13 Lucky Tips For a Better Sleep

Did you know that a 17 hour period of sustained wakefulness leads to a decrease in performance equivalent to a blood alcohol level of 0.05%? Or that 1 in 6 fatal road accidents are estimated to be caused by fatigue? Did you know that when clocks are put back at the start of daylight in Canada and people get one hour of extra sleep, that coincides with a fall in the number of road accidents? That after five nights of partial sleep depravation three drinks will have the same effect on your body as six drinks would have? Or that its generally believed that women require one extra hour of sleep compared to men, and not getting it might be the cause for their higher risk of depression?
Sleep is important and far too many people don’t get a good sleep at night. There are a lot of possible causes for this, and below you will find a number of ways on how to improve your sleep.
1. If you don’t fall asleep in 15 minutes don’t get up. People that usually have a good sleep take 10 to 15 minutes to fall asleep. Falling asleep in less then 5 minutes means that your body suffers from sleep depravation. Take another 15 minutes and if in half an hour you’re still awake, then get up and do something relaxing for a while, like reading a book.
2. Join the Dark side. Light signals your brain to wake up and can get you out of bed even before the alarm clock starts. Turn off the lights when you go to bed and pull the curtains. Day or night, a dark room is the best way to go if you want to sleep.
3. The Bedroom is for sleep only, not for work or fun. Keep the TV in another room, don’t surf the Internet or bring work into your bedroom. Your brain should automatically assume you want to sleep when you enter that room and lie down.
4. Create a sleep conducive environment. Keep the room dark as said in tip #2, keep it clean and free of clutter, ventilate it so the air is fresh and try to keep the temperature between 60 and 65 degrees.
5. Pick an hour to get to sleep every day. Try and maintain a schedule when it comes to your bedtime hour. Your body needs to get used to a sleep schedule so don’t fight it. Pick an hour that allows you to get enough sleep to feel rested in the morning and stick with it even in the weekends.
6. Don’t drink any coffee in the afternoon. The effect of the coffee lasts much more then one hour. Try not do drink any coffee 10 to 12 hours before going to bed and limit it in the morning to 1 or 2 cups. Also avoid chocolate, cola drinks or non-herbal tee at night.
7. A nightcap before bedtime is fine but don’t over do it. Alcohol may get you to sleep faster but it will also wake you up during the night to urinate and sometimes will provoke nightmares.
8. Don’t smoke right before you go to bed. Nicotine is a stimulant and should be avoided before bedtime or if you wake up during the night.
9. Exercise in the afternoon, not before bedtime. Exercise makes you more likely to get to sleep without problems, but it shouldn’t be done at night. Do it at least 3-4 hours before your bedtime hour because it produces stimulants that stop the brain from relaxing quickly.
10. Watch what and when you eat. Try to keep a few hours between your last dinner and your bedtime hour. Also try and keep the last meal of the day small. Try to avoid foods that contain too many proteins and choose those with carbohydrates instead. Also, milk or other dairy products and turkey, that contain L-tryptophan can help you sleep. If you do need to eat something get a snack but don’t over do it.
11. Do not nap during the day. Get a good sleep during the night and avoid naps during the day. If you must nap, then do a 15 minute one. After 20 minutes you will enter the deep sleep phase and you will feel worse after waking up.
12. Keep your body warm. Don’t take cold showers before bedtime. Instead use warm water, take a hot bath and use a blanket during the night so you don’t get up if it gets colder. Go to bed relaxed. You can ask your spouse to give you a massage, take a warm bath, put some relaxing music, meditate, do some simple breathing exercises. Take your mind off your problems.