Chicago Home and Lifestyles – 9 quick tips for better sleep

Put down the phone. They make your mind too active. The brain takes a while to get ready to turn off and go to sleep. Giving yourself some screen free time during the day is good overall. 

Try the military sleep method. This claims to get you to sleep in a few minutes. You lay on your back and consciously think about relaxing each part of your body starting at your forehead and going all the way down to your toes. Focus on slow deep breaths and imagine being in a calming environment. Breathe deeply but smoothly. Use slow exhalation. This slows your heart rate and induces relaxation. 

Make sure your bedroom is a calming space. The ideal temperature is 65 degrees. Lowering your body temp triggers a process that initiates sleep. Bed is for sleeping only. No TVs or devices.  

Keep a sleep schedule. Wake up and go to sleep at the same times every day, even on your days off. This keeps a normal rhythm to your internal clock. Keeping to a schedule will have your body getting into sleep mode by itself. 

Try visualizing a relaxing setting. Think about the sounds and smells associated with your happy place. Is the sun and sounds of the ocean? Or maybe it’s birds singing and the feel of the breeze in a forest. 

Stay away from sleep trackers. They put pressure on you to attain perfect sleep and raise anxiety. This concern with improving sleep can make your inability to fall asleep even worse. 

Be careful what you eat before bed. You don’t want to be hungry, but it’s best not to eat less than two hours before sleep. Stay away also from foods that cause acid reflux like spicy food. Caffeine and alcohol can also keep you awake. Everyone is different, so there’s no set time to stop but some studies have found caffeine within six hours of bedtime can deduct an hour from your sleep. 

Shower at night. You need to time it right though. Give your body enough time to cool down after your bath or shower before tucking in. It will relax and calm you and lead to a better night’s sleep. 

Start winding down well before you get in the bed. Don’t make yourself anxious if you can’t go right to sleep. Just relaxing with your eyes closed turns off some of your brain’s neurons, just like sleep does. Essentially: if you give your brain a break, it’ll be better primed for sleep!

 Kathleen Weaver-Zech and Dean’s Team Chicago