Do you feel like no matter what you do, you just can’t seem to get a good night of sleep? If so, you aren’t alone. It’s estimated that one out of every three American adults aren’t getting the recommended 7 hours of sleep each night.
While some people are able to snuggle into bed and fall into a restful sleep without issue, many of us find it more difficult. If you fall into this latter group, you are probably on the lookout for any tips and tricks you can find to make your nights a little more restful. After all, we all know that getting a good night of sleep is vital to our overall health and well-being. Lucky for us, none of us are stuck with our current sleep habits forever. While it may be difficult, sleep habits, just like all other habits, can be broken and changed with a little motivation and persistence.
If you find yourself falling into the group of adults who are struggling to get enough sleep every night, here are some simple steps you can start taking today to help yourself sleep better.
1. Spend Time in the Sun and Be Active
Your body follows a circadian rhythm that uses exposure to natural light and darkness to adjust your sleep patterns. Because of this, when we spend the majority of our time inside with the curtains drawn, it can start to impact our sleep cycles. To combat this, try spending time outside each day so your body is exposed to plenty of natural sunlight. In the event you can’t go outside, pull back your curtains and let as much natural light into the room as possible.
To make this more effective, fill your time outside with physical activities like working out, yard maintenance, dancing, or yoga as research has shown that adding exercise to your day is another great way to help promote better sleep.
2. Create the Perfect Sleep Ambience
The environment you sleep in can make a world of difference in not only how fast you fall asleep but also how well you sleep. According to sleep experts at John Hopkins, making a few simple changes to your sleep environment can make a big difference in the quality of sleep you’re getting. For example, investing in blackout curtains to block out excess light can make your room darker, which is better for promoting a restful night of sleep. Other steps you may consider taking include removing blue-light-emitting technology from your room, adding white noise, and turning the thermostat down a few degrees.
3. Stick to a Sleep Schedule and Avoid Daytime Naps
We know, life obligations can be a damper to this tip, but it never hurts to try. Studies have shown that irregular sleep schedules can negatively impact your quality of sleep. With that in mind, do what you can to make sure you go to bed and wake up around the same time each day—yes, even on weekends and holidays. If you are having a hard time falling asleep, consider taking a short walk, reading a book, meditating, or doing another screen-free activity for a few minutes before going back to bed.
Additionally, while it may be tempting to take a daytime nap on the weekend, it’s best to avoid them as they can leave you feeling groggy and affect your sleep schedule.
4. Care for Your Gut Health
Believe it or not, your gut and your sleep schedule are closely connected. While we don’t fully understand this connection yet, we do know that it means that following a diet full of whole foods, supplementing with probiotics, and taking other steps to care for your gut can ultimately lead to a better night’s sleep!
5. Avoid Unhealthy Nighttime Habits
We’ve all been told a time or two that we shouldn’t drink coffee in the evenings or that we should turn off the TV an hour before bed. While we may be tired of hearing this type of advice, there is definitely something to it. There are many activities that we partake in the evening that may be impacting our sleep schedules. For example, drinking caffeinated drinks in the afternoon or evening can lead to you staying up later than you planned. In addition, activities like drinking alcohol, eating a large meal, staring at electronic screens, and indulging in a late-night snack can all impact your body’s ability to fall and stay asleep if done too close to bedtime.
Rest Easy and Live the #NewEarthLife
Getting a good night of sleep is an important part of keeping your body and mind healthy, which is why we consider it part of living the #NewEarthLife. If you find yourself struggling to fall asleep or stay asleep, implementing a few simple tricks to your day can make a world of difference. So go ahead. Join us in living the #NewEarthLife by taking steps to get the sleep your body needs and deserves.