If you’re anything like me, you probably find yourself awake at 3am in the morning and you can’t fall back asleep. This then results in a slow panic as you realize that you have an entire day ahead of you which would be extremely difficult if you don’t get enough rest. This is a particular type of insomnia according to Michelle Drerup who is a behavioral sleep disorder specialist.
There are many health issues that may cause insomnia such as acid reflux, chronic pain, sleep apnea and more. However, if your problems with sleep aren’t health related, we will now look at a couple of ways that can help you to fall asleep and stay asleep.
Stop paying attention to the time. When you look at the clock constantly and count down the minutes, this makes you more anxious and stressed out which results in staying awake. Instead, try to relax your entire body and start from your toes all the way up to your head. You can tense each part of your body and then release and relax them.
If this doesn’t work and you’re unable to sleep after 20 minutes, you should use your internal mind’s clock to determine how much time you’ve been awake for. After 20 minutes have passed, simply get out of your bed and out of your bedroom. You shouldn’t spend more than 20 minutes in bed attempting to sleep. This will likely make you feel stressed and worried that you’re not sleeping and will associate your bedroom with these feelings. So, a good idea would be to find a boring activity to do such as reading a boring book or even listening to music. This will help you to feel sleepy and at that point you should go back to your bed and sleep. There are also many day time habits and activities that will help you to naturally fall sleep according to to Dr. Dererup.
You should have a consistent schedule for waking up and falling asleep, even on your days off as well as on weekends. You should strive to go to your bed and wake up at approximately the same times every day and night. Additionally, make sure that you don’t eat any food or drink anything that contains caffeine before you need to go to bed. Avoid drinks with caffeine for a minimum of 5 to 6 hours before bedtime. When you consume caffeine before bed, it makes it very difficult for you to fall asleep at night.
Next, always have a very comfortable bedroom. You should make sure that the temperature is set to a comfortable level that isn’t too high or too low. Your mattress and pillow should also be comfortably firm, read these Mattress Firm reviews. When it is an hour before bed, you should stop all work or any tasks that require a significant amount of brain power. Instead, do something that is relaxing such as reading.
You should only use your bed for being intimate and sleeping. Avoid using your phone or watching television while laying on your bed. Remember, you need to make sure that your mind and body associates your bed with sleeping and if you don’t this will cause insomnia.
