Sleeping problems impact seriously on our health and over one- third of us have this problem. Here, is an expert plan and guide which you must try to get a restful night.
If previously you suffer from insomnia, this month you will feel good. According to the research one out of three are suffering from this problem of sleeping disorder. So, we hope this month as the clock goes back an hour, our ability to spring out of bed dwindles with the morning light. Sleep is one of the first casualties when you are living through a tough time. Sleep impacts you in a number of ways. The recipe for sleepless nights is that you don’t allow yourself time to unwind after work and combine with a lack of daylight and risk of sadness that brings to you. Its not only this, the more you have less sleep, its then even hard to claw back those hours, so you may slip into a downwards spiral of sleep deprivation. So if you miss two hours of sleep in a night, that means 14 hours in a week and 56 hours in a month, its a cumulative debt. So when you start accumulating significant sleep debt every week that will lead to becoming chronically sleep deprived. So now the major question is how to stop this cycle.
So here we are giving you an expert and simple four steps guide to get you a quality and quantity of sleep which you need.
Step 1: Keep track on your sleeping routine
The first step which you should take to solve your sleep problem is to maintain a diary in which you can ask few questions with yourself which is given below. It will help you while discussing potential solutions. But you have to be very specific while answering your diary so that you can identify any patterns in it. You can keep it for at least a couple of weeks and make sure that you make the entries as soon as they happens, so that you will not forget anything or miss some important point but that does not mean that you wake yourself to write it down, you just need to update any might time entries first thing in the morning.
Entry Sheet
Before Bed (Day 1)
I squeezed in a power nap today yes/ no
I slept for mins
I felt tired today yes/ no
I felt full of beans today yes/ no
I had tea or coffee after midday yes/ no
I had an alcoholic drink this evening yes/ no
I last ate something at o’clock
I took these medications
I exercised at o’clock
How was it for you?
In the morning (Day 1)
I hit the sack at pm
I fell asleep at about pm
I woke up this no. of times during night
I slept for a total of hours
I woke up this morning at pm
The quality of my sleep was good/ fair/ bad
When I woke up, I felt
Now, for counting the number of times you wake up during the night just put a pile of coins on your bedside table and move one each time you open your eyes to access how many times you really wake up.
Step 2: Tweak today, sleep better tonight
After assessing the previous night’s sleep, now you can start planning for tonight. As a good kip requires more than just a memory foam, as everything you do during the whole day has its influences towards your sweet dreaming potential.
Breakfast
Do your breakfast like a queen. As we all know that digesting a big meal takes a lot of energy, so if you are eating a heavy meal when you are about to sleep will definitely disturb your sleep. So its better to take a big breakfast of around 500 tp 600 calories, and after that you can have smaller lunch and dinner which will help in stabilizing your energy levels and improves sleep.
Meet your buddies
Its very true that the lonelier you are, the more likely you will wake at night. So its better that you should meet your friends, have lunch with them. But if you are off to starbucks then remember that an afternoon caffeine hit can take hours to leave your system, so its better to opt for a herbal tea.
Use the landline
The research shows that being exposed to the low level radiation from a mobile phone which is close to your bed while you sleep makes it hard to drop off. So this means that you will spend less time in the deeper and more in restorative phases of sleep. This will conclude in you waking up and feeling like you have not slept properly.
Get Intimate
A recent research and survey has revealed which even one of the six doctors recommend is getting intimate for insomnia. The reason behind this is that it reduces stress and lowers your blood pressure. It also helps releasing oxytocin hormone which promotes healthy slumber.
Stop snoozing
As you must have know that your body anticipates your regular alarm an hour before it goes off, so your sleep lightens and hormones releases to give you a boost. So by hitting the snooze button might mean a few extra zzzz’s but your body would not be prepared for waking you up a second time, so you will feel groggy when you will wake up.
Step 3: Build a sleep arsenal
You can try a sleep aid, as having a bit of technical assistance can make all the difference in removing your sleep sapping issue:
So if you wake up feeling groggy, then:
Try: Lumie body clock starter
Cost: £59.95
Website: lumie.com
This is a natural light alarm clock which will slowly wakes you up by gradually brightening your bedroom.
If you wake up during the night, then:
Try: Zeo sleep manager
Cost: £119
Website: myzeo.co.uk
Its a headband which works with your iPhone to make you reveal your sleep pattern, after you know your pattern of sleep, visit the website for advice how to improve it.
Now if you can not drop off, then:
Try: Yantra mat
Cost: £33.99
Website: theyantramat.co.uk
This mat has a thousands of tiny plastic pins which stimulate specific points on your body. So before bed be on it for twenty minutes, this will help you to encourage sleep.
If you are cursed with a busy mind, then:
Try: Relax and sleep well app, by Glenn Harrold, Itunes
Cost: Free
This is a self help guru which uses a mix of voice and soundscapes to lull you to slumber.
If you are over anxious, then:
Try: Potter’s nodoff tablets
Cost: £5.99
Website: boots.com
These tablets contain a mix of natural sedatives whose dose has to be taken after dinner.
Step 4: You need to re- program your sleep habits
Now here are the best three courses that promise you to help in tackling those sleepless nights.
Try: The online solution
Cost: £49
Website: sleepio.com
Its a six week online cognitive behavioral online therapy program. So those who struggle to nod off or wake up regularly, sleepio is an online CBT program in which you can log in for weekly sessions. In this you rate how is your sleeping and set goals. Week after week you will build up techniques by learning a good wind down routine so as to get a good sleep hygiene. It will give you the tools to help yourself and get access to a community of other bad sleepers.
Try: The one- off workshop
Cost: £199
Website: thesleepschool.org
Its a seven hour course to re- learn good sleep habits. This workshop taught us to stop focusing on fixing your sleep issues as more you fixate, its less likely for you to succeed. As by obsessing over light and noises, makes your body thinks of sleep as a bad thing. So the key is to be more flexible. So by using and practicing the techniques which you will learn from the workshop, you will feel calmer and more in control.
Try: The Luxury retreat
Cost: £1995 per person
Website: theamazingholiday.com
Its an all- inclusive seven days sleep program in Grenade which focuses on acceptance and mindfulness. The main message is to stop fighting sleep. This workshop will help you sleep the right amount and the practical exercise will teach you how to be mindful of your senses and understand our body better.
