Can’t Sleep At Night? Try These Top Tips

For plenty of people, a good night’s sleep is as elusive as hen’s teeth. No matter what you try, you just can’t get the eight hours that you crave to set up the day. Well, that has to stop because sleep is an essential part of your life. For starters, it plays a massive role in your health as sleep is the time where the body gets to recuperate. Plus, it is proven to help destress. Fortunately, you don’t have to suffer in silence any longer. The tips below are great ways to get more sleep if you feel like an insomniac. They are also good for everyone who is just looking for a better night’s sleep. Enjoy!   

Get Into A Routine

One of the main reasons you may be experiencing a lack of sleep is due to your routine. Do you go to bed at different times every night? If the answer is yes, you are not letting your body get used to a specific bedtime. When your body knows it can shut down at a certain time at night, you will fall to sleep straight away. The body is a great tool that you can train and maintain for your benefit. All you have to do is figure out how to do it to induce you to go to sleep.

Catch Up On Sleep

It is impossible to keep to a strict schedule all of the time. On occasion, you won’t get as much sleep as you want no matter how hard you try. When this happens, you shouldn’t change your sleep patterns. Instead, you should nap during the day. A quick twenty to thirty-minute nap is perfect to boost your energy levels for the rest of the day. For more info on napping, checkout huffingtonpost.com. The result is that you can get through the rest of the day without falling to sleep, yet you also don’t affect your sleep during the night. Don’t do any longer than thirty minutes because that is when you fall into a deep cycle of sleep.

Don’t Eat Before Bed

Lots of people get hungry just before bed because they have gone a while without food. The temptation is to start snacking and filling your face, but you should it at all costs. Not only does eating at night affect your weight, but it also affects your sleep. As soon as you ingest food, your body has to start working to digest it and burn it off. It is fine during the day as you are already awake and active. But, it is not fine at night because you are trying to shut down. In short, digesting food prevents your body from relaxing. A good tip is to avoid food altogether for up to two hours before bed.

But Do Eat Magnesium

Your diet will affect your sleep levels as some nutrients are stimulants and others induce sleep. Everyone knows that caffeine, for example, is a stimulant that keeps you awake. Obviously, you want to avoid caffeine as much as possible, even if you are a not going to bed anytime soon. On the flip side, magnesium is a sedative that you want to ingest as much of if you want to get your head down at night. Eating foods like pumpkin seeds and spinach can improve your sleep drastically. There are plenty of magnesium rich foods out there – these are just two examples that you may want to try.

Change Your Mattress

The one thing that may be holding you back with regards to sleep is your mattress. Your mattress may not look like it is causing you any problems, but you don’t know until you look under the hood. There could be springs sticking into your back or uncomfortable lumps that make the bed uneven. Your best option is to check the bed and to see what state the mattress is in comfort wise. If it is not in a good condition, you should change it for a new one. You want to look for a mattress that is firm and comfy as the firmness distributes your weight more evenly. Alternatively, you could try a waterbed as these are the kings of comfort. Just search BoydWaterBeds.com and you could feel like you are floating on a river the next time you go to bed.

Make Your Bedroom Sleep-Friendly

Not every bedroom is cut out for sleep. In fact, some bedrooms make it harder to sleep thanks to their interior design choices. Honestly, blinds instead of curtains can have a huge impact on your sleep. Blinds are not as good at blocking sunlight, so the light can easily filter into the room. The result is that you will wake up earlier in the morning and find it harder to get to sleep. The color scheme is also another design choice you need to contemplate. Studies show that certain colors make sleep easier while others make it harder. Soft, warm colors, for example, are much more relaxing and better for sleep. If you have to, change the interior of your bedroom.

Keep The Temperature Steady

Extreme temperatures are not good for sleep because the body is sensitive to temperature. If a room is too hot or too cold, you are bound to notice while you are asleep. When this happens, you will wake up because your body wants you to do something about the inconsistent temps. What you need to do is make sure that the bedroom stays at a steady temp all the time. A room that is just right is far better to sleep in than one that is red hot or freezing cold.

Put Down The Electronics

Almost everyone on the planet has access to a mobile phone or a tablet device. Although they may make your life easier during the day, they are not good for sleep at night. Using an electronic device before bed sends signals to the brain that you don’t want to sleep. The result is that your brain doesn’t attempt to shut down the body until later on in the night. By avoiding them before bed, you won’t have this problem. Plus, your eyes can pick up the lights of the electronic devices and make you think it is time to wake up.

Exercise On A Regular Basis

The logic behind exercising is pretty simple: the more energy you expend, the more tired you will become. And, the more tired you are, the easier it is to fall asleep at night. Okay, it may seem a little basic, but it is effective. By burning off energy during the day, your body becomes weary and can’t wait to get to sleep. Because it dictates your sleep patterns, it will start closing your lids long before your regular bedtime. And, you won’t be able to stop it even if you wanted to.

And During The Day

However, it is important to note that working out gives you an adrenaline boost. Adrenaline, as you know, is a stimulant that is far more effective than any drug. Obviously, you don’t want a boost of this stuff just before you go to bed because you will never sleep. To make sure you are outside of the post-workout zone, exercise during the day. Or, do it at least two to three hours before your bedtime. That way, you won’t have to worry about getting your eight hours as the adrenaline will wear off. In fact, you may get more than eight hours if you are lucky.

Meditate

One great way to get more sleep is to clear your mind. Your mind is what is keeping you awake at night because it is so active. That is fine during the day because you need it to think and to work. But, it is harmful to your sleep at night. Meditation is the answer as it clears the mind of all your thoughts and emotions and leaves you feeling empty. As soon as you feel this, you will instantly fall to sleep. There are many different ways to meditate, but one good example is the muscle work out. All you have to do is tense every muscle group in your body for five seconds. It relaxes the muscles and stops you from focusing on trivial details. Breathing is also another exercise that you may want to try.

Listen To Music

The music you want to listen to is not the music you hear on the radio. That music is too active and lively. No, you want music that is going to relax you while you are in bed. Soothing music like the sound of the waves is a favorite for people that struggle to sleep as it helps relax the mind and the body. As long as the music relaxes you, it doesn’t matter what the sounds are to a degree. The sound of falling rain works just as well for some people.

No one should have to put up with a bad night’s sleep. Hopefully, these suggestions will change your sleep patterns and help you get your forty winks.

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