How Do I Sleep Better? 15 simple steps for relaxed and refreshing sleep.

Sleep is a very essential component of our daily life.

With our fast paced life, it is indeed a luxury to have 7-9 uninterrupted restful sleep these days, but every effort must be made to not to skimp on sleep. 

Skimp on Sleep and You Just May Wind Up Sick. 

Sleep deprivation has been linked to many health related disorders.

As we age, we experience decreased sleep efficiency (time spent asleep divided by total time spent in bed), decreased total sleep time, and increased sleep latency (time to fall asleep). 

The most common sleep complaints are difficulty falling asleep, nighttime awakening, early morning awakening, and daytime sleepiness. 

First step is to recognize and acknowledge whether you have a sleep disturbance.

There are many sleep questionnaires online, their validity needs to be ascertained before you rely on them.

Best person to check with is your family physician regarding this and if you are having trouble sleeping not resolved with your basic sleep hygiene steps. 

So now you think you do have a sleep associated problem.What to do next?

Try to avoid taking any over the counter medications without consulting with your family physician.

It might be helpful to try these basic sleep hygiene steps first.

1) Maintain regular rising time and bed time.

2) Do not go to bed unless sleepy.

3) Decrease naps during the day.

4) Exercise daily but not immediately before bedtime.

5) Do not use bed for reading, eating, or watching television/other screen time.

6) Relax mentally before going to sleep; do not use bedtime as worry time.

7) If hungry, have a light snack , but avoid heavy meals at bedtime.

8) Limit or eliminate alcohol and caffeine in evening and before bedtime.

9) Maintain a routine before going to bed ( e.g. bath,brush,going to bathroom).

10) Control night time environment with comfortable temperature,quietness and darkness. Be careful and have just enought lighting to prevent falls.

11) Try a familiar background noise (e.g relaxing music,”white noise” machine).

12) Wear comfortable bed clothing.

13) If cannot fall asleep within 30 minutes, get OUT of bed and perform soothing activity such as listening to soft calming music or light reading (avoid bright light).

14) Get adequate exposure to sunlight ot bright light during the day.

15) Wear your “happy” SMILE often during the day.

It has been proven that people who get restful sleep have increased work efficiency, are less prone to health related issues including mood disorders and enjoy happier life as compared to people with chronic sleep deprivation.

So sleep good ,be happy 🙂 !!

Continue on your road to happiness…….