12 Habits to help you sleep better (+ how to identify & tackle your stress)
In this blog, we'll share everyday things you can do on your own but before you jump into that, we want to help you address the underlying cause of your inability to fall asleep and work on them so you can Habits To Help You Sleep Better.
Identify Your Stress Point.
Stress can disturb your sleep. You need first identify WHAT is causing you stress and if there is anything you can do to fix it. Maybe you can try journaling and writing down all that you can do to fix it. If the situation is NOT in your hands, you need to learn to let go as you have no control over it. Stressing won’t improve the situation, rather it would detoriate your health adding another problem.
Share Your Load
As previously stated, stress can cause disturbance in sleep. Stress can seem more if you try to take on everything on our own shoulders, this is why you should learn to share your load.
There is no shame in seeking help, everyone relies on some support to help them get through life. Reach out to a friend, a therapist or a mentor. But, do share that load. You will see you will find a solution to your problem faster if you take Habits To Help You Sleep Better. Often others can give a fresh perspective to our problem, and help think of an alternate solution that we hadn’t thought of due to the overwhelming stress.
Learn To Give Up From Unhealthy And Toxic Situations
Learn to say NO.
We know it's tough. but being able to say no to unhealthy people, unhealthy situations and choosing yourself will help you in the long run to not fall in such situations again.
You need to hear our needs and value ourselves better.
Escaping an unhealthy situation - be it a job or a relationship will never be easy, but if it is no longer adding value to us, helping us grow, there is no point in leading it on.
Giving up isn’t losing, sometimes giving up can mean winning - Winning your self worth.
These above tips are crucial for recovering from an issue you're struggling with for a long time and to prevent you from falling into such situations again.
Now we'll share little things that you can do on your own daily to sleep better:
1. Avoid Naps If You Can't Fall Asleep At Night
After having a disturbed sleep, it is normal to want to take naps during the day. But, if you are suffering from insomnia then it is best to sleep early, instead of taking naps. If you are just having disturbed Habits To Help You Sleep Better, where you are frequently waking up during the night, you can consider taking power naps - not more than 25 mins during the day.
2. Focus On Just Relaxing, Not Sleeping
When you have problems falling asleep, don't try to force yourself to Habits To Help You Sleep Better. Just think that you're gonna be relaxing for a bit, with your eyes closed. This will help your mind to relax, without the pressure of trying to fall asleep. This way, even if you can't sleep, your eyes are still rested.
3. Don't Work On Your Bed
Avoid working in your bed, or even watching tv from your bed during the day. Learn to associate your bed with sleeping only, so that when you go to your bed, your brain will know you are here to sleep.
4. Try Journaling
Writing morning pages can help you dump all your thoughts out of your mind onto paper. It will give you clarity and help to plan your day better. During the evenings, you can try writing about things you are grateful for and little achievements you made during the day. This will leave you with a feeling of fulfilment and positivity relaxing you for a better Habits To Help You Sleep Better.
If you have a desk job, then you could try writing all the unfinished tasks of the day, and plan for the NEXT day when your day ends at your office. This clears your mind of work stress as you have a better plan. It is out of your mind and onto paper!
5. Try Regular Exercise
Here's why you should excercise daily: ( Read: 7 Key Benefits)
Regular excercise can help improve your muscle strength and endurance. Exercise delivers oxygen and nutrients to your tissues and helps your cardiovascular system work more efficiently. You will feel more energetic, refreshed and less stressed out. Additionally, doing excercise will tire your body out for a better sleep. Start small and easy exercises in the beginning and it will be easier to continue it as a daily routine.
6. Try Meditation Before You Sleep
Meditation can help calm your mind down. It could be for just 5 minutes. There are various guided meditation videos online, explore some and try to see if that helps you calm down. Don't give up after a day or two, after try for a week to see if it works for you or not.
7. Create A Comfortable Setting To Fall Asleep
- Dim the lights, so your body knows it is time to sleep. If light is a problem, but you want to keep it on in case you get up during the night. Try getting a sleeping mask. They are light and will block the light coming to your eyes without darkening the room completely.
- Make sure your pillow is comfortable for you to sleep on.
- Keep the temperature of the room slightly colder, and try sleeping with a quilt or blanket, for a cozier experience. Studies say, our body temperature naturally drops a little during sleep as we have a slower metabolism and lesser energy during that time period. When it's too hot, you're more likely to toss and turn, wake up multiple times during the night, disturbing your sleep. Therefore, a cool — but not cold — sleeping environment is ideal to have a good night's sleep.
- Lastly, wear comfortable clothes to sleep - Preferably NOT the ones you wore the whole day. It will mentally prepare you for sleep when you change into your sleep wear, and comfortable clothes will help you relax and stretch better.
8. Turn Off All Screens
Turn off all screens before bedtime to fall asleep sooner. The National Sleep Foundation recommends that you should stop using electronic devices, like your cellphone, at least 30 minutes before bedtime.
Try keeping your phone away from your hand's reach, so you are not tempted to scroll the second you're having difficulty falling asleep.
9. Try Reading A Book
Instead of scrolling your phone, read a book or even a magazine. It will tire your eyes and help you fall asleep.
10. Reduce Coffee Intake
Caffeine is an addiction but has become a cultural norm among people. We would recommend to reduce it, maybe skip a day so that the dependency wears off. If you are a heavy coffee drinker, you can try reducing the amount you're having *slowly *. Like for example, if you drink two full cups of coffee everyday, you can have half a cup twice a day, this way you are still getting your coffee but the amount is reduced therefore you are technically having one cup a day. Then you can slowly shift to once a day.
Avoid Caffeine strictly after evenings.
11. Try Non-Caffeinated Tea Instead
You can try green tea or chamomile tea whichever one you enjoy to relax and unwind. Try adding drops of Dr.K CBD oil in it, to see even better results.
12. Have Dr. K CBD Oil
Yes you can add the oil in your beverage but for most effective result, have Dr.K CBD oil on its own. Before going to bed, drop the CBD oil under your tongue for it to get absorbed in your body fastest to help you sleep better.
You can have it multiple times during your day. Start with a small dose and slowly go up. Click here to try our CBD oils which come in 3 flavours - Lemon, Peppermint & Natural. Use the code "WELCOME2DRK!" to get 20% off!
Comment below to let us know if you tried any of these things and what worked.
Don't take poor sleep or insomnia lightly. Check in with a doctor and see if there are any underlying conditions.
[ Blog by Faabiha Khan ]