14 Mar Stolen Sleep: How to Get it Back with Three Self-Reminders
By Jenna Kohler, Certified Health Coach
Daylight Savings Time is in action and we’re “sprung ahead” this past weekend. How are you doing on sleep? Still missing that hour? Put down that extra cup of coffee and read on…
Don’t Compare Your Sleep to Others
First of all, your body is different than anyone else’s in this world. You’ve been told that before, right? Yes, you’re special. Your system responds uniquely to the unique set of biological, emotional, mental, and physical circumstances that life throws at you. So, if your neighbor, coworker, or gym buddy seems to be full of ten times the energy you have and remarks of “sleeping like a baby”, don’t get frustrated. Your zzzzzz’s will come.
Give Yourself a Sleep Hygiene Makeover
You shower, you put on deodorant, hopefully you even brush your teeth! Some of you take this a step further and put on make-up, tame your hair, and dress to impress. So, start seeing your sleep hygiene as you do your personal hygiene. You don’t expect to roll out of bed looking like a million bucks, do you? Then you can’t expect to feel great and get amazing sleep if you don’t put in some effort. Effort? Here’s what I mean:
1. Set the mood:
Ditch screens a reasonable time before bed. Especially if you were watching the latest action-packed, adrenaline-spiking series on Netflix. Mist your pillow with some calming essential oils. Take a quick hot shower to loosen tense muscles. Switch your radio station to something more calming. These are easy fixes. Quit the excuses and just do them!
2. Don’t fill up your belly right before bed:
Your body requires energy and focus to fall asleep, believe it or not. Don’t complicate things by making it digest food at the same time. In particular, stay away from alcohol, spicy foods, caffeine (including chocolate!) and sweets. If you need a cup of nighty-night herbal tea, be my guest.
3. Bring the right attitude:
Stressing out about trying to fall asleep or how late (or early) you’re hitting the hay is only going to reroute your brain in the wrong direction. Give yourself permission to fall asleep. A few minutes of inner dialogue with yourself may be useful to shush the critic and harness some positive brain waves to kick sleep into action. Then, focus on your breathing. In through the nose, out through the mouth…
Be Aware Of What You Put In Your Body
Artificially giving your body the boost you may feel it needs to get through the day can throw off your chemistry. I’m talking about energy drinks, multiple cups of coffee, sweets, excessive or low quality “energy-producing” supplements. Using these, especially later on in the day, is bound to throw off your body’s natural rhythm of sleep. True quality sleep should not be artificially enforced, but naturally reinforced. If you must rely on substances to help with sleep and wake cycles, try to minimize them and choose only the natural, highest quality. And, once again, think hard about snarling down the sugar-laden snack after dinner, or the third cup of coffee at 4:00pm. Being dreadfully tired for a few hours one day may lead you to get the sleep you need to reset your cycle for the next.