Did you know that you spend at least a third of your life sleeping?
Sleep is so vital for maintaining your health, but unfortunately, many people suffer from sleep disorders. It’s not just about how much sleep you get each night, but the quality of sleep is also essential for your health. When you don’t get the proper amount of sleep, you create what is known as sleep debt, which is the amount of sleep you need to recover. This can build up over time, so even if you aren’t getting enough sleep during the week due to work or other duties, the weekend might not be enough to recover the amount of sleep your body needs. There are many reasons for being affected by sleep disorders, such as work schedule, lifestyle choices like taking medications to stay awake or drug and alcohol abuse, undiagnosed or untreated medical problems including stress or anxiety, or having medical conditions or taking medications that interrupt sleep patterns and more. Below we have a few tips that could help you sleep better:
Better Sleep through Your Personal Habits
Set a consistent bedtime and waking time. Don't vary the times by more than one hour otherwise, your ''internal clock'' will need to reset itself , a process that can take up to three months.
Avoid napping in the late afternoon.
Limit your naps to 30-45 minutes.
Avoid alcohol and caffeine in the evenings. While alcohol makes you sleepy initially, a few hours after you have a drink, the alcohol level in your blood falls and produces a “wake-up effect.” Caffeine takes 14 hours to leave the bloodstream and hides in innocuous places like teas and chocolate as well as coffee and soda.
Engage in at least 30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise daily. (But not within two hours of bedtime or it will substantially decrease your ability to fall asleep.)
Get out into the sun—even in the winter. Research shows exposure to natural light helps maintain a healthy sleep-wake cycle.
Better Sleep through Environmental Factors
Keep the room slightly cool
Wear comfortable clothing
Use comfortable bedding to promote staying asleep
Make your bedroom as dark as possible.
Keep the bedroom quiet or allow sounds which help you to get to sleep and stay asleep (sometimes “white noise”, such as a fan, is helpful).
Use your bed for sleeping only, not as an office, workroom, or a place to watch television. By reserving your bed for sleep you teach your body to pair going to bed with sleep.
Better Sleep through Your Bedtime Routine
Stop using electronics one hour before you go to bed. Research shows that the light emitted by TVs, computers , video games and cell phones trick your brain into thinking it is daylight, engaging your brain and reducing the body's ability to settle down for sleep.
Avoid eating one hour before bed or eat only a small snack containing foods high in tryptophan (such as bananas, yoghurt, whole-grain cereal or toast).
Take part in relaxation techniques such as deep breathing to reduce anxiety and muscle tension.
Spend 10-15 minutes writing down the things you worry about so you can let go of them instead of carrying them to bed with you.
Take a warm bath or reading a non-electronic book or magazine to help you relax and empty your mind.
In sum, Practising good sleep hygiene causes you to awake with a brighter outlook on the day keeps you healthy and improves your productivity. By following these few ways you might be able to get a good quality sleep and wake up recharged and ready to take over the world.
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