Sleep feels like a public health crisis. We’re constantly hearing people talking about it, whether that’s not enough sleep, struggling with sleep, can’t get to sleep, can’t stay asleep.
For many, sleep is routinely sacrificed, and people feel powerless around it. If this resonates with you, here are a few tips to help you get a great night’s sleep.
If you prefer to read – scroll down past the video and you’ll find the tips there…
Notice Your Thoughts About Sleep
If you find yourself constantly thinking about, and talking about sleep, you’re setting yourself up for a bad night. Thoughts like: I need a good night’s sleep! Am I going to get a good night’s sleep? I must sleep well – will sabotage your slumber.
Every time you notice an unhelpful sleep thought, interrupt it. Simply saying “no” to yourself and affirming that you’ll sleep brilliantly will help. Stopping yourself from engaging with any thoughts around sleep throughout your day, will be hugely beneficial at night so you’re not going to bed already expecting not to sleep.
What’s your sleep identity?
What do you identify with in terms of your sleep? Are you an owl, a lark, a bad sleeper, a light sleeper? These are your beliefs which powerfully predict the quality of sleep you’ll have. So, if you find yourself labelling yourself like this, decide if it’s useful and look for evidence to reinforce a better belief.
Also, be aware of universal beliefs around sleep – like jet lag. When Jude was travelling from Australia and back to the UK, she was nervous about getting jet lag. She used an app that retrained her brain to move with the time zones, and she arrived back in the UK completely fine.
Good Sleep Routine
If you struggle with sleep, having a good routine is helpful. When your routine changes all the time, it affects your body’s clock – a bit like having constant jet lag.
Look at how you can create a regular routine where you go to bed and get up at similar times – your body clock will thank you for this.
Your Environment
Are you able to create a calm and relaxing space to sleep in?
Whilst this can be challenging if your bedroom is doubling up as another space such as an office. Consider what’s cluttering your space – what can you do to simplify it and make it your sanctuary at bedtime?
Calm Your Mind
It’s not just our environment that gets cluttered, your mind can get caught up overthinking and keep you awake. Instead, try thinking about something lovely and relaxing.
A gratitude practice at night is a great way to calm your mind. The last thing to do before going to bed is to think about the things (or write them down) that you’re grateful for. That way, you’ll go to bed with a peaceful, grateful feeling, and ready for sleep.
Take Yourself on a Relaxing Journey
When you get into bed and you’re comfortable, take yourself on a journey in your head. Imagine the most relaxing place you can think of and just be there and enjoy it until you drift off to sleep naturally.
And if it takes a little time, you’re still relaxed and your parasympathetic nervous system is working, which is your healing and nurturing.
Get Help
Good quality sleep is crucial to our health and wellbeing and there is a lot you can do to influence how well you sleep. If you struggle to sleep well, contact us and find out how we can help you.
