We all need a good night’s sleep – it’s the time our body uses to do essential repairs as well as for our mind to process what’s happened during the day.
If your sleep is constantly being interrupted, that can be a real problem. Even a seemingly small interruption can mean that you lose an hour or more from your supposedly restful night.
So, what can you do to fix things when your sleep is regularly being interrupted?
Establish a routine
Our body likes routines – it knows what to expect and when.
That goes for bedtime just as much as any other aspect of your life.
Going to bed at approximately the same time each evening helps a lot with that. Rather than, say, going to bed at 10pm on a weekday but 4am at the weekend.
And the things (you could even call them rituals) that you do before you retire for the night should be similar each day.
Take the time to examine your current bedtime routine and adjust things as needed.
Limit caffeine and alcohol
Drinking too much coffee or drinking coffee late in the day won’t help you get to sleep. Wean yourself off caffeine so that you’re only drinking it before about noon – but don’t do this suddenly if you’re used to drinking almost industrial quantities. Cut down gradually over days or even weeks depending on your current intake.
Alcohol should be drunk in moderation. And, like caffeine, you may need to gradually reduce it. So if you’re used to “sharing” a bottle of wine with yourself each evening, cut down until you’re closer to the recommended intake. Your health as well as your sleep will thank you for that.
Hide the alarm clock
Whether it’s a real alarm clock or one on your phone, put it out of sight (but not out of earshot in case you need it in the morning).
This stops you clock watching if you still wake up in the middle of the night – there’s nothing worse then every second seeming like an hour because you’re waiting for the clock to change.
Make your bedroom comfortable
I know you’re probably thinking your bed’s comfortable anyway.
But what about the temperature of the room? This should be as close as possible to the same every night so that your body isn’t having to adjust between being in a freezer and a sauna on different nights.
The same advice goes for your duvet – you can get ones with different Tog ratings or even ones that have two duvets that combine so you can adjust what you use according to the season.
If your pillows instantly droop as soon as you fluff them up, it’s probably time to buy a new set and allow your head to be comfortable while you sleep.
Relax before bed time
This is really important.
Our mind doesn’t instantly stop thinking about everything that’s happened during the day just because we’ve decided to go to bed.
It needs time to slow down and unwind.
Give it some help!
Don’t look at your phone milliseconds before you retire for the night.
And don’t watch TV or Netflix programs that involve too much thought as the last program you watch unless you’re planning to have a nice, warm, bath before actually getting into bed.
Balance your energy centres
We’ve all got energy centres even if we don’t recognise them as such.
You might think of them as chakras or the energy channels that things like acupuncture use.
They need de-clogging after your day and the easiest way to do that is let a simple sleep audio do all the work for you.
It will do all the hard work of getting you relaxed, ready for the best night’s sleep you’ve had for longer than you care to remember.
Listening to the right track will calm you down and help you relax, ready to go to sleep.
It will also work if, despite your best efforts, your sleep is interrupted.
You can download the tracks here and be well on your way to fixing your interrupted sleep patterns for good.
Our body likes routines – it knows what to expect and when.
