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Tips for Better Sleep
Note: Much of the following information was taken from pages on our
"sister' website:
SleepWeb.com.
Tips for better
sleep
-
Go to bed and
get up at the same times each day.
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Avoid
caffeine, nicotine, beer, wine and liquor in the four to six hours before
bedtime.
-
Don't exercise
within two hours of bedtime.
-
Don't eat
large meals within two hours of bedtime.
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Don't nap
later than 3 p.m.
-
Sleep in a
dark, quiet room that isn't too hot or cold for you.
-
If you can't
fall asleep within 20 minutes, get up and do something quiet.
-
Wind down in
the 30 minutes before bedtime by doing something relaxing.
Your bedroom:
Is is sleep friendly?
These things
will affect how well you sleep:
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furniture
arrangement
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wall colors,
paint or paper
-
wall hangings
and decorations
-
quality of
your mattress
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bedding linens
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pillows,
blankets, covers
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the source and
intensity of light
-
source and
intensity of sounds (including TV)
-
air quality
-
temperature
and humidity
Make your
bedroom into your "sanctuary", not a place of distraction. Use soft pastels,
off-whites and earthtones for sheets. Keep out excess clutter, such as stuff
around your night table, books stacked up, children's toys, mail, laundry, etc.
You do not want to create an area that invokes stress (paying bills or laundry
to do). Wall colors should not be bright and stimulating. Replace high wattage
bulbs with lower ones (45 watts or less). Eliminate computers from the bedroom
or use screen covers. Consider better shades or blinds if the ones you have
don't black out the light. Keep eye shades nearby on the night table. If
possible, don't have a TV in the room. Keep the bedroom cool, and avoid heavy
bedspreads or blankets.
Good Sleep Hygiene
The Five
stages of sleep
Sleep medicine specialists have discovered
that there are a whole lot of things that go on during sleep.
There are five stages of sleep, according
to the National Sleep Foundation, four non-REM stages and REM (rapid eye
movement) sleep, and sleepers cycle through the stages about every 90 to 100
minutes.
Stage 1 is the transitional stage,
when you're between waking and sleep. Your brain waves and muscle activity slow.
Sometimes people's bodies jerk just before they fall asleep.
Stage 2 is a light sleep stage. Eye
movements cease. Body temperature drops, and heart and brain activity slows.
National Sleep Foundation material says there are periods of muscle tone and
muscle relaxation, and that occasional brain-wave spikes, called sleep spindles,
occur during this stage of sleep.
Stages 3 and 4 are called delta
sleep. These are the deep sleep stages, and this is when body restoration
and repair occurs.
Temperature drops even further during this
phase, brain waves are slow and there is decreased muscle tone. People woken
during delta sleep are often groggy and disoriented. Night terrors occur during
this sleep stage.
Stage 5 is REM sleep, a period of
fast brain waves; rapid, shallow breathing; and the rapid eye movements it's
named for. Dreaming, believed to be a way of organizing the day's experiences,
occurs during REM sleep. Have you ever wanted to scream during a nightmare and
been unable to? Muscles become temporarily paralyzed during REM.
These stages of sleep are repeated 4-6
times during the night, but not in exactly the same ratio.
The first REM sleep is short, just seven
minutes or so, but REM sleep takes up a larger and larger portion of the cycles
as the night goes on, which is why you're often dreaming when your alarm clock
goes off. It's not just the amount
of sleep, but also the distribution of sleep stages that's important for health.
People who don't get adequate delta
sleep or REM sleep wake up feeling less than restored.
Checklist of
Good Sleep Habits, or Sleep Hygiene
-
Click here for: Tips For Better Sleep
Most people need 7-8 hours of sleep per day, yet
the average adult only gets 6.5 to 7. Children and teens need even more.
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Go to bed and
get up at the same times each day.
Avoid caffeine,
nicotine, beer, wine and liquor in the four to six hours before bedtime. (see
alcohol and sleep page link for more info.)
Don't exercise
within two hours of bedtime. (see Exercise and Sleep page link)
Don't eat large
meals within two hours of bedtime.
Don't nap later
than 3 p.m.
Sleep in a dark,
quiet room that isn't too hot or cold for you.
If you can't
fall asleep within 20 minutes, get up and do something quiet, such as reading
a book.
Wind down in the
30 minutes before bedtime by doing something relaxing.
Make your
bedroom into a sleep "sanctuary" (see Better Bedrooms link) - get rid of
clutter, bills, computers, make sure it's dark, low wattage light bulbs,
soothing earthtone color paint, etc.
Establish a
regular bedtime "routine", like having some tea or a hot chocolate before bed,
or reading, something you look forward to each night (your special time).
Consider using
prescription or OTC sleeping pills/aids in the short term if necessary, to
jump start you back to a normal sleep cycle. (see Sleeping Pills page link)
Try to get at
least 30 min. of sunlight per day, which helps your body produce vitamin B and
melatonin.
Use sleep aids
such as eye shade, earplugs, or sound conditioning (white noise) machines.
(see page links for earplugs, eye shades, sound machines)
Try to decrease your anxiety and
stress levels, which may often be the root of your insomnia problem. Exercise
and hobbies are good "relief valves" to diffuse stress, along with eating
right and cutting down on stimulants such as caffeine. By all means, do seek
medical advice if you are depressed, extremely anxious/have an anxiety
disorder, are suffering from chronic pain that keeps you up at night, or other
illnesses.
Source: SleepWeb (Marketdata
Enterprises, Inc.) research, National Sleep Foundation
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