Do you get enough sleep?
I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve blamed lack of sleep and too much technology on the teen’s grumpy mood, yet I’m probably just as bad! Sleeping is a basic need we NEED to sleep and yet most of us have poor bedtime routines, if any and suffer from bad sleep. Sleep is vital for fighting illness, repairing and replenishing our bodies and minds, sleep also helps to boost memory and keeps us alert. Working from home means I need as much help as I can to stay on task and be productive.

What happens when we don’t get enough sleep? Or is the sleep we get good quality sleep? Sleep is something we take for granted but having a good night sleep is vital.

Creating A Bedtime Routine For Way Better Sleep:

Routines help us to establish habits, having a bedtime routine enables our brains to recognise when it’s time to sleep. By performing the same activities in the exact same order every night, your brain comes to see those activities as an introduction to sleep.

A Quality Mattress: We spend a third of our lives asleep so a mattress really is a necessity not a luxury and an investment in your health.  You should change your mattress every 7-10 years, most of us don’t have traditional spring mattresses that sag in the middle and poke you in the back anymore, we have all opted for a memory foam mattress instead. But these do still need looking after, don’t forget to hoover the mattress regularly, leave the covers pulled down for a while each day to allow the mattress to air, wash your bedding frequently.  A good nights sleep helps with memory and even weight loss, Bad sleep can cause your metabolism to slow down, which in turn makes it more difficult for your body to burn the fats and other things it has consumed throughout the day.

Tidy Relaxing Space: Always make your bed, not only is it a great way to feel productive in the morning but it’s an open invitation to go to bed. When your bed is tidy the pillows are plumped and piled high, you just want to get in and snuggle down. We can see from our homeschooling adventures, when teenagers suddenly slept, socialised and schooled all in their bedrooms, the effect this can have.  Our bedrooms should be a sacred place for wellness, relaxation and sleep.

Warm Drink: In our house, we have a nightly BT (bedtime tea) usually about an hour before we go to sleep. Drinking a warm beverage, others go-to sleep drinks include chamomile tea and warm milk can warm you up, get you in the mood for bedtime and can help encourage sleep. Turmeric golden milk can also help promote sleep, turmeric is a superfood used to help combat depression and inflammation. As a herb, it can be bitter which is why drinking it with warm milk is so popular.

Turn Off Technology: I turn my phone off a good hour or so before I go to sleep. Whilst you might have good intentions to go to sleep with your phone on you become a slave to the notifications, you get hit hard with FOMO and then before you know it you spent another hour mindlessly scrolling social media.  I do like to watch TV usually in bed for an hour or read a book, it’s a great way to snuggle down and chill.

Journaling: I’ve been finding it harder and harder to “fall asleep” my mind seems to be constantly racing and I feel like there’s always something to do or think about! Some people like to write down their thoughts and feelings to process the day others write a to-do list for the next day. This is a really effective technique for calming a racing mind before bed.

Scents and Smells: Lavender helps to destress and calm you down which in turn relaxes you aiding with falling to sleep. You can use oils, pillow sprays, aromatherapy candles or wax melts to help scent your room. For a while now we have been using Scentered Sleep Well Balm on our temples and wrists (not every night, but those when we feel like we need a helping hand), inhale deeply and relax.

Brush Your Teeth: There’s something final about brushing your teeth before bed like you are telling yourself you have finished eating and drinking for the day.  It also forms part of building a habit around a good bedtime routine. (And of course, your teeth will thank you)

Do you have a bedtime routine?

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