Ever since the invention of the smartphone--which beckons us hither with its enticing blue glow--it’s harder than ever to tear ourselves away from all the socializing for a night of undisturbed sleep. Here are 11 ways you can catch up on those Zzzz’s and make them count.
Unwind. Adopt a routine of soothing activities for the hour before bedtime, whether it be brushing your teeth or reading a book. Repeat this pre-sleep routine every night and you’ll notice yourself getting drowsy and relaxed as you gradually power down.
Stop using your bed. Well, just for activities that don’t involve sleeping. Don’t use your bed (or bedroom, if you can) as anything but a recharging station. Eventually, your brain will begin to associate your room with sleeping, making bedtime less of a hassle.
Toss the tablet. That tweet can wait until morning. The blue glow of smartphone and tablet screens suppress the production of melatonin, a hormone which controls the body's sleep and wake cycles. For a proper night's rest, stop using your technology two hours before you plan on sleeping. If you really must use your device at night, download a blue light filter to protect the quality and quantity of your sleep.
Keep it cool. Take a lesson from Goldilocks and avoid having a bedroom that is too hot or too cold. Your room should be somewhere between 60 and 67 degrees for a night of comfortable sleep.
Warm hands and feet equal good sleep. Some of us have low circulation in our extremities, causing cold feet and hands. Slip on a pair of gloves or socks to combat the cold and keep cozy in the night.
Don't sleep in. You may feel that sleeping in on the weekend after a week of tossing and turning is well-deserved, but resist the temptation. Keep your sleeping habits regular (by waking up and falling asleep at about the same time every night) or you risk falling into a deeper hole of insomnia from disrupting your body's internal clock.
Hit the lights. Even the smallest amount of light can trick your brain into thinking it's day rather than night. To stop this from happening, purchase an eyemask or some blackout curtains to block out the light and get some shuteye.
Sweat it out. People sleep significantly better if they exercise regularly during the day. But make sure not to exercise late in the day, as it may have counterintuitive results. Rather than make it easier to fall asleep, it can leave you alert and pumped from the release of endorphins and the neurotransmitter dopamine. End the exercise session three hours before bedtime. If you must exercise later in the day, choose a low impact workout such as yoga.
Stop snoozing. Hitting the snooze-button for the umpteenth time isn’t going to make you feel any less groggy in the morning. In fact, it may have the opposite effect. Trying to fall asleep in between the shrill screeches of your alarm clock means poor quality sleep and resuming your place in the sleep cycle, which can make you wake up sleepier the second time.
Kick caffeine to the curb. Plan on stopping all coffee consumption six hours before bedtime if you don’t want to be bouncing off the walls at 3AM. But coffee isn’t the only source of caffeine there is. Be sure to check the labels of your medication as some may include the ingredient in the fine print. Avoid soda too. It’s a carbonated beverage which can lead to uncomfortable gas and it contains caffeine and sugar that’ll keep you up at night.
Quit the tequila too. Step away from the Pinot Grigio. Although we tend to connect alcohol with drowsiness due to its properties as a central nervous system depressant, but the buzz reduces the quality of your sleep. In addition, alcohol is a diuretic which means you’ll be frequently getting up at night to go to the bathroom and disturb your sleep.