Sleep is such an important part of our everyday lives. Doctors and health experts stress the importance of getting a good night’s sleep, citing all of the ways that being well rested will benefit your life. However, what happens when you find yourself struggling to get those precious hours of beauty sleep? How do you ensure that the time you have to rest is actually being spent sleeping?
During my freshman year of college, I found myself struggling at night to get to sleep. I would lay there for hours and hours, unable to get to bed. Even when I was extremely tired, I still couldn’t sleep.
I went to my university’s health clinic, hoping they would be able to tell my why I wasn’t able to fall asleep. But all the doctor did was give me a list of good sleeping habits, and told me to practice them.
I was skeptical of the list, convinced it wouldn’t help me. How could it be this easy to get a good night’s sleep? I resolved to put them into practice, however, because what could it hurt? In a few days, I fell asleep with no problem. I thought it was a fluke at first, but then the next night the same thing happened—I slept like a baby. Since then, I’ve been able to fall asleep almost every night with no problem, and I have these good sleep habits to thank.
If you also have trouble falling asleep at night, here are some of those good sleep habits to put into practice. Combining as many as possible will give you the best chance of actually falling asleep when you want to at night!
1. Don’t do anything stimulating before bed.
Doing homework or other stressful activities before bed will prevent you from relaxing. Try to budget some time before bed where you aren’t doing homework or anything that stresses you out so you can wind down before hitting the hay.
2. Cut out electronics before bed/while going to sleep.
The blue lights emitted from electronics can really mess up your ability to fall asleep at night. Also, television, movies, and surfing the internet might end up being more stimulating than relaxing, which, as we already discussed, could make it harder for you to sleep at night. Try to cut out electronics before you go to sleep in order to get you more relaxed.
3. Only use your bed for sleep.
Only using your bed for sleep helps your brain associate your bed with that action and not other activities. I used to do all of my homework on my bed, so I had to adjust to doing work at my desk or in the library.
4. Get into a routine before bed.
A routine helps your body understand that it’s almost time to go to sleep. I think this habit might have been one of the most effective practices for me to get to sleep. As part of my routine, I take a hot shower and then spend some time reading a book or writing in a notebook. By doing this every night, my body realizes it is time to sleep and begins to prepare for it.
Since you want to avoid electronics and stimulating things, do something you enjoy that is calm: listen to some relaxing music, meditate, read a book, write with pen and paper, listen to an audiobook, draw. There are many things you can choose to be part of your routine that will let your body know that it’s time to get tired and when you do this activity every night, you will find yourself falling asleep easier.
5. Exercise—in the morning.
When I was at my school’s health clinic, I told them I had taken up exercising in the evening to help myself sleep. The doctor gave me a surprised look and informed me that exercising only a few hours before bed was making it worse because I was releasing adrenaline that was still coursing through me when I tried to sleep.
However, exercise is still a really great way to help you sleep at night, as long as you do it in the morning. Studies have shown that a good exercise plan can help cure insomnia and increase the ability to fall asleep at night. Try to pick up some exercise in the morning, and you will acquire many benefits from it, including an easier time falling asleep.
6. Stay away from stimulants.
This is an obvious one, but I can’t stress it enough. Caffeine is one stimulant that can keep you awake at night, so try to stick to only water once the afternoon rolls around. I’m not even a coffee drinker, but I chug iced tea like there’s no tomorrow, but now I try to stay away from it for a few hours before bed because it keeps me awake. Other caffeinated beverages, like soda, should also be avoided after lunch.
Also, if you’re a smoker, try to stay away from nicotine right before bed. You might think that nicotine relaxes you, but it’s actually a stimulant that keeps your brain racing. Try to smoke your last cigarette of the day a while before you want to sleep instead of right before bed. You can maybe incorporate it into the very beginning of your nightly routine, and then do something relaxing after.
7. Avoid alcohol or drugs to get to sleep.
Alcohol and some drugs might knock you out, but it seriously affects the quality of your sleep. Relying on alcohol and drugs only puts a bandaid over the bigger problem of your inability to fall asleep, and in the long run will probably only hurt you worse. You might become dependent on a substance in order to sleep, so try to avoid falling into that rabbit hole.
8. Most importantly—don’t freak out if you can’t fall asleep right away!
Sometimes, a sleepless night is unavoidable. Even if you practice every good sleep habit in the book, you might find yourself tossing and turning anyway. You might be worried about a big test or a presentation the next day. You might be thinking about how miserable tomorrow will be because you’ll be tired. You might be counting the hours and minutes you’ll be able to sleep, and wondering if that’s enough to get you through the day.
Don’t get into that negative mindset and feel anxious about the next day! Remind yourself that everything will be alright, and that even if you don’t get much sleep, your body is stronger than you think and you will be able to get through the day. You’re probably no stranger to sleepless nights and long days, so just remember how you still managed to function through those days. You might be a little tired and cranky, but you can do it! If you keep yourself from worrying and being anxious over your lack of sleep, your body will be more relaxed and you will fall asleep easier.
Don’t let your inability to fall asleep take over your life! These habits can potentially help you, and if sleeping is something you struggle with it’s worth a try! They might not all work for you, but introducing some of these habits into your routine can be a game changer. You could even become a more positive person as a result.
For more information and other great tips to get to sleep, click here.