I recently received a handout from my doctor about sleep hygiene, and have adapted it for the members here. I thought it would be useful after a couple of comments....
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Personal Habits
Set a bedtime, and a waking time, and DON’T let it change.
Avoid napping. Some people just can’t do without a nap in the late afternoon. If you are one of those, limit it to 30 to 45 minutes.
Avoid alcohol 4 to 6 hours before bedtime. While it may make you yawn at first, you start to wake up again as it wears off.
Avoid caffeine 4 to 6 hours before bedtime. Caffeine is, flat-out, a stimulant, and takes quite a while to get out of your system. Beware of coffee, sodas, teas, and even chocolate.
Be sure to exercise regularly, but not right before bed. Shoot for sometime in the afternoon for exercise—doing so 2 hours before bed even, will really lessen your ability to sleep.
Sleeping Environment—Yes, this makes a difference!!!
Use comfortable bedding. This is a given. Want good sleep? Be comfortable. Decide if this is causing your problem, and remedy if necessary.
Keep the room well-ventilated and at the proper, comfortable temperature. OK, so you’d think this is a no-brainer, but some people don’t think of this. A cool, but NOT cold bedroom is the most conducive to sleep.
Block out all distracting noise. And eliminate as much light as possible. In other words, turn off the TV, the lights, etc.
Reserve the bed for—sleep and sex. Of course!! The bed isn’t supposed to be romper room, or the office or anything. Let your body realize, and KNOW that the bed and sleeping go together.
Getting Ready For Bed
Light snacks prior to bed are good. Things that are high in an amino acid called tryptophan (remember that feeling you get from turkey at Thanksgiving?) may very well help you go to sleep. Try things like bananas and warm milk.
Practice relaxation techniques before bed. Deep breathing, yoga, and other techniques may help you get rid of stress, and therefore muscles tension, and allow you to drop off to sleep more easily.
Whatever is bugging you---don’t take it to bed. OK, that sounds easier said than done. I know one person who literally has a pinup board for their worries outside their door, and that’s where she leaves them every night, about an hour or so before she goes to bed. She sort of takes time to assign them a slot, if you will, on the board, so that deep in the recesses of her mind, she knows that she can pick them back up the next day.
Rituals before sleeping. These cannot be stressed enough. Something as simple as reading a book at the same time every night for a half hour, or meditating, or even a warm bath, will help you relax for sleep immensely. Or a combination of them all….
Know your favorite sleeping position, and get into it. Once you’re ready to go to sleep, and relaxed, and you are in that favorite position, falling asleep should be no problem at all. Whether it’s flat on your back, curled up in a ball or on your stomach, sleep should be with you soon. If you’re not asleep in a half hour, get up, go in another room, and read.
Getting up in the middle of the night. So many of us face this problem, it’s truly not funny. It’s normal to get up once, or even twice to go to the bathroom, or whatever reason—let the dog out, the teenager in… However, if you are not able to go back to sleep, as stated in the previous section, get up, and do something quiet. Go read. Or, if you want, go take a bath. But for heaven’s sake, don’t go do housework, or work in your office or watch TV. You’ll really have a hard time sleeping then.
Let’s discuss TV. While we all LOVE to watch TV, it DOES keep our mind moving quite a bit, as it is a very…engaging form of entertainment. Watching it before going to bed is usually not a wise idea. Don’t even put one in the bedroom. At the right time, the TV should be shut off, and you should go to bed. Quite often, people find that listen to the radio, or even classical or meditative CDs will help them go to sleep.
Physical factors that disturb sleep. Some of the things that would top the list would be headaches, hot flashes, menses, acid reflux (heartburn) and arthritis.
Medications and sleeplessness. There are a number of medications out on the market that can, and DO, cause sleeplessness as a side effect. Ask your doctor, AND your pharmacist about them, and what you can do to safely combat it, without ruining the effects of the medication.
Mental health/psychological problems—such as anxiety, PTSD, stress and depression are often tied to difficulty sleeping. Sometimes, the only sign of being depressed is difficulty sleeping. YOU MUST TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR.
Improving sleep patterns may be done by prescription. Your doctor may decide to give you some short-term help by prescribing a sleep medication. This is done to help your medical “picture” overall, so that your body does not become too stressed out, and various organs in your body do not overwork themselves more than necessary.
Your goal is to rediscover sleep naturally. That means listening to your doctors, and healthcare professionals, so your body does not become over taxed along the way.
**************
Personal Habits
Set a bedtime, and a waking time, and DON’T let it change.
Avoid napping. Some people just can’t do without a nap in the late afternoon. If you are one of those, limit it to 30 to 45 minutes.
Avoid alcohol 4 to 6 hours before bedtime. While it may make you yawn at first, you start to wake up again as it wears off.
Avoid caffeine 4 to 6 hours before bedtime. Caffeine is, flat-out, a stimulant, and takes quite a while to get out of your system. Beware of coffee, sodas, teas, and even chocolate.
Be sure to exercise regularly, but not right before bed. Shoot for sometime in the afternoon for exercise—doing so 2 hours before bed even, will really lessen your ability to sleep.
Sleeping Environment—Yes, this makes a difference!!!
Use comfortable bedding. This is a given. Want good sleep? Be comfortable. Decide if this is causing your problem, and remedy if necessary.
Keep the room well-ventilated and at the proper, comfortable temperature. OK, so you’d think this is a no-brainer, but some people don’t think of this. A cool, but NOT cold bedroom is the most conducive to sleep.
Block out all distracting noise. And eliminate as much light as possible. In other words, turn off the TV, the lights, etc.
Reserve the bed for—sleep and sex. Of course!! The bed isn’t supposed to be romper room, or the office or anything. Let your body realize, and KNOW that the bed and sleeping go together.
Getting Ready For Bed
Light snacks prior to bed are good. Things that are high in an amino acid called tryptophan (remember that feeling you get from turkey at Thanksgiving?) may very well help you go to sleep. Try things like bananas and warm milk.
Practice relaxation techniques before bed. Deep breathing, yoga, and other techniques may help you get rid of stress, and therefore muscles tension, and allow you to drop off to sleep more easily.
Whatever is bugging you---don’t take it to bed. OK, that sounds easier said than done. I know one person who literally has a pinup board for their worries outside their door, and that’s where she leaves them every night, about an hour or so before she goes to bed. She sort of takes time to assign them a slot, if you will, on the board, so that deep in the recesses of her mind, she knows that she can pick them back up the next day.
Rituals before sleeping. These cannot be stressed enough. Something as simple as reading a book at the same time every night for a half hour, or meditating, or even a warm bath, will help you relax for sleep immensely. Or a combination of them all….
Know your favorite sleeping position, and get into it. Once you’re ready to go to sleep, and relaxed, and you are in that favorite position, falling asleep should be no problem at all. Whether it’s flat on your back, curled up in a ball or on your stomach, sleep should be with you soon. If you’re not asleep in a half hour, get up, go in another room, and read.
Getting up in the middle of the night. So many of us face this problem, it’s truly not funny. It’s normal to get up once, or even twice to go to the bathroom, or whatever reason—let the dog out, the teenager in… However, if you are not able to go back to sleep, as stated in the previous section, get up, and do something quiet. Go read. Or, if you want, go take a bath. But for heaven’s sake, don’t go do housework, or work in your office or watch TV. You’ll really have a hard time sleeping then.
Let’s discuss TV. While we all LOVE to watch TV, it DOES keep our mind moving quite a bit, as it is a very…engaging form of entertainment. Watching it before going to bed is usually not a wise idea. Don’t even put one in the bedroom. At the right time, the TV should be shut off, and you should go to bed. Quite often, people find that listen to the radio, or even classical or meditative CDs will help them go to sleep.
Physical factors that disturb sleep. Some of the things that would top the list would be headaches, hot flashes, menses, acid reflux (heartburn) and arthritis.
Medications and sleeplessness. There are a number of medications out on the market that can, and DO, cause sleeplessness as a side effect. Ask your doctor, AND your pharmacist about them, and what you can do to safely combat it, without ruining the effects of the medication.
Mental health/psychological problems—such as anxiety, PTSD, stress and depression are often tied to difficulty sleeping. Sometimes, the only sign of being depressed is difficulty sleeping. YOU MUST TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR.
Improving sleep patterns may be done by prescription. Your doctor may decide to give you some short-term help by prescribing a sleep medication. This is done to help your medical “picture” overall, so that your body does not become too stressed out, and various organs in your body do not overwork themselves more than necessary.
Your goal is to rediscover sleep naturally. That means listening to your doctors, and healthcare professionals, so your body does not become over taxed along the way.
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