To sleep, perchance to dream.
William Shakespeare
We all know that we need good quality sleep to live a creative, healthy, happy and productive life, but sleep can sometimes be evasive, especially it seems when we most seek it. Following are some tips to help you enjoy a restful and restorative sleep.
What’s happening?
- First thing to do is try to identify why you are not sleeping well, maybe start a sleep diary.
- Address the causes as much as you can; seek the support of a health professional if needed.
Your body
- Exercise daily, even if it is a short walk on some days and something more vigorous other days. Be careful not to do strenuous exercise too close to bed time as it raises your body temperature which makes it harder to sleep. You may also still have too much adrenalin racing through your body to relax into a peaceful sleep.
- Check in and see how your body feels; if you notice muscle tension try stretching, a warm Epsom salt bath, progressive muscle relaxation exercises or even a gentle massage.
- Try to get some sunshine as soon as you wake up as it helps set your body clock.
- Take a warm bath.
- Yoga, tai chi and deep breathing exercises all help to prepare the mind and body for sleep.
The food and drink we consume
- Avoid eating a heavy meal before going to bed; try to make your main meal the middle of the day and have a lighter dinner.
- If you wake in the early hours hungry or with stomach discomfort, have a light carbohydrate and protein snack before bed. Try warm milk and honey with a few walnuts, cheese on crackers or yoghurt, or tahini (or nut spread)and honey on toast.
- Tryptophan is a precursor to sleep-inducing neuro-transmitters serotonin and melatonin. It is usually found in protein foods such as poultry, fish, dairy, nuts, seeds and legumes. Eating carbohydrates with protein based tryptophan-containing foods makes this calming amino acid more available to the brain.
- Melatonin helps regulate other hormones and maintains the body’s circadian rhythm, or ‘body clock’. Sources of melatonin in foods include walnuts, rolled oats, sour cherries, bananas, peanuts and liquorice.
- Serotonin is essential for well-being, mood stabilisation, muscle contraction and good sleep and eating foods rich in protein and the amino acid tryptophan can boost serotonin levels.
- Tyramine can cause headaches, hypertension and increase insomnia. It may also be associated with asthma, allergies and feeling ‘wired’. Foods to watch out for include citrus fruits, red wine, cheese, cured and pickled meat and fish, chocolate and alcohol.
- Any more than a glass of wine will interfere with your sleep quality.
- Avoid caffeine after midday if possible, but certainly after 5pm.
- Calcium and magnesium are calming and aid muscle relaxation.
- Minimise fluid intake after 6pm to reduce overnight visits to the bathroom.
Environment – create a ‘sleep sanctuary’
- Make your bedroom as dark and as quiet as possible. Ensure your bed and pillows are supportive and clean and chose fresh, clean natural fibre bedding that is lighter-weight.
- Avoid over-heating; turn off the electric blanket before getting into bed.
- Ensure your bedroom is well ventilated.
- Don’t watch TV, read intensely or think about problems in bed.
- Avoid illuminated clocks, as they exacerbate sleep-stress as you subconsciously ‘check’ to see how long you have been awake for, and the light can be too bright and stimulating.
- Minimise electronic devices to reduce radiation, energy and lights.
- Use relaxing aromatherapy as drops on your pillow or with an oil burner (ensuring the room is well ventilated and you do not go to sleep with a candle burning).
- Don’t work in bed, don’t use your laptop or mobile phone. Bed is for rest, sleep and sex.
Mind
- Consciously calm before bed (for example, meditate for 10-15 minutes), it will help to quieten your mind and lower your cortisol, thus raising your sleep-inducing melatonin.
- Be mindful of the quality of material you read and tv shows you watch.
- If you tend to worry, write problems down well before going to bed, together with possible solutions, but put a time limit on this.
- Count back from 100, restarting every time you realise your mind has drifted onto other thoughts.
- Practice an ascending body scan, there are many CDs and books and podcasts to help you.
- Consider undertaking a relaxation or Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Course
- It is much better to eliminate, avoid or reduce the sources of stress rather than to try to forget stressful situations right before the bedtime.
Routine and ritual
- Establish a regular sleeping routine. This will help establish your sleep-wake cycle. Try not to oversleep or have excessive sleep-ins on days off.
- Don’t go to sleep in front of TV; if you start nodding off either go to bed, or if it is too early, get up and do something.
- Sleep specialists recommend getting up if you are still awake after 30 minutes of trying to get to sleep. Go back to bed when you feel sleepy again.
- If you are plagued with thoughts that wake you, keep a note pad by the bed and quickly jot down the key points and then ‘leave the thoughts’ and go back to sleep.
- Naps are fabulous, but try to limit them to 30 minutes and avoid them after 3pm.
Seeking support
- Gentle, soothing music can be helpful. CDs of relaxation techniques and guided visualisations can help quieten the mind and develop a routine.
- Counselling, CBT or clinical supervision can help resolve issues that are causing anxiety, stress and sleep disturbance; hypnosis may also be helpful.
- Melatonin supplements are available on prescription from your doctor
- Herbal medicine that support and restore adrenal and nervous function can help, eg Rhodiola, Withania, Chamomile, Passiflora, Valerian, Hypericum and Avena are just a few.
- A soothing massage is grounding and does wonders to ease bodily pains and release endorphins.
- Amino acid and nutrient supplements to support healthy neurotransmitters can help reduce over-stimulation and anxiety.
Note: Seek professional advice before taking supplements or herbs
Take rest; a field that has rested gives a bountiful crop.
Ovid
Photos
Bath : http://sunshineandpearls.tumblr.com/
bed photo by Krista Mangulsone on Unsplash
