How to get a Good Night Sleep: 5 Ways For It
Lying on the bed from 10 o’clock trying to sleep but you just can’t find that comfort? Not everyone is insomniac but a lot of people get troublesome sleep. They tend to get disturbed by small noises just because they are not sleeping deeply. Having deep sleep is not important but having a sound and powerful nap is important. You turn and toss from side to side during the sleeping hours just to get a perfect angle to fall asleep.
People have a hard time falling asleep or staying asleep or just feeling tired all the time. Getting quality sleep can make your brain work much better and you’ll be able to perform better at solving problems and feel more self-control. Lack of sleep can cause mental illness.
Some researches show that resolving the problems of insomnia in some people improved their depression and anxiety to some level after a couple of weeks of good sleep. We can’t force ourselves to sleep but we can train our brain to know when to sleep.
Now let’s see the 5 ways in which we will get to know, how to get a good night sleep-
1) Try to have a bedtime so that you are bound to go to bed on a consistent schedule
- Dim the lights, cool the temperature, and decrease stimulation. Do some activities which require peace, like reading a book, taking a bath, doing your homework, get into comfortable nighttime clothes or pray.
- You can also watch something on your laptop like a series or a movie but it has to be finished 30 minutes before your bedtime.
- For example your bedtime is 11 o’clock so try to finish the movie or the series till 10:30 so that you can get at least 20 minutes to lay down peacefully. Limit your naps during the daytime to less than 30 minutes only.
2) Exercise during the day
- When you exercise your body tends to release all the tension in the form of sweat. You will also feel less sleepy during the day.
- Due to all this you can fight insomnia too and sleep apnea. You will be tired by doing a workout and hence will fall asleep deeply at night. The more hard workouts you perform the more you sleep.
- But even light exercise such as walking for just 10 minutes a day improves sleep quality. This technique takes a lot of time before you experience a sound sleep to don’t give up if you are not able to achieve the results after 3-4 days.
- Be patient and focus on building a habit and make your schedule. Exercise will also give you other benefits like a sound mind and a healthy body. Meditation is also a very good way to free your mind of all the tension and stress and have a light-headed to sleep.
3) Try to cut all the electronics 30 minutes before bedtime
- Devices like TV or smartphones are very stimulating and can trigger an alertness system in the brain but also the tone of the light emanated from the screen have a bluish tint to it.
- This bluish tint is similar to the light in the mornings to which we wake up. This is a biological trigger to wake up. Blue light triggers alertness and red or yellow triggers calmness.
- There is an option in your phones and laptops to turn night mode on. This mode brings a warm tone on the screen which will be more soothing to your brain and eyes.
- While using your mobile phone turn your brightness to a low level.
- Some phones nowadays also have a dark mode in which you have a dark background and it is more soothing to your eyes to read the text more properly. It is also more adjusting to your eyes.
- Put your phones on do not disturb mode while you are sleeping and do not check your work emails right before bed as it may create some work pressure on your mind.
- Do not browse some stressful news or even your social media as it may affect your thinking or even dreams.
4) Avoid junk food or caffeine before bed
- Eating habits can vary your sleeping schedule a lot. Eat but not too much before bed. A grumbling stomach can also be distracting enough to keep you awake and a full belly can also be uncomfortable.
- Avoid eating big meals or very frequent meals in the evening. If you are hungry right before bed then have a small snack.
- You can also have some nuts or dry fruits as they are heavy but in small amounts. You can also have a slice of cheese or an apple or a few whole-wheat crackers to satisfy your hunger.
- Avoid drinking coffee or tea before bedtime as they contain caffeine and can delay sleep for a few hours. Chocolate also contains caffeine and it should not be part of it also.
- People think that alcohol makes them sleepy but it actually is a stimulant and disrupts sleep during the night.
- Also stay away from any citrus fruits, juices, and spicy which can give you heartburn.
- Try to have dinner at least 1 hour before bedtime.
- You can drink some warm milk before bed as it can help you to sleep and relax your muscles.
5) Don’t crowd your bed
- If you sleep with your children then you may have to shift them as it can be uncomfortable to sleep with children sometimes.
- Children tend to move a lot when they dream in their sleep. A light sleeper may not be able to adjust themselves.
- Everyone deserves their own space at the end of the day so keep dogs or any other pet that you own to your bed.
- Put a bed beside your bed for pets and kids if they like to sleep in the same room as you.
- Also keep other stuff like laptops or any extra things out of your bed.
- Use a comfortable pillow and blanket to provide extra sweetness to your sleep.
If you feel you are still not getting enough sleep then try to use some sleeping eye mask or earplugs to block the sunlight directly from shining directly on your face and the noise from disturbing you.
There are some foods which you can eat and they actually enhance your quality of sleep:
1) Almonds or Nuts
Any type of nut has a lot of benefits in enhancing sleep. They are an excellent source of many nutrients as they contain phosphorus and riboflavin.
2) Chamomile tea as antioxidants
It is known for its flavones. Flavones are antioxidants that reduce inflammation. Chamomile tea boosts the immune system, reduces anxiety and depression. These antioxidants bind to certain receptors in your brain that promote sleepiness.
3) Warm milk for relaxation
Milk has shown to improve sleep in adults, especially when paired with light exercise. Milk has a source called tryptophan which enhances relaxation.
4) Kiwi to enhance sleep
Consume this fruit one hour before sleep and follow this for at least a week and you will see improvement in your time of sleeping and your sleeping efficiency. It has melatonin and flavonoids which enhance sleep.
5) Lettuce
Lettuce has sedative effects which are due to the plant’s n-butanol fraction. This compound enhances sleep as people say it has a mild sedative-hypnotic effect.
If you do not take a deep nap and lack some sleep you get grumpy and foggy. Taking a complete healthy sleep is important.
Some of the side effects of not sleeping are:
1) Depression
Lack of sleep causes insomnia and is the strongest link to depression. People who overthink can easily slide into a state of depression when they lack sleep.
2) Lack of sleep causes your brain to stop working
You don’t think clearly and your brain is not able to perform efficiently because you are mentally tired. Your memory power becomes weak because your brain is not getting enough rest or recovery time.
3) Losing sleep can make you gain weight
Lack of sleep is related to an increase in hunger and appetite which leads to many problems including obesity.
4) Lack of sleep affects your skin
You may experience acne or wrinkles and puffiness in the eyes with lack of sleep. When you don’t sleep your body releases a stress hormone called cortisol and it breaks your skin collagen.
Lack of sleep can lead to many other serious problems so before it’s late consult a doctor. If you want to know more about other health issues you can read our blogs at Mars by GHC Website.