About one month ago, I wrote an article on tips for a good night’s sleep: ‘Sleep Smarter: 21 Proven Tips to Sleep Your Way To a Better Body, Better Health and Bigger Success – book summary‘.
Here is where I am coming from:
- I often had trouble falling asleep at night, and felt that I needed at least 9 hours of sleep a night to function properly. Even then, I still felt like it wasn’t enough.
- After reading the book previously mentioned, I realized that sleep is crucial for a good health, productivity and well-being. I had 2 options: take sedatives, which don’t deliver the same restorative benefits as natural sleep, or apply nonpharmacological measures to get a better quality sleep. Although I had already tried to implement multiple methods to improve my sleep, none of them were really effective in the long-term. After reading the book, I learned many more ways I could improve my sleep, and decided to give it another go. Although some days are still sometimes a struggle, I have to say my sleep is so much better. And I beleive it will continue to improve.
Here are the changes I’ve implemented in my sleep routine this past month :
1. I stopped listening to upbeat music in the evening.
I found that whenever I did, the music would stick in my brain, and would impede my sleep. I would also sometimes wake up, with the music still in my head.
2. I purchased an English Navy plant and the snake plant.
Benefits: I did not measure the air quality in my room, so I honestly cannot judge whether or not these plants help me sleep better. However, they are certainly a great addition to my room and have a calming effect.
Difficulties: None. They are very easy to maintain.
- I purchased blue-light clip-on glasses (You can buy them at not even 5$ on ali express).
I wore them 1-2 hours before going to bed. At first, I felt that the clips blocked the center of my vision. However, after a few days, I quickly got used to wearing them. I must say they make me look a bit funny if I can say so but it doesn’t matter since I wear them at home. On the days where I forgot to wear them or came back home very late, I did notice a difference in my sleep. It was worth it, especially for the price!
4. I stopped eating my little go-to treat: microwaved mashed bananas with MCT and cacao powder.
Cacao contains theobromine, which is a mild central nervous system stimulant. As I’m very sensitive, whenever I ate that dessert in the evening, I would have trouble falling asleep. I would wonder why… then remember that I ate that cheeky dessert.
5. I started doing the 5-minute journal, then meditating for 20 minutes right before going to bed.
I probably set my goals a bit too high, as it was hard for me to meditate for the full 20 minutes. In the first few days, I would start to meditate for only about 5 minutes and could not complete the full 20 minutes. I now realize that another reason why I did not want to meditate for longer what that I viewed it as time wasted, and didn’t even notice any benefits at the beginning. However, I gradually increased how much time I was meditating until I reached the full 20 minutes. After around 2 weeks of consistency, I started reaping the benefits. I feel much calmer when I go to bed, and my thoughts aren’t running wild anymore. I now view it as part of my sleep routine. After completing my 5-minute journal, I set a timer for 20 minutes on my phone, I turn off the light, get into a lotus position, close my eyes and start meditating. Sometimes, I only meditate for 15 minutes. Then, I simply go to bed. Seamless transition.
6. I try going to bed at no later than 10h30.
I use the word ‘try’ since, most of the days, it is still a struggle. It is still a work in progress. I’ve noticed that if I went to bed after 11-11h30pm, it was almost guaranteed that I would have trouble falling asleep.
7. If something is bothering me, I try to solve it as quickly as possible as I know it will be on my mind and affect my sleep.
I tried journaling to sort out my thoughts. If I cannot get it solved or if it requires a lot of time, I try to schedule my ‘thinking time’ on the calendar. I know that on day x, time y, I will try to find a solution for the problem. Still a work in progress!
Overall…
- I noticed that by being much more conscious of the factors affecting my sleep. I was able to pinpoint why, for a particular night, I didn’t have a good sleep. I knew that in the future, I had to avoid that factor.
- Although I still have days where my sleep is all over the place, these days get less and less frequent.
- Sometimes in life, we can’t always control everything. We might lose our job, lose a spouse or simply overthink about something we said or did. During those times, our sleep and mental state might not be optimal. That’s when it’s important to double up on self-care, maybe meditate for longer, make sure we are having a proper diet, and exercise. Then, we can get back on track.
- I think it’s also very important to have a list of things that make us feel good to remind ourselves of what we could do when we feel like we’re in a rut. These self-care routines can be different for everyone. For some, that could be listening to happy, upbeat songs. To others, that could be doing a yoga practice, talking to a friend, cooking or taking a walk. What’s your go-to activities when you feel down? Make a list and keep it on hand in case you need a reminder, when you’re in a rut!
- If I notice that something in my life should be improved, I would like to use the same process: learn about the subject, notice where I’m lacking the most and think of all the ways I can change/improve, put it into practice, track my progress, turn it into a habit, repeat.
