A restful night's sleep is so vital to your health and longevity.
In fact, long-lived ancient cultures considered sleep, "the greatest cosmic gift".
They believed that sleep was a gift or reward for practising leading a healthy lifestyle on a regular basis, but many people never adequately received this gift.
Here we reveal 5 secrets for a restful night's sleep so that you can awake refreshed and rejuvenated each day.
The Importance of Sleep & The Problem With Not Enough
A good, healthy sleep not only gives you happy feet when you rise to a new day, there is overwhelming research to suggest that it also enhances:
- Your ability to focus
- Your memory's effectiveness
- Your recovery and energy
- Your digestive cycle
- Your emotional harmony and balance
On a grander scale, by making quality sleep a priority, you will set yourself up for a better quality of life over the long term.
It is estimated that 1 in 3 adults do not get enough sleep; and the statistics are similar in all developed countries.
Poor sleep patterns or sustained periods of inconsistent or inadequate sleep are associated with increased inflammation, hypertension, obesity, anxiety and even depression.
The big problem is that when unhealthy sleep habits are formed during childhood, they can be much harder to break your adult years, unless you're prepared to make some lifestyle changes.
Adults should aim for an average of 8 hours sleep per night to support the body's natural circadian rhythm/sleep-wake cycle.
Signs Of Sleep Deprivation
The most common signs of sleep deprivation include:
- Lack of concentration and focus
- Memory loss
- Regular fatigue
- Irritability
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Mood swings
- Body aches and pains
If you notice any of these symptoms regularly, it's time to take a close look at your sleep routine and to take the necessary steps to create healthier sleeping habits.
5 Tips To Help You Sleep Better
1. Firm up your sleep cycle
Sleep is the vital recuperation cycle within each 24 hour period.
Consistency is key when it comes to your sleep-wake cycle, so it's important to firm up a sleeping time phase each day that works for you and your lifestyle and to stick to it.
Try to go to bed at the same time each night and to awake at a similar time each morning. Your goal should be to get 8 hours of quality sleep each night.
If you work at night, your timing will be different, but nevertheless, still try to create a consistent 'daytime' sleep routine that fits with your schedule.
2. Eat light after dark
The ancient longevity wisdom was to only consume liquids (e.g. soups) and/or very light meals after the sun goes down. This is where the word "supper" came from.
Whilst this is not always practical, for optimum sleep, you should avoid eating at least 2 hours before bed time due the disruption to sleep that can occur when going to bed on a full stomach.
Try to make dinner your "lightest" meal of the day as often as possible, and you'll go a long way to ensuring a more restful night's sleep.
3. Create a bedtime ritual
A simple pre-bedtime ritual can train your body and brain for the process of restful sleep.
About an hour before bed, switch off the TV, your phone and find a calming activity that you can practice consistently, to tell your body that it's almost bed time.
Handy suggestions include; taking a warm bath with 10-12 drops of essential oils and a candle flickering in the bathroom, reading a chapter of a book, jotting down a few things you achieved in your day, or doing 10 minutes of relaxed meditation.
Whatever it is, make sure that it is a basic activity that calms and unwinds you, giving you the mind and body triggers for a good night's sleep.
4. Ensure a sleep-supportive bedroom
Your sleeping quarters (your bedroom) should be a sacred place that is conducive to a restful night's sleep.
This means switching off any distractions such as your phone or electronic devices to "do not disturb", or better still, placing them into another room while you sleep.
Allow fresh air to circulate in your bedroom, by slightly opening the windows, if you have security screens and live in a safe neighbourhood. Alternatively, turn on a ceiling fan or box fan to a light setting, to promote moving air in the bedroom. This will help to ensure that you are breathing in electrified air during the night, to help clear the bronchioles and keep your respiratory system healthy.
Declutter your bedroom and ensure you have fresh linen on your bed.
Also, make sure you sleep in a dark room. The absence of light sends a critical signal to the body that it is time to rest. When you sleep with the lights on, it inhibits the naturally timed rise of melatonin, the hormone that promotes rest and recuperation of the body's essential organs.
5. Use pure essential oils
Essential oils should play a fundamental role in your restful night's sleep ritual because of their diverse soothing and calming properties.
Three great choices include:
Lavender - known for its wonderful relaxation qualities, a few drops on your pillow, the soles of your feet or diffuser next to your bed will send you off to dream land
Bergamot - Despite belonging to the citrus family, bergamot has a different impact to the invigorating properties of lemon. It is actually very calming, helping to slow down heart rate and to reduce feelings of anxiety.
Eucalyptus - helps clear the airways, supporting better breathing and helping to avoid disruptions such as snoring and sleep apnea.
Learn more in the blog, How to Sleep Better With Essential Oils.
The Main Takeaway
Sleep is a fundamental requirement for lasting physical, mental and emotional health and wellbeing.
Since peaceful, uninterrupted sleep is "the gift" you receive for regularly practicing the basics of a good healthy lifestyle, your goal should be to embrace the 7 principles of health as much as possible.
You can go a long way to ensuring restful sleep by incorporating the tips and pre-bedtime rituals we've shared here.
By making sleep a priority in your daily self care practice, you will be supporting your body and mind to reset and rejuvenate...and you'll be on your way to being the best version of you with the dawn of every new day.
Tolman Self Care.
