How to sleep better is a topic that is tackled by millions of people each day. Lack of sleep can be dangerous and lead to serious health problems such as a shorter life span and being unable to work effectively or efficiently. There are many reasons for lack of sleep such as jet lag, being an insomniac, or the body’s reaction to certain medications. There are also many more causes of sleeplessness ranging from stress, anxiety, and traumatic events.
Sleep is one of the most important aspects of our life like eating, drinking, and sleeping. Good quality sleep is associated with healthy living. On the other hand, sleeplessness due to stress or sleeplessness leading to stress can hamper the health of an individual. Sleeplessness can lead to various abnormalities in the body be it weight gain, it can also hamper cognitive brain function. Therefore proper quality sleep is important for the proper functioning of the whole body.
Good sleep can for sure make you more productive and fill you with energy throughout the day. Sleeplessness is often an urban problem where most people struggle to get quality sleep at night. It all depends upon our lifestyle, eating habits, and unhealthy practices.
A simple lifestyle change with proper physical exercise and yoga will minimize your stress level. These physical activities with a light meal before sleep and avoiding caffeine and tobacco will result in sound Peaceful sleep at night. Other than all these factors various other physical factors such as having the best mattress size to fit in your room according to your requirement will also let you sleep peacefully rather than sleeping uncomfortably with your partner or kids on a smaller mattress.
Why Quality Sleep Plays A Vital Role In Everyone’s Life
Quality sleeping is important not just because your body needs rest. When you sleep well your brain functions more effectively and your problem-solving skills and memory performance increases by a great margin.
And a good sleep of 7 to 8 hours decreases the risk of many heart diseases and strokes. Many depression patients have reported not have slept properly which means these problems are linked with poor sleep quality. So taking a good sleep is a must.
5 Most Effective Ways To Consider For A Quality Sleep
Get a habit of doing daily workouts
Physical exercise can be a great help in getting a peaceful sleep. And this could be just done by adding the habit of working out daily to your routine. Try to do some physical activity in the morning or evening as it will make you fit and on track for your natural circadian rhythms.
According to research, it’s been found out that people, who are consistently doing moderate aerobic exercises, fall asleep faster which in turn also enhances their sleep quality. But working out just before going to bed could adversely affect your sleep. Physical exercise should be done as per your capability, overdoing things could also affect your sleep. In addition to all these exercises, you can also try to convert your unhealthy lifestyle to a healthy one which means taking food that is rich in proteins and nutrients rather than just eating more junk foods.
Avoid a heavy meal before bed
Heavy meals or meals rich in palate might be problematic to digest. They might give you bitter acid reflexes, indigestion, and heartburn. Eating heavy meals or meals with heavy calories results in stomach acid easily entering the esophagus and causing acid reflexes while your body rests at a horizontal angle while sleeping. Indigestion on the other hand occurs when you suffer stomach pain and discomfort after eating a usually large meal.
Heartburn on the other hand is a burning sensation in the chest caused by overeating and consuming spicy food, which can worsen while lying down.
Follow a consistent sleeping cycle or pattern
Our body gets used to certain things like our body’s circadian rhythm functions on a set loop and aligning ourselves with the sunrise and sunsets. When we stay consistent with our sleeping patterns most of the problems are solved. Having an irregular pattern will for sure create problems as it can’t heal your problems. So trying to sleep according to certain patterns for a few weeks will for sure create a difference. Sometimes falling asleep might just be a problem in the first few days which can be addressed by a few tricks such as counting backward from 100. This technique is known to promote deep sleep. Other than that, gravity blankets or weighted blankets can also be used to fall asleep easily and peacefully as they are known to reduce anxiety and insomnia. These blankets are filled with balls, pellets, or chains which gives the blankets their heavyweight or gravity. It is the weight exerted by these blankets that give the user a sense of comforter or the feel of being hugged
Don’t let the exposure of blue light in your room
Too much exposure to lights in your bedroom might not allow you to sleep well. During the daytime, it’s beneficial as it provides you with energy and increases your sleep during the night. Red light therapy is an effective way to address sleep issues such as sleep deprivation, disturbances, and insomnia. But at nighttime, it doesn’t help that much as it makes our body and brain take it’s as daytime and keeps our brain awake.
Blue light is emitted by smart devices such as televisions, mobile phones, and laptops, etc. So try to avoid their exposure in your bedroom. Switch off the TVs 2 hours before going to bed.
Don’t take a long stretch of naps
The fact that irregular naps will disrupt your night sleep depends from person to person. Some people after taking a short daytime nap sleep well at night, this is because their body is used to it. But long irregular naps during day time may cause problems because of two reasons – first, you should not sleep more than 8 hours in a day and secondly, your body is not used to sudden long naps and this will disturb your sleep pattern too.
Even after getting an adequate amount of sleep, you feel drowsy about your daily activity then it must be addressed as a health issue. Overwhelming daytime sleep could be due to several sleep disorders such as narcolepsy where one experiences drowsiness even after a proper night sleep.
Some more important tips to consider
Here are some of the few ideas which help you sleep naturally. Have a glass of milk before going to bed but try to avoid coffee or tea as they contain caffeine and caffeine that makes your brain awake. Try to calm your body by taking hot showers once a day. It will improve the blood circulation in the body and make your mind free.
Don’t use your mobile phone’s laptops or any smart devices before you grab your blanket instead try to read some fictional books. Create a vibe in your bedroom by placing some scented candles and lowering the temperature.
Conclusion
If you want to learn how to sleep better, then the first step is to determine what type of sleep help is needed for your lifestyle. Your lifestyle can make a big difference in how well you sleep. For example, individuals who are constantly on the go and have to perform multiple tasks throughout the day may be suffering from sleep deprivation. These individuals may benefit from learning relaxation techniques such as meditation, yoga, or exercise to promote better sleep at night. Learning these techniques may take some time, but the results are well worth the effort as sleep deprivation eventually becomes a thing of the past.
