Struggling to sleep? A guide to a better nights sleep.

I often see clients who mention in our first session that they are struggling to get a ‘good’ nights sleep. When we feel tired it can be difficult to go about our day, even when you are feeling well otherwise. When we feel down, upset or angry and this is followed by a bad nights sleep, things can feel too much.

If you are struggling to sleep it can be helpful to record your sleeping habits to see if any patterns develop. Begin by recording the time you go to bed and when you rise in the morning record; the time you think you fell asleep, the time you wake up, and how many times you wake throughout the night. Recording your sleeping pattern can help you learn if you are getting too much or too little sleep.

I often recommend the following tips to try and help clients get a better nights sleep.

• Bed=Sleep-Your body should associate bed with sleep and nothing else. If you use your bed for reading, watching TV and using your laptop your body will be receiving mixed messages.  Try to do these things somewhere else so that your body associates being in bed with only sleeping. Similarly, if you find yourself unable to sleep throughout the night, you should get out of bed. If you are not asleep 15-20 minutes after going to bed, research suggests you should get out of bed. Then, when you feel tired try and go to sleep again. This way your body will not associate being in bed with tossing and turning but you should learn to relax and fall to sleep relatively quickly.
• Write your thoughts down– Do your thoughts run wild when your head hits the pillow? Grab a notepad before you go to bed and write down all the things on your mind, including the things you need to do the next day. By writing your thoughts onto paper you may find they are no longer running around in your mind and you can get a more peaceful sleep.
• Try to avoid napping throughout the day- it may seem tempting to sleep when you feel tired, especially if you have been unable to sleep through the night. But if you are serious about getting a good nights sleep, it starts with cutting out any naps.
• Reduce your screen time before bedtime-This can be difficult because we live in a technical age, try to avoid watching TV, using your phone or laptop for around 1 hour before you go to bed. Try talking to someone you live with, reading or some mindful colouring.
• Caffeine- Cut out caffeinated drinks such as tea, coffee or energy drinks beyond 6pm.
• Exercise- Try to get around 30 minutes of exercise in your day. It is recommended for your overall health but it is also important for your sleep.

Have you tried any of these tips before? Did you find any change in your sleep pattern? Let me know by commenting below or by contacting me here