4 Tips for Getting Better Sleep
Lack of sleep is one of the most common problems out there. The usual culprits are health related issues, not having enough time, or just not sleeping in a healthy way. But luckily, better sleep is always within reach, as long as you put some effort into achieving it.
There are a lot of people who use relaxation techniques to help them get to sleep. But even though it’s one of the best ways to get yourself into a calm, peaceful state that will put you to sleep at night, it doesn’t work for everyone.
You have to really take a close look at every detail and try to find the solutions that work best for you. That’s why we’re going to show you some other methods and recommendations for getting better sleep.
Why don’t I sleep well?
Seasonal changes
A lot of people have trouble falling asleep when they go from one season to another. Changes in temperature usually play a big part in that, along with the hours when it’s light out. These are usually the times when insomnia makes an appearance and becomes reoccurring problem.
But the changing seasons don’t necessarily affect everyone in the same way. In general, the people who it affects will usually be able to sleep normally for a couple weeks. After that, it’s a question of learning to relax and not get worked up by the situation.
Stress and anxiety
High levels of stress and anxiety have a really negative impact when it comes to falling asleep and feeling well-rested afterwards. This is because your brain is on alert, and won’t let you rest properly.
One way of managing sleep problems related to stress and anxiety is to relax, but how exactly do you do that? Things like meditation, breathing exercises, and mindfulness are all great ways to bring down your levels of mental tension.
Anxiety basically comes from being worried about the future, and stress is a sign of being overloaded. But wait, since when has constantly thinking about something ever been a way to solve it?
Does your stress go down when you spend your nights turning things over in your head, or does it go up? No problem lasts forever, and almost all problems have solutions, but the issue is that sometimes you can’t just can’t find your way out.
So, if nothing changes after a while, or you get worse, the best thing is to see a specialist. Sometimes all you need is a little help to confront what’s scaring you and making you worried.
Exposure to technology
It’s proven that overstimulation from technology at night can have negative effects on your sleep cycles. One of the best tips for better sleep is to try and push away anything that might work your brain up too much in the hours right before you go to bed.
If you can’t think of anything, the best idea is usually to read. Your brain won’t be as overstimulated as with computers and phones, and it’s much healthier. So find a good book and get lost in a great story.
“Don’t give up on your dreams, keep on sleeping.”
Albert Einstein-
Tips for getting better sleep
Doing sport
On top of being really healthy, doing sport is also a great way to wear yourself out. Your body will feel really tired afterwards and will just want to relax. The same thing happens with your mind, which gets all the positive effects of the endorphins created by exercise.
Setting schedules and routines
Setting routines for yourself and following them will help you live a much more organized life. It will also stop you from confusing your body about what hours of the day you’re sleeping.
It’s always good to do some kind of relaxing activity (like listening to classical music, reading, or meditating) before you go to sleep, and always as close to the same time as possible. It might seem like nothing, but a lot of doctors use schedules and routines with children and older people for very similar reasons.
Saying goodbye to caffeinated drinks
You absolutely have to say goodbye to coffee, tea, and caffeinated sodas. Or you at least need to drink less of them, and try to only have them in the morning. That’ll make it much easier to get to sleep.
They’re completely off-limits at night. Instead, you can drink things like juice, milk, herbal teas, or even just water.
Not taking long naps
A lot of people take long naps in the middle of the day. But as nice as that may be, if you have sleep problems you should probably try to stop. That way when night comes you’ll be much sleepier, and you won’t have any issues sleeping properly.
As you can see, the tips for getting better sleep are in easy reach. At the end of the day, it really just takes one thing: putting in effort. Changing certain habits might be harder in some situations than others, but it’s definitely worth it if what you get in exchange is good sleep.