No one can operate at their most effective when they are sleep deprived. A good night’s sleep is vital for your body and mind to reenergize, repair and renovate. Short term lack of sleep can leave you lethargic and prone to stress. In the long term, sleep deprivation can increase your risk of stroke, cancer, high blood pressure, obesity, depression and a whole lot more. I’ve got here a whole list of things you can try when you struggle to get to sleep or sleep for long enough. You’ll find some of these suggestions contradictory so you have to experiment to see which works best for you.
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Set a Time to Go to Bed and Get up in the Morning and Stick to Them
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Ditch Your Phones, Computer, and Other Devices Hours before You Go to Sleep
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Avoid Taking a Nap in the Middle of the Day to Make It Easier to Fall Asleep at Night
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Imagine Sinking down into Your Mattress to Tell Your Brain It's Time to Sleep
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Wear Whatever’s Comfortable to You
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Read to Relax but Avoid Mysteries, Horrors and Thrillers That Will Keep Your Mind Working
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Play a Musical Instrument before You Go to Bed
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Write a Trippy Dream in a Notebook and Forget about It until Morning
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Keep Your Bedroom Lights Low for at Least an Hour before Bed
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Change the Wall Color, Arrange the Furniture, and Make Other Changes to Make Your Bedroom Feel Comfortable
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Meditate
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Don’t Go to Bed Hungry
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Try a Homemade Bedtime Rub
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Experiment and Find the Best Position That Helps You Fall Asleep Quickly
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Have a Bedtime Mantra
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Don’t Go to Bed Angry
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Relax Every Muscle in Your Body Starting from Your Toes All the Way up to Your Neck
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Make Sure to Have a Comfortable Temperature in Your Room
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Enjoy Some Lyric-free Music at Low Volume to Relax and Feel Sleepy
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Try Deep Breathing before Bed to Relax Stress and Prepare Your Body for a Relaxing Sleep
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Avoid Drinking Liquids before Bed for an Uninterrupted Sleep
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Turn Your Phone off
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Set Your TV at a Low Volume at Least an Hour before You Go to Sleep
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Get Your Partner to Give You a Relaxing Massage
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Comments
Dianna:Good advise, thanks
Linda:It's called " Your Present: a half hour of peace", by Susie Mantell. It's wonderful.
alka:Does anyone know why it takes me an hour or two to fall asleep? Even on days I feel tired
Loubna:If I struggle getting sleep, I imagine my perfect future life to be in a positif mind
Jenn:It used to be if I ever had a hard time, I would pop in my favorite Disney movie but I have outgrown that now!! :(
Meg-Tam:When I was little, my Mom used to calmly sing "relax the toes, relax the feet, relax the legs" all the way up to my head and it used to frustrate me and now as a 19 year old, when I can't sleep, I hum the very same tune in my head... (:
Linda:Anxiety,stress and worry keep running through my mind, too. I use a delta sleep tape. Sounds like sounds from another world, but I never get to the end. There is also a great cd called your perfect half hour, I think. It's incredible.
Isabella:@alka I have that problem too - lately it doesn't matter what time I get to sleep, I always wake at 7am even on weekends 😪 totally broken atm! And I have a cold atm too so it's a real struggle
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