It’s ideal to wake up refreshed in the morning without the use of an alarm clock, and then feel energized the entire day. Most don’t, as the average adult doesn’t get enough sleep, which should be around 7.5 to 8.5 hours every night. There are many who suffers from a variety of sleep disorders, keeping them wide awake.
Insomnia is the disorder when having difficulty falling asleep, waking up too early, twisting and turning numerous times during the night. Then the difficulty becomes getting back to sleep. A lack of sleep affects the entire day, as what’s experienced is difficulty concentrating, feeling sleepy, irritable, and fatigued.
There are also significant life stresses such as job loss, losing a loved one, or environmental factors, which can throw off normal sleep patterns and schedules.
Another is poor health conditions, which can temporarily disrupt routine sleeping patterns. Once these situations become resolved, then the sleep usually improves.
Eating At Night
What’s recommended is a light early dinner or snack, while avoiding heavy meals before bed, as it can disturb sleep biorhythms. Warm milk, dairy products, carbohydrates, and foods which are high in tryptophan, such as bananas or turkey, can help you sleep.
Avoid spicy or sugary foods six hours before bedtime. What spicy foods can cause is heartburn, which leads to discomfort and difficulty in the stomach when falling asleep.
Try to restrict excess fluids before bedtime, this to avoid making numerous bathroom trips. Some find that herbal or non-caffeinated tea helps.
Avoid All Vices
The most obvious is caffeine, which includes soda, tea, chocolate, and coffee. Caffeine is the substance which delays sleep while increasing the frequency of waking up during the night. It can remain in the body for up to 6 hours, while having an affect up to 12 hours.
Nicotine is a stimulant which causes difficulty falling asleep, and some report that it can cause nightmares. What smokers also experiences are nicotine withdrawal symptoms while sleeping.
Alcohol as a “night cap” may help you fall asleep, but will also cause you to wake up during the night. Alcohol also contributes to sleep apnea. Although some consider alcohol as a sedative, it actually disrupts sleep.
Sleeping Conditions
Make your sleeping environment as healthy and peaceful as possible. Cool, quiet, and comfortable. Use clean bedding and pillows, and a good mattress. The room should be dark and quiet, the temperature cool but not cold. It should be well ventilated.
There are solutions such as dark curtains, sleeping masks, dimmer switches. What routine does is helps you wake up at the same time every morning, while feeling sleepy at the same time every night. Reduce as much noise as possible, this by investing in earplugs.
Avoid Excitement Stress Or Anxiety
Develop quiet bedtime routines such as reading, listening to soothing music, or taking a hot bath, which are all helpful in winding down the mind to relax and sleep. Do these activities in dim light, this to signal the brain to relax and get tired.
Avoid exercising 3 hours before going to bed, as what any physical activity does is delays sleep. What exercising does is raises body temperature, then it takes the body far too long to reach its ideal cooler temperature which develops into sleep.
Use The Bedroom For Sleeping
Avoid using it as an office, as the body and mind should only relate it with sleeping. Don’t engage in activities which elevates anxiety, which keeps you awake at night.
Avoid television, laptop computers and mobile devices, while promoting reading using a dim desk lamp. Allow the body to realize that the bedroom is a place for rest.
Waking Up Middle Of The Night
The worst is suddenly waking up during the night and not being able to fall back asleep. Once this happens, get up and leave the bedroom. Read, have a light snack, or have a glass of warm milk, avoid TV.
Then return back to bed after 20 minutes or so. Avoid looking at the clock if you do wake up, as doing so will make you feel anxious. If it’s illuminated, turn it away from you.
Go To Bed Early Wake Up Early
If you nap during the day, limit it to 20 minutes. The sleep and wake cycle is regulated by the circadian clock in the brain, where it moderates sleep and wake functions.
What waking up at the same time every morning does is strengthens this circadian cycle, which also makes you feel sleepy at the same time every night.
So what’s recommended is going to bed at the same time regardless, while waking up at the same time every morning, this especially during the weekends.
Always count sheep instead of problems. If you’re lying awake worrying about things at night, write a to-do list before going to bed, and a solution to solving those problems the next day.
Keep Your Sleep Consistent
If you continue to have difficulty falling asleep, twisting and turning while not getting drowsy, then slow your mind down as much as possible in the dark, this until you become fatigued. Worrying if you’re getting enough sleep, just makes matters worse. Try relaxing as much as possible.
Never go on prolonged sleep binges on the weekend, thinking that you need to catch up. Because of the hectic lives we all lead, getting enough sleep during the week is our biggest problem.
Although what a lack of sleep does is causes sleep deprivation, and this sleep debt can worsen, the solution is not to sleep binge on the weekend for 12 hours, as doing so disrupts the circadian rhythm.
Getting quality nightly sleep should be a priority, and it should be a natural process without external or medical substances.