10 tips to sleep better at night

According to the NHS up to a third of us have some difficulty sleeping. We all know the feeling of having a head full of racing thoughts, not being able to get to sleep, then worrying about not getting to sleep… etc! It’s a downward spiral. Sleep is so important to our physical wellbeing, concentration and mood. So what can you do to make sure you get a good night’s sleep so that your body can recharge? 1. Get into a routine Those of us with children will probably remember long months spent trying to get a baby into a routine so that they would sleep through the night. Actually it turns out that adults need routine too. Go to sleep at the same time every night wake up and the same time every day, including weekends. Adults need between 7 and 9 hours of sleep but the average person gets just 6 and half hours of sleep a night. 2. Wind down We need at least 30 minutes to wind-down before we’re ready for sleep, so factor this into your routine. Do something that relaxes you and puts the busyness of the day behind you. 3. No blue lights When you’re winding down avoid blue light, this means phones, laptops and tablets. Instead, read a book or listen to relaxing music. Dimming the lights while you’re winding down will also signal to your body to get ready to sleep. If there is other light coming into your bedroom you should consider getting some black-out blinds. 4. Watch what you drink It takes your body 8 hours to fully remove caffeine from your system that means no coffee in the afternoon. Also, surprisingly, drinking alcohol less than two hours before you go to sleep can affect you. This is because initially alcohol makes the body sleepy but when alcohol levels drop this signals to your body to wake up. 5. Get up if you’re awake If you do wake up in the night and can’t go back to sleep after 15 minutes experts advise that you don’t stay in bed. You need to make sure that your body associates lying in bed with sleeping instead of not being able to. Get up go to another room and do something relaxing. 6. Write down your thoughts If you’re having difficulty turning your mind ‘off’ get out a pen and paper and write down the thoughts occupying your mind. This can help you unload things you’re trying to remember, worries or problems you’re trying to work out in your head. Remind yourself ‘I can’t do anything about this tonight; I can worry about it in the morning.’ 7. Stop smoking Nicotine withdrawals kick in at night which can stop smokers sleeping properly. Also smoking causes breathing problems, which are at their worst at night. So if you’re really having difficulty sleeping maybe it’s time to give up? It’s Stoptober after all. 8. Medication This is a point to discuss with your GP. If you do take medication, check with your doctor if they could be causing you to have sleep issues. 9. Exercise Exercise has so many health benefits, but it also helps you sleep better at night, provided you don’t go for a run just before bedtime. 30 minutes of heart pumping exercise should mean that you sleep better and longer at night. It makes sense really – exercise tires you out! 10. Make sure the air you’re breathing is clean A study by Harvard University found that if the air in your bedroom is polluted then there was a larger chance of you suffering breathing problems during sleep. A high quality, silent air purifier can remove pollutants from the air helping you to breathe easily and sleep well. You can see our range of air purifiers specially designed to operate silently at night here. Photo taken by Rachel Calamusa. Some rights reserved.