|
Secrets to a Good Night's Sleep
If you are
having sleep problems, whether you are not able to fall asleep,
wake up too often, don't feel well-rested when you wake up in
the morning, or simply want to improve the quality and quantity
of your sleep, try as many of the following techniques below as
possible:
-
Avoid before-bed snacks, particularly grains and sugars.
This will raise blood sugar and inhibit sleep. Later, when
blood sugar drops too low (hypoglycemia), you might wake up
and not be able to fall back asleep.
-
Exceptions: Eat a high-protein snack several hours before
bed.
This can provide the L-tryptophan needed to produce
melatonin and serotonin (sleep aids your body naturally
produce). Also eat a small piece of fruit. This can
help the tryptophan cross the blood-brain barrier.
-
Don't drink any fluids within 2 hours of going to bed.
This will reduce the likelihood of needing to get up and go
to the bathroom or at least minimize the frequency.
-
Take a hot bath, shower or sauna before bed.
When body temperature is raised in the late evening, it will
fall at bedtime, facilitating sleep.
-
Wear socks to bed.
Due to the fact that they have the poorest circulation, the
feet often feel cold before the rest of the body. A study
has shown that this reduces night wakings.
-
Read something spiritual or religious.
This will help to relax. Don't read anything stimulating,
such as a mystery or suspense novel, as this may have the
opposite effect. In addition, if you are really enjoying a
suspenseful book, you might wind up unintentionally reading
for hours, instead of going to sleep.
-
Journaling.
If you often lay in bed with your mind racing, it might be
helpful keep a journal and write down your thoughts before
bed.
- Get
to bed as early as possible.
Our systems, particularly the adrenals, do a majority of
their recharging or recovering during the hours of 11 p.m. and
1 a.m. In addition, your gallbladder dumps toxins during this
same period. If you are awake, the toxins back up into the
liver which then secondarily back up into your entire system
and cause further disruption of your health. Prior to the
widespread use of electricity, people would go to bed
shortly after sundown, as most animals do, and which nature
intended for humans as well.
-
Keep the temperature in the bedroom no higher than 70
degrees F.
Many people keep their homes and particularly the upstairs
bedrooms too hot.
-
Reduce or avoid as many drugs as possible.
Many medications, both prescription and over-the-counter may
have effects on sleep. In most cases, the condition, which
caused the drugs to be taken in the first place, can be
addressed by following the guidelines elsewhere on this web
site.
-
Avoid caffeine.
A recent study showed that in some people, caffeine is not
metabolized efficiently and therefore they can feel the
effects long after consuming it. So an afternoon cup of
coffee (or even tea) will keep some people from falling
asleep. Also, some medications, particularly diet pills
contain caffeine.
-
Avoid alcohol.
Although alcohol will make people drowsy, the effect is
short lived and people will often wake up several hours
later, unable to fall back asleep. Alcohol will also keep
you from falling into the deeper stages of sleep, where the
body does most of its healing.
-
Lose weight.
Being overweight can increase the risk of sleep apnea, which
will prevent a restful nights sleep.
-
Keep Your Bed For Sleeping.
If you are used to watching TV or doing work in bed, you may
find it harder to relax and to think of the bed as a place
to sleep.
- If
you are menopausal or premenopausal, get checked out by a
good natural medicine physician.
The hormonal changes at this time may cause problems if not
properly addressed.
-
Don't Change Your Bedtime.
You should go to bed, and wake up, at the same times each
day, even on the weekends. This will help your body to get
into a sleep rhythm and make it easier to fall asleep and
get up in the morning.
-
Make certain you are exercising regularly.
Exercising for at least 30 minutes everyday can help you
fall asleep. However, don't exercise too close to bedtime or
it may keep you awake. Studies show exercising in the
morning is the best if you can do it.
- Natural Sleep Aids.
If behavioral methods don't work, it may be necessary to try
a sleep aid. My recommendation is Hyland's Homeopathic Calms
Forte. It is 100% natural, no side effects and non-habit
forming.
Some content
of this article is edited
from original work by Joseph Mercola, M.D. |
