Trouble sleeping affects many people at different times in life. Some people can’t get to sleep, while others might struggle to stay asleep or enter the deep sleep phase. If you’re struggling with insomnia or some form of sleeping problem, you’re no doubt looking for ways to overcome the problem. Let’s look at some top tips to get to sleep and stay asleep, so you wake up feeling fully rested and ready to face a new day.
#1 – Avoid Caffeinated Drinks At Night
If you enjoy a few coffees, a cup of tea, energy drinks or even a glass of Coke, be sure to only consume these caffeinated drinks, in moderation, during the daytime and avoid them entirely at night. Too much caffeine too close to bedtime will likely keep you buzzed and awake, rather than feeling relaxed and ready to sleep.
#2 – Try Playing Some Relaxation Music In the Bedroom
These days on the internet you can find all types of relaxation or meditation music designed specifically to relax the mind and help people to unwind and go to sleep. An alternative to music is the sound of rain or a gentle thunderstorm. YouTube is loaded with videos like these, so check them out and try playing one on a low volume when you go to bed.
#3 – Use Essential Oils
It could be in the form of a roll-on or permeating the bedroom air with essential oils with a diffuser. There are a number of essential oils that help to clear the mind, calm the body and help to induce slumber. Check out some essential oils online that are for insomnia and see how you go.
#4 – Get Enough Physical Exercise Each Day
A lack of physical activity throughout the day could leave you with too much energy to burn when it comes to bedtime. Along with tiring out the body, getting exercise in also helps to clear the mind and put it in a more positive state. Both of these outcomes are conducive to having a better night’s sleep. If you’re struggling to sleep in the evenings, go for a brisk walk after dinner to burn off some energy and nervous tension.
#5 – Don’t Try To Work Out Your Problems At Bedtime
Many people are guilty of lying awake in bed mulling over their problems. Sure, solutions to issues might need to be sought, but that doesn’t have to happen when you’re about to go to sleep. If anything, getting a good night’s sleep is more likely to give you the power of intellect to come up with a solution. Lying awake stressing and not getting any rest isn’t going to solve anything and you’ll just get up the next day feeling physically and mentally drained.
#6 – Overcome Negative Thinking With Meditation
A lot of people have overcome problems with insomnia by practising meditation. You could join a meditation group to learn how to master the art of deep meditation and clearing the mind of all thoughts, or you could listen to some meditation videos online when you retire for the evening. They can be tremendously relaxing.
#7 – Don’t Try To Sleep If You’re Simply Not Sleepy
Forcing yourself to go to bed and try and get to sleep simply because the clock says it’s your usual bedtime isn’t always going to work. If you feel wide awake and you know sleep is going to elude you for a few hours at least, instead of tossing and turning in bed and getting more and more frustrated, stay up, kick back with a warm mug of milk and watch a movie or a documentary until you start to feel sleepy.
#8 – Don’t Remain In Bed If You Can’t Sleep
If you can’t get to sleep or you were asleep for a time but woke up and can’t return to slumber, rather than getting all frustrated and watching the minutes tick by on the bedside clock, get out of bed for a while and do something. Staying in bed is going to feel like torture. Step outside and calm your mind and body for a while, read a book, or do something you find boring until you feel tired again.
#9 – Avoid Power Naps If You’re Struggling To Sleep
If you’re having trouble sleeping and you’re feeling fatigued at various times of the day, it can be tempting to grab a power nap. In normal circumstances, power naps are great and can revitalise you but in the case of suffering from insomnia, power naps are more likely to exacerbate the problem rather than leave you feeling refreshed. You want to be tired enough to fall asleep for the entire night when it’s bedtime, so resist the urge to take a nap.
#10 – Sleeping In Is Not the Answer
It may not even be an option anyway, but if you so have the luxury of time to be able to sleep in, try and avoid this too. Set your alarm for the same time you normally get up, even if you’ve had very little sleep. You want to train your body to get into a sleeping pattern and rhythm and sleeping and getting up at roughly the same time each night and morning will help to achieve this outcome.
A Quick Recap
Let’s now quickly list the tips for easy reference:
- Avoid Caffeinated Drinks At Night
- Try Playing Some Relaxation Music In the Bedroom
- Use Essential Oils
- Get Enough Physical Exercise Each Day
- Don’t Try To Work Out Your Problems At Bedtime
- Overcome Negative Thinking With Meditation
- Don’t Try To Sleep If You’re Simply Not Sleepy
- Don’t Remain In Bed If You Can’t Sleep
- Avoid Power Naps If You’re Struggling To Sleep
- Sleeping In Is Not the Answer
The Takeaway
A lack of sleep can be stressful but the more you think about it and stress about it, the more likely the problem will continue. Try the tips mentioned in this article and you’re bound to find some of them will work for you and solve your sleeping problem.
Source:
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/insomnia/expert-answers/insomnia/faq-20057824
