Getting a good sleep isn’t always easy, but these 10 ways to get a good sleep at night can help you avoid tossing and turning and staring at the clock at 3 am. I’ve done it too many times to count and looked for many ways to get that restorative sleep.  Following these 10 ways has helped me and hopefully help you. Some you will love and others you will leave but you won’t know until you try it.

HOW TO GET A GOOD SLEEP AT NIGHT

Having a routine at night helps you mentally prepare for a good sleep at night. It also signals your body that you will be resting and to start shutting down all the activity and relaxing.

Our bodies have a circadian rhythm that instinctively tells us it is time to rest. This happens when the sun starts to set, and our bodies produce more melatonin and less serotonin. This natural rhythm can be disrupted in many ways.

Here are things to avoid or add to your routine to get a good sleep at night.

1. KEEP YOUR ROOM COOL

Keeping the room cool will help you stay rested. The average bedroom temperature for a good night’s sleep should be around 65 degrees Fahrenheit. As your body gets ready to sleep, your temperature naturally decreases, so having a cooler room helps you get to sleep quicker.

When the temperature falls below 55 degrees Fahrenheit or above 75 degrees Fahrenheit this can lead to restlessness and affect the quality of your sleep.

2. EPSON SALT BATH BEFORE BED

Taking a warm bath before bed, maybe even by candlelight, naturally signals relaxation and helps your body transition from warm to cold when you are in bed. As mentioned above, this benefit allows you to fall asleep quicker.

When running a warm bath, not hot, add 1 – 2 cups of Epson Salts to the running water. The magnesium released is found to relax and relieve sore muscles. I find it very relaxing before bed, but I don’t stay in it too long. I know when I get into a bath, my husband has to keep knocking on the door to make sure I am still awake.

3. COMFORTABLE SLEEPWEAR

Being comfortable doesn’t mean that t-shirt or sweatshirt you have had for years has been washed a thousand times and is moulded to your body.

I mean designated sleepwear. Not the clothes you wear to the gym or the comfy clothes you wear around the house when no one is looking and you want to slip into bed with the same things on. NO! Wear something that you only wear to bed.

Buy yourself something nice that you will be comfortable wearing to bed. I bought myself some new PJs in pale blue with moons on them. The colour makes me happy and the feel of new PJs always makes me feel good. Do something for yourself to feel good going to bed and get that good sleep.

4. NIGHTTIME DRINK

Nightcaps made famous by James Bond are not the ones that give you the good sleep at night that you are looking for. They will only disturb your sleep halfway through the night. Yes, they might put you to sleep but not all night and feeling tired and groggy in the morning is not ideal.

I’m talking about sleepy teas or warm milk if that is what you like. If milk isn’t your thing there is always Almond Milk or Coconut Milk. I prefer teas.

I go to my local tea shops and always ask for their sleepy teas. Normally they are called something like Rest or Dream or Bedtime. Most of them have some combination of Chamomile, Lemon Balm or Lavender. I highly recommend shopping around to get the best one for you and one you enjoy.

One thing to avoid before bed is caffeine. Having this even 6 hours before bed can disrupt your sleep and leave you awake staring at the ceiling.

5. ELECTRONICS

Keep electronics out of the bedroom or away from your bed.

If they are too near you when you are going to sleep or when you wake up and can’t sleep, it is very tempting to look and see ‘What was that last email that came in?’ or ‘Did anyone like my last Facebook or Instagram post?’.

If you use it as your alarm clock, put the phone in airplane mode so won’t be disturbed and tempted to see all the updates.

The blue light in your Kindle or any other reading device can be changed to a dark mode which gives off more red tones. This is easier on your eyes at night.

Blue light suppresses melatonin and keeps us alert. Looking at blue light before bed is like taking an anti-sleeping drug or a stimulant. It tells your brain to stay awake and that it is not time to bed. Oh no! Not the plan.

6. WRITE DOWN THOUGHTS BEFORE BED

Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blundrs and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day. You shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirt to be encumbered with your old nonsense. Ralph Waldo Emerson

Have a notebook beside your bed and before going to sleep at night write down all the things that you have to do so that it doesn’t disturb you during the night.

7. LAVENDER IN THE ROOM

Lavender is known to relax and as a sedative. Placing a lavender sachet under your pillow or a couple of drops of lavender oil on your pillow or cloth in your bed, can help you sleep. I use my diffuser with a few drops of lavender essential oil in my room and an hour before bed. The scent, as I enter the room, is soothing and oh-so-good.

8. EYE PILLOW OR MASK

I love wearing my sleep mask in bed although my room has room-darkening curtains. The mask blocks out all the lights that seep in over the top of the curtains and any other lights in the room. The complete darkness helps me relax and sleep. I find it is now a signal to my body that it is time to sleep as soon as I put it on.

9. MEDITATION

Retreat in your own mind through meditation. Adriana Huffington

I highly recommend meditation. If you have never tried it then give it a go. It may not feel comfortable the first few times you try it. Think of the way you clasp your hands. Are you doing it now? Is your right thumb over your left? Now try it the opposite way. Uncomfortable? Just like anything new, it feels strange the first time.

There are so many apps on the go now that you can find the one that suits you the best. I have been using Insight Timer, which has a variety of options. Pick the one that speaks to you.

Try starting with a short guided Yoga Nidra meditation while you are in bed. It is so soothing that most times I don’t make it to the end.

Another form of meditation is listening to your breathing or using the 4-7-8 method. Breathe in through your nose for 4 counts, hold for 7 counts and breathe out through your mouth (with noise) for 8 counts.

10. MELATONIN

I have mentioned melatonin a couple of times. It is a hormone that regulates your sleep. The production and release of melatonin in the brain increases when it is dark and decreases when it is light.

Melatonin is disrupted by light including the backlight on iPads, reading devices and phones. Some ways to follow your natural circadian rhythm of lowering your serotonin levels ( your happy hormones that keep you awake and calm during the day), to increasing your melatonin, would be to follow some of the recommendations above and stay away from blue light for at least 2 hours before bed.

If you are finding it difficult to sleep, add a melatonin supplement to your nighttime routine. If you use a high-quality supplement it will complement your body’s natural response to bedtime and sleep.

This is the supplement I use and recommend.

Let me know the best way you can fall into a restful sleep in the comments below.