10 tips to get a good sleep at night
Publisher/Author
: Pacific Cross
Nội dung bài viết / Table of Contents
You are suffering from sleeping disorders at night? Here is your go-to guide to help you have a better night’s sleep.
Good sleep is extremely essential since it does not only bring you the feeling of well-being, but also makes you both physically and mentally robust.
Although human sleep is a naturally recurring state of mind and body, the number of people struggling to fall and stay asleep through the night has been surging.
Insomnia brings about adverse impacts on your body and brain, as well as various biological functions. So here are valid tips that allow you to make sleep no longer your foe.
It has been shown that surrounding environment temperature influences the quality of sleep more than external noise. Other studies also indicate the connection between the increased bedroom temperature and sleep loss. To explain further, the body’s core temperature declines while we sleep soundly, so high room temperature would obstruct your deep sleep.
Setting your bedroom temperature around 15 – 20°C (65 – 70°F) could help you fall asleep easier since this is considered the most ideal bedroom sleeping temperature for most people.
However, individual preferences and habits are various. Experiment and find the temperature that works best for you.
Everyone knows that having a cup of coffee late in the day would be a definite no-no unless you want to stay up all night. It stimulates alertness and boosts adrenaline production, which correspondingly prevents your body from unwinding naturally at night.
If you have difficulty sleeping or are sensitive to caffeine, not only should you not drink coffee after 3-4 pm, but also cease consuming other foodstuff containing caffeine, such as tea, chocolate, cola and some pain killers for at least 4 to 6 hours before bedtime. Likewise, smokers should avoid using tobacco products in late afternoon and evening.
Instead, it is recommended to drink tea enhancing sleep quality and relaxation like chamomile or lavender tea tips to get a good sleep.
Late-night eating could be a recipe for sleep deprivation as well as hormone disruption. An evening meal eaten about 4 hours before bedtime would likely be better for your night’s sleep.
For more information, take a look at the list of food you should or shouldn’t eat so as to get a good sleep.
Many people are in the habit of taking daytime naps, especially those who suffer from a lack of sleep at night.
Nevertheless, studies have found that long (more than 2 hours) and late naps could cause abominable sleep and even insomnia at night as they reduce our sleep drive. Additionally, older adults who regularly take naps are more likely to have poor sleep at night, show more depressive symptoms and gain more weight than those who infrequently nap.
On the other hand, the results of other experiments have suggested the contrary since the participants who nap frequently do not experience sleep deprivation at night.
If you find night time sleep problematic, try either abstaining from napping or keep it short (30 minutes or less) early in the day.
Clock watching is a common behavior of people who have sleeping disorder, which could increase frustration about sleeplessness and inability to fall asleep.
It is recommended that you discard the clock in your room, or turn its face away from you.
In case you wake up in the middle of the night and are unable to get back to sleep in around 20 minutes, try restful activity like listening to music, reading or meditation in dim lights. Then you can come back to bed when you’re ready to sleep.
Getting the habit of sleeping and waking up at similar times every day sets the internal clock of your body, which signals your body to be awake during the day while sleepy at night. Once your body get used to this consistent sleep-wake cycle, waking up and sleeping around the same time each day will be more effortless.
Regardless of your poor sleep last night, try to wake up at the same time each day as it will foster the extra sleep drive helping you fall asleep easier the next night.
Aromatherapy is acknowledged as an effective treatment for stress relief and nerves relaxation.
Moreover, studies have revealed that the use of essential oils like denmark rose and lavender in aromatherapy also boosts sleep quality.
Hence, it is suggested to have an essential oil diffuser in your room switched on 10 minutes before bedtime in order to enhance your relaxation and sleep quality.
Taking a bath or shower with warm water 90 minutes before bed and then stepping into cooler air will decrease your body temperature rapidly. Research indicates that this steep temperature decline will stall your metabolism quicker and prepare your body to sleep.
However, if you aren’t fond of taking a full shower or bath at night, a warm footbath can improve your sleep as well.
Doing exercises is one of the most effective science-backed ways to revamp your sleep quality by escalating the serotonin production in the brain as well as lower the levels of stress hormone and cortisol.
Despite this, it is crucial to retain your workout routine during the daytime since exercise also raises hormones and alertness such as adrenaline and epinephrine, which might cause difficulty falling asleep at night.
Consequently, working out in the morning or finishing at least 3 hours before bed can make some improvement in both quantity and quality of your night’s sleep.
It is common that people go to bed worrying about nerve-racking things. Alternatively, it would be more beneficial for your night’s sleep if you imagine things or an environment making you feel calm and contented.
According to an Oxford University experiment published in the journal Behavior Research and Therapy, insomniacs fell asleep 20 minutes faster after they were instructed to visualize a soothing scene.
This technique allows you to engage with positive thoughts rather than filling up your mind with concerns and worries keeping you up all night.
A good night’s sleep is vital for your physical and mental health. So as to fall and stay asleep at night, try and find out which techniques above work best for you.
References
2. http://healthysleep.med.harvard.edu/healthy/getting/overcoming/tips
3. https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/15-ways-to-fall-asleep-faster_us_55dde3e7e4b04ae497054470
4. https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/good-nights-sleep
5. https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/10-tips-for-healthy-sleep
