When you can’t get to sleep, the nights can seem long. If you spend your nights tossing and turning, unable to drift off, you will know how frustrating it is when you just can’t seem to fall asleep. If you struggle to get to sleep each night, you certainly aren’t alone. Research shows that 25 per cent of Americans experience acute insomnia each year.
Sleep is vital and regularly not missing out on sleep can harm both your health and well being over time.
Create a Calming Environment
Most people that struggle to sleep try all kinds of methods to help them get a peaceful night’s rest. From supplements to warm, milky drinks, through to marijuana gummy bears – there are many ways to try and relax before you go to bed.
You could try dimming down the lights in the evening so that your room isn’t too bright and overstimulating. If you find that you are easily disturbed when you do eventually fall asleep, it may be helpful to fit black-out curtains, to prevent bright sunlight from streaming in early in the morning.
Get Active
Being physically active during the day can help you to get a better night’s sleep. Using up some energy can help to tire you out and increase your need for rest. When you feel physically tired, you are more likely to fall asleep faster.
It isn’t necessary to do vigorous exercise unless you want to, moderate exercise can work well too.
Switch Off
Looking at a bright TV screen, playing games on your tablet, or scrolling through your phone will all hamper your efforts to get to sleep. Rather than tiring you out, the brightness of the screens, and visual stimulation is more likely to make you feel wide awake than sleepy.
It is often recommended that screen time should end at least two hours before bedtime. Switching off your devices in preparation for bedtime will prevent you from becoming overly stimulated.
Check the Temperature
If you are sensitive to temperature, you may find it harder to fall asleep. Feeling either too cold or too hot can make you feel restless and unable to relax enough to sleep. There are a few ways to address this problem. Try monitoring the temperature in your room to check that it is at the right level. Changing your bedding to either a warmer weight or cooler material could be beneficial. Changing what you wear to bed, to better suit the temperature of your room can also help.
Get a Routine
If you have kids, you will know the importance of a bedtime routine. Adopting a bedtime routine isn’t just for kids; you may find that it benefits you too. Try to develop a bedtime ritual, and perform it at the same time each night. Make sure that you go to bed at the same time each night, and try to wake up at the same time each morning to try and create a sleep pattern that works for you.
