Getting a good night’s sleep on a regular basis is very important to ensure we have good physical and mental health. When we fail to get a good night’s sleep it can help to contribute to a wide range of problems including anxiety and depression. Getting a good night’s sleep can sometimes be hard to achieve amid the pressures of daily life.
These top tips will help you get a better night’s sleep and help your physical and mental health stay on top form.
- Take your tech out of the bedroom
Your bedroom should be somewhere that you associate with sleep. Where possible, you should try to remove tech distractions. It is better to watch TV, check social media and eat in another room. This will allow you to relax with no distractions.
Be mindful of the presence of gadgets and electronics, such as computers, smartphones, tablets, and TVs. The backlit ‘blue light’ displays suppresses melatonin production – the hormone that helps you sleep, and the suppression of melatonin causes sleep disruption. You should stop using these devices two hours before you go to sleep to reduce their impact on your sleeping.
- Manage any physical symptoms you have
As anyone who has tried to get to sleep with a blocked nose or headache knows, physical health problems can stop you from getting a good night’s sleep. It can be easy to forget with minor symptoms, but you will thank yourself when night falls if you prioritise speaking to a pharmacist about appropriate medication for symptom management.
- Control your light, sound and temperature
It may sound common sense but too much light and background noise can prevent you from falling asleep or staying asleep. For light and noise sources that you cannot control, wear eye masks or ear plugs. Temperature is also important, and if you share a bed with a partner with different temperature preferences, consider separate blankets or other solutions that make less of a sleep-compromise.
- Invest in the right bedroom furniture
If you have the right bedroom furniture, this will help you on your way to getting a good night’s sleep. Having an uncomfortable bed frame, mattress, pillow or bedding can hinder your sleep, so make sure you invest in good quality furniture and bedding to help your sleep.
- Dealing with any worries you have before bedtime
Thinking about sleep too much or trying to force yourself to sleep will only keep you awake. Learning how to relax both your body and mind instead will help you to get to sleep much more easily. Progressive relaxation techniques can help you to relax and unwind at these times, such as mindfulness.
We hope that you found these tips useful when it comes to getting a good night’s sleep, We would love to hear what other tips you have that help you sleep, please leave a comment below.