How are you? Are you feeling good today? Did you have a good night sleep? We all know that sleeping enough is an important part of a healthy lifestyle. It can benefit your heart, your body, your mind and much, much, more. You can even learn better when you sleep enough, because your brain strengthens and retains memories that you gained while you were awake. That means the presentation or the music piece you practiced in the evening will turn out better in the morning. People that don’t sleep enough can even become depressive. In summary, we can say that a good day starts the night before.
But many of us don’t get enough sleep. The days are just not long enough. Long working hours, late night travelling, personal stress, and small children are all factors that keep our beds empty at night. Personally I am not a friend of sleeping pills and that’s why I looked for alternative ways to help me fall to sleep:
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Don’t push too hard
Very often sensitive and well disciplined people tend to ponder about falling to sleep. If you think about falling to sleep, you are already standing in your own way. Just let the sandman come whenever he is ready. This works when you are tired, but not if you need to sleep, because you need to get up early the next day.
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Night time routines
It may help to adapt some habits which have to be repeated every night. This way the body gets used to the ceremony of going to bed. Writing a diary could be helpful. The imagination of being at the beach or elsewhere on vacation while laying in bed may also work. Even a routine of reading before falling to sleep is helpful, as long as it is short. Works for me!
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Be a Night Warrior
If you have a hard time sleeping, don’t go to bed until you are really tired. With a couple of short nights you may find better sleep in a couple of days. Always a good one!
Important: No TV in the bedroom! The blue screen light prevents deep sleep.
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Take it as it is
Some people always sleep well, others don’t. People that accept that they are not like a groundhog often have less stress about sleeping. I have adapted to the fact that sleeping is not my favorite thing.
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Relax during the day
Don’t rack your brain with fears and sorrows during the day. Most likely they will follow you to bed. End your day being assured that you have done all, what you could do. For me this works only, when I am not too nervous about the challenges ahead. What then helps me is Reiki and things are much better.
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Change the game – Think Positive
Switch from worrying to problem solving. When your head is busy finding solutions, there is less room for worry. The negative effect that prevents sleep gets buffered by the problem solving thoughts.
To master this switch it helps to appreciate your daily accomplishments. Regarding the undone things you should have a plan to get you in a positive prevailing mood. Don’t bring unwished business home with you mentally.
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Don’t drink too much
Low quantities of alcohol support sleep, but too much will prevent deep sleep and wake you up in the middle of the night. People over 40 like me should generally stop drinking before going to bed to avoid numerous trips to the bathroom.
And now it is time for
Good Night…
Source: Welt N24; So schlafen Sie abends besser ein; 07.26.2016
