Sleep is so important for our mental health. Society is becoming more sleep deprived as time goes on. Focusing on improving sleep will improve your overall well-being, and if you are anxious or depressed it will help to lift your mood, therefore benefiting your mental health.
It can be easy when we are busy with work and day to day life to develop bad habits when it comes to sleep. As with new born babies sometimes we need to go back to basics when trying to improve our sleep quality and quantity, It may take a few weeks for those changes to become embedded but everyone has to start somewhere. One small change at a time will reap huge rewards.
Top tips for improving sleep.
Here are some ideas for improving your sleep
- Get some fresh air as early as you can in the day. Natural light will help to reset your master clock and alert it to the fact it is day time.
- Try to include some exercise in everyday, even if this is a brisk walk. This will help mop up stress hormones and give you a break in your day from work or studying,
- Eat regularly. Trying to avoid skipping your evening meal because cooking is an effort or you are home late from work. Eating breakfast, lunch and dinner will keep you energised for a productive day and help stabilise your mood. Being hangry is something people may be familiar with,
- Avoid caffeine in the afternoon or early evening. Switch your drinks up with caffeine free versions or mint tea for example if you enjoy a tea or coffee in the evening.
- Try to have any anxiety inducing conversations or family business / work conversations a good couple of hours before you turn in for the night.
- Avoid screen time for at least an hour before bed to reduce the effects of the screen time.
- Try to include some relaxation before bed so your brain has a time to slow down, empty and stop. If you are functioning at 100 miles per hour it can be hard to switch off. This relaxation can include reading, listening to music, colouring, meditation and so on.
- Make sure you have a comfortable bed with an appropriate temperature and lighting etc.
- Have a regular bed time and waking time – we need to be in bed for long enough to get the sleep we needed, and trying to stick with a regular routine is a good place to begin.
These are some of my top tips, what do you do to help you get to sleep?
What happens if I wake in the night?
There may be times when you wake in the night and find your mind wandering so you are suddenly wide awake. This is a great time for anxiety to take hold therefore starting your day prematurely, and worries always seem bigger at night.
If this happens, try not to get wound up by it. Try to focus on your breathing, counting the in and out breath is a good way of distracting your focus. You can also try counting backwards etc.. There are several meditations you can access on the internet which might help, just try to avoid blue light ion your phone. Sometimes you may need to accept that sleep is not going to be forthcoming and just get some relaxation in.
If you are really struggling with your sleep this is something we can address in therapy and the results from a small improvement can be substantial,
To book an appointment to discuss sleep, anxiety, depression, trauma, ptsd, behaviour change or phobias why not book an appointment.