Tips for a dreamy slumber...
1. Water
An oldie but a goodie. Drink plenty of water during the day (but not too much in the evening) and avoid caffeine after 5pm.
2. Move your body
Move your body, but keep it low intensity in the evening. People who exercise regularly sleep better at night and it also increases the amount of time you spend in the deep, restorative stages of sleep. On the other hand exercise speeds up your metabolism, elevates body temperature, and stimulates hormones such as cortisol. So keep high intensity exercise to the morning or afternoon and avoid it close to bed so it doesn’t interfere with sleep.
3. Your bedroom should be a bedroom!
It should be a sleeping sanctuary. Make it a peaceful space, declutter, keep it tidy and invest in a quality mattress/pillow. And add some beautiful linen bedding ;-)
4. Sleep in natural fibres
Wear natural fibres (I like bamboo or linen) to sleep in and make sure they fit well. No one likes a pyjama leg that keeps rolling up!
5. Turn off the tech
Try to avoid screens before bedtime and try not to sleep with your phone by your bed. This is a tricky one for me as most of my family live overseas and with the time difference it’s oh so tempting to keep checking.
6. Write down your worries
We often have a thousand thoughts swirling around our heads. Sometimes it’s something mundane like remembering to book a dentist appointment! I keep a notepad by my bed and if I write it down I can forget about it until the morning.
7. Fresh in the fresh air
Get outside during the day, especially out in nature if you can. Daylight will help regulate your Melatonin levels which in turn will restore a natural sleep-wake cycle. Getting out for some fresh air is just priceless.
8. Lower your expectations
Especially true when you have small kids. Maybe ship them off to the grandparents for a night! Neither of my boys slept well as babies, my youngest is now 3 and although he does sleep better he still wakes sometimes. Which is normal! Not worrying about this helps me to go back to sleep after a wake up.
Bonus tip: if you struggle to sleep, make relaxation your goal, not sleep.
