Sleeps make us feel better. But how much do we sleep? Can we sleep as much as we want like snail does? Actually not. Around 6-7 hours sleeps is enough for an adult human. Sleeping adequately is a key factor of healthy living and it can benefit for our mind heart also for weight.
In this article, we’ll provide you a 6-point guide you can follow so you can take back that deep, meaningful sleep once again.
Reasons for Insomnia
It’s tempting to give in to the sleepy feeling and take a nap. After all, we deserve to recoup the energy we need by sneaking in a quick nap, right? Actually wrong.
Not only does research point out the detrimental effects napping has on the quality of sleep you’ll have in the long term, Even your own experiences will also show you that napping gives you this certain placebo effect: napping gives you a reason to believe that you can stay up late since you’ve been able to sleep a little in advance.
Stop the silent Sleep Hygiene thief dead in its tracks. Do everything you can to avoid napping.
How to Stop Insomnia
Don’t make it harder for you; avoid stimulants, especially a few hours before bedtime.
So ditch the coffee, cola, tea, beer, and cigarettes if you really want to be able to sleep like a baby. You might argue that just a little bit won’t hurt, but this kind of thinking is really what breaks the whole habit-building process. It doesn’t matter whether it’s reinforcing good sleeping hygiene, starting a weight-loss program, or starting healthy eating, the lack of discipline will be the sole culprit of your failure.
Sneaking in these stimulants, like napping, will creep in undetected until you find yourself tossing and turning and suddenly, it’s 4 in the morning. Stop the stimulants.
How to Beat Insomnia
Dark, cool, and quiet. These are the three things you have to remember when you’re trying to set a sleep-inducing environment.
Our bodies are hardwired in a way: being exposed to light and noise might mean one has to be alert and working, while lack of sunlight and noise might mean an opportunity to sleep for our bodies. This claim might seem far-fetched in a way, but this is really what the people dedicated to studying sleep concluded.
Even without research, it is easy to grasp that a dark, cool, and quiet room is a superb combination that will lull us to sleep.
So go put on those dark curtains, wear that sleeping mask and earplugs, and make sure your air conditioner is set to comfortably cool. This way, you’ll be able to increase the odds of achieving a better sleep experience.
Foods that help you Fall Asleep
Avoid eating a huge meal at least 3 hours before sleep; there are a lot of health risks you expose yourself to when you help yourself to a good serving of dinner right before sleeping.
Take acid reflux for starters. This is just one of the consequences of eating huge meals before sleeping that might lead to heartburn when left unchecked. Diabetes is a related risk too; eating right before sleeping will mess up your sugar levels come daytime. In line with sleep hygiene, a huge meal before sleeping might wake you up in the middle of the night due to an upset stomach. However, keeping yourself hungry will distract you from getting sleep. Choose light snacks that are loaded with carbohydrates and protein, two known sleep-friendly nutrients. A peanut butter sandwich or yogurt-fruit combination will do.
Overcoming Insomnia
Prime your mind for better sleep by establishing a set of routine right before you sleep.
One way to do this is to make sure the time you sleep and wake up are the same everyday or as close as you can get it to be. Don’t confine your sleeping and waking schedules to weekdays only, make sure you continue this process even during weekends and holidays.
To deviate your sleep pattern during weekends and holidays will only make it more difficult to establish the sleeping routine you intend to form into a habit.
Another routine you can try is to find and enjoy a relaxing activity right before you sleep. It could be reading a novel or meditating. Anything goes as long as it’s not a strenuous activity that might trigger your alertness and disrupt your sleeping routine.
A well-executed sleep routine or sleep ritual will eliminate a lot of obstacles that hinders you from a quality sleeping experience.
Natural Cures and Remedies
Our bed is for sleeping. Or at least, that’s what the original function of bed was like before TV and smart phones invaded our bedroom. Reclaim the original function of your bed by introducing the principle of the anchoring effect.
The anchoring effect, in short, is a cognitive bias that plays on the repetitive association between two things, streamlining the subsequent decisions and actions forged by the two associated things. In simple terms, that means your goal is to make your brain think again that your bed is solely for sleeping. No other end goal in mind but sleeping only. No late-night TV or checking your social media feed on your smart phone right before you sleep.
To achieve this goal, you must go to great lengths to ensure that when you’re on your bed, the only thing you’ll have to do is sleep. No other activities should be included in order to pull off a quick and solid anchoring effect for bed and sleep.
Sleep Hygiene
It will do wonders for your life. Start slowly and surely today for a better sleep tomorrow.
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