Some suggestions to help you sleep better

Do you struggle to get to sleep? It can be really exhausting and frustrating not being able to get to sleep. Or you get to sleep but you keep waking up?

Lack of sleep can really impact our day to day functioning affecting our immunity, mood and behaviour. On the other hand, adequate sleep supports our physical health, emotional well-being and cognitive functions.

As a rule of thumb, I am a great sleeper. I fall asleep easily and usually sleep deeply, feeling refreshed in the morning. But the last couple of years, I have struggled with sleep due to menopausal symptoms and it made me really reflect on my sleep habits, and what it actually is that helps me sleep well. I had to go back to basics and re-learn some sleep behaviours. Here’s my take on how you can create a better night’s sleep too.

Prepare yourself for bed

Sounds a little silly to prepare yourself for bed right? But if you struggle with sleep, start with this. Your intention is key in anything you do in life. So if your intention is to have a good night’s sleep, then you are starting off on the “right foot”. Make an intention that you will give yourself the best possible chance to have a good night’s rest and then follow your routine.

Create and follow a sleep routine

Routines are well documented to provide structure and predictability, helping to foster positive habits. Having a routine that you follow every evening will help to cement in to your physical, mental and emotional body that it is winding down and time to sleep. Slowly but surely, your body will actually recognise the routine and sleep will come more naturally.

Your sleep routine should be something that feels right for you and incorporate the following.

• Go to bed at the same time and wake up at the same time every day. This helps to give your body predictably which will help regulate your body ‘s internal clock.

• Half an hour before bed, set the intention that you will fall asleep easily and swiftly. Intend that you will stay asleep and have a deep and restful night’s sleep. Intend to follow your routine out of love for yourself.

• Start to wind down by turning off and dimming lights in the home which helps to connect in with your innate Circadian rhythm (your internal body clock) which tells it when to sleep and when to wake up.

• Place your phone on Do not Disturb and put it in a place NOT in your bedroom. It is becoming more commonly known that mobile phones emit EMFs (Electro magnetic fields). The exposure to EMFs affect our melatonin levels (the hormone that regulates sleep / wake cycles) and our natural Circadian Rhythym (our internal body clock). It’s a double whammy!

• Turn off all screens. TV, Ipad, laptop, anything else that has a screen. Most screens contain a blue light that can affect your melatonin levels. Additionally, screens are also stimulating. You are wanting to reduce your stimuli as part of your routine to help your body and brain to start to relax.

• Do some relaxing and peaceful activities such as:

  • gentle stretches,

  • focused breathing,

  • reading (a physical book),

  • having a warm bath,

  • listening to calming music,

  • meditation,

  • self-Reiki or

  • something along those lines that appeals to you. This part is really important, please pick one or two items from this list and create a routine that will help you wind down

Sometimes it’s not possible to follow the full routine as you may have commitments but as long as you follow the routine most of the time, then your body still has enough memory from all the days you have done the routine and will still remember that you are prepping to sleep.

Some other suggestions

Something that is really helpful is to keep your bedroom space for sleeping only. Keep anything not sleep related out. It’s easy, for example to grab your laptop and work on your bed. Or it’s a comfy place to watch some TV. But what this is doing, is telling your body that it’s not a place of deep sleep. That it’s a mixed space and anything goes. If you really want to train your subconscious mind to instinctively know that it is a space of sleep, then take the non-sleep related activities out of the bedroom.

Try to keep your bedroom dark and quiet. This is working in with your natural body clock; when it detects darkness, it wants to fall asleep.

Make sure that your bed is comfortable for you. Seems silly to mention this but if you find your bed uncomfortable, your body will resist sleep.

Make your sleep space as comfortable and cosy as you can. When you nurture yourself in this way, you feel more safe and therefore more likely to fall asleep.

Avoid anything stimulating before bed. This includes caffeine, alcohol, meals or snacks. They can interfere with digestion and can make it more difficult to fall asleep.

If you can’t fall asleep and are getting frustrated, get out of bed (keep lights dim!) and go back to your routine. I quite often will do some slow stretches in the dark until I feel ready to get back in to bed. Or I place my hands on the sides of my head and breathe in to my hands. Whatever you feel most called to do.

Remember if you haven’t slept well for a while, it may take a little while to establish a new sleep routine. But stick with it and enjoy the benefits of a good night’s sleep!

** I am by no means a sleep expert and nor do I pretend to call myself one. These suggestions are from my own personal experience and also from some clients I have seen in my Reiki and Sound therapy business. They have helped myself and my clients greatly, so I am sharing in the hope that it may help you too.

If you try the above suggestions and you are still really struggling with sleep, it would be wise to look further in to your sleep issues with a GP and a Sleep Specialist . Sleep issues may stem from a wide variety of factors.

I hope my blog has helped give you some helpful suggestions for your sleep!