breathing practice all will help create a state of rejuvenation for your inner wellbeing. Supporting our mind, body and soul are useful for long-term health, as well as easing into rest with less stress from our day. Reflecting on what went well and what things lie ahead for the next day, or journaling; what energizes me, what am I grateful for, what isn’t working? Are great prompts to get rolling. Even if you just lie down talking yourself through them. Deep breathing to engage your belly, releasing the day’s tension and allowing energy to make space for tomorrow.
- Make a Routine. Go to bed around the same time and wake up around the same time. This will help our bodies natural circadian rhythm get in a good groove. Eventually you may not even need an alarm. Focusing on this also will ideally support your hormones and engage adequate hours of sleep to feel rested and rejuvenated – ready to conquer life’s assignments!
We hope you can utilize one of these tips to increase your restfulness. Our bodies deserve all the support they can get!
Have any other tips on getting a better night’s sleep? Let us know in the comments below!