7 Ways You Can Improve Your Sleep Habits

You must take care of business in the sleeping world if you want to do better in the waking one. Quality sleep time is a necessity for our well-being, health, mental acuity, and physical fitness. Unfortunately, a good night’s sleep is sometimes hard to acquire. Take stock of your sleep habits if you’re having trouble catching “forty winks” every night. Here are seven ways you can improve your sleep habits and enjoy more restful nights of perfect snoozing.

Maintain a Consistent Sleep Schedule

Inconsistency is the biggest obstacle to any endeavor—which also applies to sleep. Make sure you’re turning in and waking up at or near the same time every night—including the weekends. Maintaining a consistent sleep schedule helps regulate your body’s internal “clock.”

Your body soon falls into a pattern of preparing for and following that schedule, making falling asleep less of a hassle. Set a bedtime that allows for at least seven to eight hours of sleep. Gradually, make 15- to 30-minute adjustments over the course of a few days, until you’re on track.

Alarms are an excellent tool for sticking to the sleep plan. Avoid long naps during the day, no matter how pleasant they may be. If you must nap, keep it to a half-hour or less to recharge without throwing off your schedule.

Engage in a Relaxing Bedtime Routine

Getting ready for bed means winding down, not winding up. A calming pre-sleep routine lets your body know it’s time to shut down and sleep. Keep things calm as you prepare for bed.

Read a book rather than watch TV and keep the topic fun but not overstimulating. A warm bath is always an excellent prequel to sleep since it relaxes your body and leaves you feeling fresh. Meditation and deep breathing are excellent exercises before bed, so take time to further calm yourself with both.

Journaling, recalling the events of the day, or simply jotting down ideas and notions for the future is another terrific way to relax and unwind.

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Improve Your Bedroom

Meditation and scheduling play are vital for getting better sleep—don’t neglect the physical elements that lead to a sounder slumber. Make your bedroom more conducive to rest and relaxation by investing in the right furnishings. Pick the perfect mattress and pillow combination to ensure you’re getting enough support and are able to maintain a comfortable sleeping position.

Keep your bedroom cool, whether that means turning up the air conditioning or opening the windows. Low light and sound levels are especially important to sound sleep. Blackout curtains, white noise machines, fans, and earplugs can cut down on aural and visual distractions that might interrupt sleep. Finally, keep your room clean. A clean and organized room provides fewer distractions and removes the anxiety messiness might bring.

Out of the Blue (Light)

Are you familiar with blue light? It’s the light emitted by devices, such as smartphones, tablets, computers, and TV sets, and it can interfere with your body’s sleep cycle. Blue light keeps you alert and suppresses the body’s ability to produce melatonin, a hormone that aids in sleep.

Stop using screens for at least an hour before bedtime and reduce the level of blue light emission by altering the settings on your devices. Purchase protective glasses that filter or block blue light, and take time to engage in non-screen activities such as reading, listening to calming tunes, or other low-key entertainment options.

Watch Your Diet and Exercise

Be sure not to snack before bedtime. It’s a bad habit and leaves the body unable to burn off calories during the night. Keep things light and healthy if you must eat—think: fruit, yogurt, or a similar small meal that’s rich in nutrients.

Naturally, nicotine and caffeine are stimulants that keep you too alert and jumpy to rest. Drinking alcohol before bed is also another no-no, even though it may seem to relax you and make you sleepy. Exercise often, but never too close to bedtime; otherwise, you may be too hyped up to fall asleep.

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Reduce Stress

Stress and anxiety may be the two biggest blocks to sleep. Our minds go into overdrive when we stress about things, keeping us awake as we deal with our problems and fret about things. Find a way to manage your stress to ensure more hours of sleep.

Meditation is an excellent tool for fighting stress and staying calm, as previously mentioned. Practice deep breathing exercises to further calm yourself and relax your body. Consider practicing progressive muscle relaxation, tensing and relaxing various muscle groups to release the tension built up there. If stress and anxiety seem to overwhelm you day and night, talk with a therapist or other trained mental health professional to find the root causes of your anxiety and the means to manage and abate your stress.

Seek Professional Help

There’s a difference between occasionally waking up tired and the absolute inability to sleep. Persistent sleeplessness is a serious condition, and if you experience sleeplessness for an extended period, talk to your doctor. Consult a medical professional if you experience ongoing insomnia, meaning trouble falling asleep or staying asleep for excessively long times.

Sleep disorders, such as narcolepsy, sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome, and others, may also require medication and treatment. Ongoing anxiety, depression, and other mental conditions may have a more serious underlying condition that you must also address. A sleep study may be in order, wherein healthcare professionals observe you while you sleep and note potential causes for the above.

Whatever you do, don’t self-medicate with alcohol or drugs. That choice only leads to further mental and physical complications.

Those are just seven ways you can improve your sleep habits. We may not be licensed medical professionals, but we can absolutely help you find the perfect mattress, pillows, and other bedroom furniture! Contact us to see what we offer. We’ll provide the best bedroom furniture to help you sleep well while making your sleep chamber look lovelier. We offer attractive mattress payment plans so you won’t lose sleep over your finances as well! Good luck, and good night!