5 Tips to a Good Night's Sleep and Waking Rested

{5 Tips to Improve Your Sleep and Feel More Rested}

 I have been waking up feeling awful, I am so tired all day and I feel like I haven’t slept at all! Here is a compilation of some tips that I found.

1.  Don’t sleep with your TV on, this one is a biggie; if you have a TV in your room you have to turn it off while you are trying to go to sleep and while you are sleeping! Your brain is very receptive to light, even when you are sleeping and the light from the TV can interrupt your brain signals and change your sleep pattern. Falling asleep with the TV on can be a distraction too; I know it makes me want to just finish one show or sometimes even a whole movie. The sound can wake you up too, even if you don’t remember waking up because of it, it may be disturbing you more than you think.

2.  Avoid caffeine late in the day, that includes chocolate or anything else that may have caffeine in it; you may not think it has much of an effect but it can really hinder your ability to fall asleep. Also avoid nicotine and alcohol; nicotine is a stimulant and can keep you up. Alcohol can hinder sleep too; don’t go around believing that it helps you sleep!

3.  Treat yourself like a child; you give your children bedtime routines so that they can prepare for bedtime, so that their bodies can wind down, we should do it for ourselves too! Your body will benefit from winding down too and you will fall asleep easier. Instead of waiting until bedtime to lie down and worry about everything you can start your routine 30-40 minutes before bedtime, meditate or just try to calm your stress before you actually lay down. Take a shower, do a crossword puzzle, turn off the TV and just have some quiet time, do anything that relaxes you and make it part of your new routine. Your body will realize that it is almost time for bed when you do these things and it will help your brain get ready for sleep.

4.  Don’t use a crazy loud alarm if you don’t have to; alarms make me jump up from a deep sleep, they make my heart race and they make me feel jittery. I am not sure that this is the peaceful waking routine that I would love. I like to turn my cell phone alarm on because it is quieter and turns its alarm volume up slowly which makes me wake up a little at a time. You can put one alarm next to you that is quiet and then set a loud one for a few minutes later if you are nervous that the peaceful one won’t wake you up.

5.  Make sure that you have a comfortable bed and pillow; this is important for obvious reasons. If you are in a bed and on a pillow that are comfortable you will be able to sleep more happily. You will toss and turn less and wake up without a sore neck and back. So throw away that $5 pillow and sink some money into a good one, you know they last forever anyway, you might as well get one that will support your neck and in turn support your sleep. No more kink in the neck, headache, back pain; those things can really hinder your energy during the day.  

(I have this Ty Pennington bedding and I adore it)

{A Little Bonus Tip}

You should also lie in bed for a couple of minutes after you wake up; let your body adjust to being awake, let your pulse rise naturally and let your brain adjust. Stretch and prepare to get up before you spring out of bed, heart racing, and running for the shower.