Sleep Hygiene: 101

Sleep hygiene is something many of us overachievers believe we don’t have time for. I used to find sleep unimportant and took it for granted until having kids and not having the luxury of sleeping through the night. There is a reason sleep deprivation is torture. Here are some tips to help get or keep that sleep on track:

Eat at least two hours before getting into bed and avoid drinking alcohol or anything caffeinated. This will help you avoid waking up in the middle of the night feeling panicky from a blood sugar crash and allow your body to do what it is supposed to do when you are asleep which is repair and assimilate.

No screen time 2 hrs before bed. That means no phone or use blue light canceling glasses. We have learned that blue light effects melatonin.

Before bed think of a relaxing routine. For me this is avoid stressful TV or movies but reaching for a book, restorative yoga, cuddling, or writing. I sometime if my brain is really spinning will journal to empty my brain.

Make sure you spent even a few moments in silence doing nothing in the day to quiet your mind. This can allow your brain to process things. If we wait until bedtime to do this the mind can be really loud.

I hope you find a peaceful bedtime routine that works for you!