If you are not getting enough sleep, it will show in every facet of your life. You will struggle to perform well at work or school. You might have difficulty with relationships because of not wanting to interact with others. If you lack the energy you need to exercise, you could experience unwanted weight gain. None of this is good, and all of it might be related to you not getting enough sleep.
The good news is you don’t have to accept your sleeping difficulties. There are things you can do every day to make sure you are getting all the sleep you need. To help you see possible solutions to your sleep issues, we offer you the following six sleep hacks you can try today.
1. Find Your Optimal Sleep Temperature
According to scientists and medical professionals, humans tend to sleep better in cooler air. That even applies to the ones who love to cuddle under a load of blankets. For you to improve the amount of sleep you get, you might want to consider making your room a little cooler. You can slowly adjust the temperature downwards until you find a place where you seem to get a good night’s sleep. While every body is difference, research suggest setting the temperature somewhere between 60-67 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Redecorate Your Bedroom
Part of getting a good night’s sleep is creating an environment that is conducive to better sleeping habits. It might be that a little redesign and decorating for your room might be all it takes to help you improve your sleep.
A good place to start would be a new bed and mattress. You can’t sleep if you are not comfortable. Many people think all mattresses are the same and do not take the time to figure out which is best for how they sleep. For example; if you have a medical condition like sleep apnea, you might want an adjustable bed to help with your condition.
Next up, you should consider soundproofing your room and limiting the light that gets through the window. Finally, you might want to consider changing the color scheme of your room to something that includes cooler colors like pale blue, pale green, tans, and even brown as bright colors can increase stress and deter sleeping.
3. Establish a Consistent Routine
For the most part, we humans are creatures of habit. We tend to do better when we consistently act in certain ways. That includes the way we sleep.
Your body clock needs a routine on which it can count. You might want to put together a routine that includes light stretching exercises an hour before bed, a warm bath 30 minutes before bed, 15 minutes of reading, and then lights out at the same time every night. Also, you want your routine to include waking up and getting up at the same time every morning. That should be applicable to the weekends as well.
4. Prepare for the Next Day Before Going to Bed
It’s difficult to shut your mind down if you try to go to sleep while worrying about the next day. The best way to avoid letting tomorrow interfere with your sleep today is to prepare yourself for tomorrow before you go to sleep.
Your preparations might include what you are going to wear, lunch or dinner reservations you might want to make, a to-do list for work, a grocery list, and a list of people you might want or need to contact. The more you can address before bed the less you have to worry about as you try to sleep.
5. Bank on Nutrition
The way you eat affects the way you sleep. That is especially true of the things you eat in the hours leading up until bedtime. Before addressing foods that promote sleep, there are a few things you want to avoid eating and drinking in the second half of the day. That list would include caffeine beverages, high sugar content foods, and alcohol.
As for foods that can help you sleep, you should focus on good proteins and foods that contain melatonin and tryptophan. Both of these nutrients will help stimulate your brain’s secretion of serotonin, which is a neurotransmitter that makes you sleepy.
The list of foods that could help you sleep better includes nuts like almonds and walnuts, berries such as cherries, blueberries, and cranberries and mangoes, kiwi, turkey, oily fish, dairy products, eggs, and chicken.
6. Set an Alarm Clock to Signal Bedtime
This hack might surprise you. Heading into the night, you might get busy in conversation or watching a movie. If you are not paying attention, you might miss the bedtime you are trying to set as your consistent bedtime. The easiest way to correct that problem is to set an alarm that indicates to you that bedtime is in 15 minutes and counting. You might get annoyed when the alarm interrupts whatever you are doing, but you will benefit by getting to bed on time.
Overall, small changes can make a big, positive impact on your sleep. Setting a regular routine, and creating a comforting space can help you reduce stress and sleep better and longer. Reducing light and sound and setting a cooler temperature may also improve sleep quality. Finally, review your eating habits and cut out bad foods. With a few small changes you can be on the path to a better night’s rest.
