If you toss and turn a lot during the night, it may be about time to consider changing your sleep habits. Many people have troubles falling asleep in the evening, and staying asleep throughout the night, and their habits may be to blame. Many factors can interfere with the ability to get good night’s rest, such as family responsibilities, work stress, and unexpected challenges, and it is no wonder that sometimes we are simply not able to get enough quality rest. However, if you don’t see the improvement in your sleeping patterns once you get all these factors under control, your pre-bedtime routine may be to blame for the lack of quality shut-eye. If you have difficulties falling asleep at night, and even counting sheep can’t help you drift off to dreamland, you should change your sleep habits.
Create a Sleep Schedule and Stick to It
If you want to get plenty of sleep and wake up well-rested and full of energy in the morning, you should try to get at least 7 hours of sleep every night. Determine at what time you should go to bed, depending on when you have to get up the next day. Once you determine when to go to sleep, you should stick to it every day. Waking up and going to bed at roughly the same time every single day is very helpful as it reinforces your body’s sleep-wake cycles. If you stick to this routine, you won’t have to worry about not being able to drift off to dreamland at night.
Create a Sleep-Supportive Environment
In case you find it difficult to fall asleep at night, you should make your bedroom more sleep-friendly. In most cases, it means that it should be dark, quiet, and cool. You should be aware that exposure to light can make it a bit challenging to drift off to dreamland. You may also want to consider using room-darkening shades. If you can’t sleep because of the noise, using earplugs is a perfect solution. Also, you can use a fan to stay cool.
Limit Napping
Very often people can’t fall asleep in the evening because of their daytime naps. It can be difficult to fall asleep at night if you have already slept a couple of hours during the day. If you can, it would be the best idea to avoid daytime naps altogether. However, some people simply can’t function without getting a bit of shut-eye during the day, and if this is the case with you, you should at least limit these naps to 30 minutes. Additionally, it is not a good idea to nap in the late afternoon and evening, as it will prevent you from getting enough good night’s rest.
Be Careful About What You Eat and Drink
If you want to increase your chances of getting good night’s rest, you should avoid going to bed stuffed and hungry. If you feel hungry in the late evening, before the bedtime, you should opt for a light snack. Also, you should have dinner at least a couple of hours before going to bed. Another thing that you should avoid is to drink too much water prior to going to sleep, as you may wake up during the night to use the bathroom, which will disrupt your rest. Finally, avoid caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol in the late evening as their stimulating effects can take hours to wear off, and have a negative impact on quality rest.
