Thread: Sleep Hygiene: HOW TO SLEEP WELL

Sleep Hygiene: HOW TO SLEEP WELL

Good “hygiene” is anything that helps you to have a healthy life. The idea behind sleep hygiene is the same as dental hygiene. Dental hygiene helps you stay healthy by keeping your teeth and gums clean and strong. Sleep hygiene helps you stay healthy by keeping your mind and body rested and strong. Following these tips will help you sleep better and feel your best.

Dental hygiene can even be a part of your sleep hygiene. It is easier for you to fall asleep at night if you have bedtime “rituals.” These are things that you do every night just before going to bed. Brushing and flossing your teeth is a good example of this kind of ritual. Both your dentist and your doctor will approve if you do this every night.

Here are some tips for how you can improve your sleep hygiene:

Your Personal Habits

* Fix a bedtime and an awakening time. Do not be one of those people who allows bedtime and awakening time to drift. The body "gets used" to falling asleep at a certain time, but only if this is relatively fixed. Even if you are retired or not working, this is an essential component of good sleeping habits.

* Avoid napping during the day. If you nap throughout the day, it is no wonder that you will not be able to sleep at night. The late afternoon for most people is a "sleepy time." Many people will take a nap at that time. This is generally not a bad thing to do, provided you limit the nap to 30-45 minutes and can sleep well at night.

* Avoid alcohol 4-6 hours before bedtime. Many people believe that alcohol helps them sleep. While alcohol has an immediate sleep-inducing effect, a few hours later as the alcohol levels in your blood start to fall, there is a stimulant or wake-up effect.

* Avoid caffeine 4-6 hours before bedtime. This includes caffeinated beverages such as coffee, tea and many sodas, as well as chocolate, so be careful.

* Avoid heavy, spicy, or sugary foods 4-6 hours before bedtime. These can affect your ability to stay asleep.

* Exercise regularly, but not right before bed. Regular exercise, particularly in the afternoon, can help deepen sleep. Strenuous exercise within the 2 hours before bedtime, however, can decrease your ability to fall asleep.

Your Sleeping Environment

* Use comfortable bedding. Uncomfortable bedding can prevent good sleep. Evaluate whether or not this is a source of your problem, and make appropriate changes.

* Find a comfortable temperature setting for sleeping and keep the room well ventilated. If your bedroom is too cold or too hot, it can keep you awake. A cool (not cold) bedroom is often the most conducive to sleep.

* Block out all distracting noise, and eliminate as much light as possible.

* Reserve the bed for sleep and sex. Don't use the bed as an office, workroom or recreation room. Let your body "know" that the bed is associated with sleeping.


Getting Ready For Bed

* Try a light snack before bed. Warm milk and foods high in the amino acid tryptophan, such as bananas, may help you to sleep.

* Practice relaxation techniques before bed. Relaxation techniques such as yoga, deep breathing and others may help relieve anxiety and reduce muscle tension.

* Don't take your worries to bed. Leave your worries about job, school, daily life, etc., behind when you go to bed. Some people find it useful to assign a "worry period" during the evening or late afternoon to deal with these issues.

* Establish a pre-sleep ritual. Pre-sleep rituals, such as a warm bath or a few minutes of reading, can help you sleep.

* Get into your favorite sleeping position. If you don't fall asleep within 15-30 minutes, get up, go into another room, and read until sleepy.

Getting Up in the Middle of the Night

Most people wake up one or two times a night for various reasons. If you find that you get up in the middle of night and cannot get back to sleep within 15-20 minutes, then do not remain in the bed "trying hard" to sleep. Get out of bed. Leave the bedroom. Read, have a light snack, do some quiet activity, or take a bath. You will generally find that you can get back to sleep 20 minutes or so later. Do not perform challenging or engaging activity such as office work, housework, etc. Do not watch television.

A Word About Television

Many people fall asleep with the television on in their room. Watching television before bedtime is often a bad idea. Television is a very engaging medium that tends to keep people up. We generally recommend that the television not be in the bedroom. At the appropriate bedtime, the TV should be turned off and the patient should go to bed. Some people find that the radio helps them go to sleep. Since radio is a less engaging medium than TV, this is probably a good idea.
Other Factors

* Several physical factors are known to upset sleep. These include arthritis, acid reflux with heartburn, menstruation, headaches and hot flashes.

* Psychological and mental health problems like depression, anxiety and stress are often associated with sleeping difficulty. In many cases, difficulty staying asleep may be the only presenting sign of depression. A physician should be consulted about these issues to help determine the problem and the best treatment.

* Many medications can cause sleeplessness as a side effect. Ask your doctor or pharmacist if medications you are taking can lead to sleeplessness.

* To help overall improvement in sleep patterns, your doctor may prescribe sleep medications for short-term relief of a sleep problem. The decision to take sleeping aids is a medical one to be made in the context of your overall health picture.

* Always follow the advice of your physician and other healthcare professionals. The goal is to rediscover how to sleep naturally.

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http://www.stanford.edu/~dement/howto.html

I have had issue with sleeping in the last months, and your post is very useful for me. Yousport supplementsgave me precious advices.

This is great advice. I am always bothered by the number of people who keep a TV going in their bedroom to "fall to sleep to". The drone like state that television can induce is not restful, it's just draining. I agree with the radio if you need a bit of noise to fall asleep. You can control the type of music or, even better, you could try the sleeping recordings available today. Sounds like the ocean or ambient tones that help relax you and put you into a restful sleep are more desirable then TV.

D Alishouse
Reproductive Gynecology and Fertility Clinic in Indianapolis

Sleeping environment will be comfortable for sleeping.A person feels happy if he has good environment.No one can deny its importance.

Good advice that will help surely a person in having a great sleep..

Heh. I am one of those people who cannot sleep at all when anxious. E.g. an important exam or event the next day and I need 2 hours of lying around till sleeping, although I am not consciously anxious, but subconsciously.

Rule of thumb: Go to sleep when it gets dark. Get up when it gets bright. Get 10 hours of sleep. That sounds corny, but you cannot get more of a natural sleeping schedule than so. I.e. I get up at 6 AM and go to bed at 8 or 9 PM.

10 hours sounds like a lot, but is appropriate even for older people and helps you get through the days attentively.

On busy days, try getting up 2 hours before you have to leave the house and get at it slowly. It is surprisingly refreshing when you can start into a busy day slowly.

Oh, and no wanking in the morning. An errection helps get awake, but an orgasm makes you be halfassed at everything you're going to do the rest of the day.

I feel afraid at sleeping time. Can someone recommend me some tips ?