Victoria thinks about sleep
"Sleep is the golden chain that ties health and our bodies together.” - Thomas Dekker
Sleeping difficulties are common and around 1 in 4 people may experience sleeplessness. This could include problems with falling asleep, staying asleep, early morning waking or restless sleep. This can begin to impact on our well-being and everyday functioning. Let’s think about creating a good sleeping environment and establishing bedtime routines:
Temperature:
Consider the temperature of your room, is it too hot or too cold? Why not try sleeping with sheets and blankets rather than duvets so you can adjust how warm/cool you feel. Creating natural ventilation with a window open can help prevent your room feeling stuffy. Or alternatively try sleeping with a fan on to create a gentle breeze which can also sound soothing and relaxing to some (the white noise effect.)
Light:
Light affects a person’s circadian rhythms, whose functions include regulating sleeping and waking, core body temperature, the immune system, hormones, metabolism, cognitive function and the body’s reaction to stress. During daylight hours the body knows it is time to be awake, and when darkness falls, it prepares for sleep by the release of melatonin, a natural hormone that helps with sleep. Attempt to get outside as much as possible during daylight hours, this will help align your circadian rhythms. Bright lights and particularly cool-toned colours, such as blue light from mobile phones, computers, and televisions, can hinder melatonin production and feeling sleepy. Warm colours such as red, orange and yellow can aid the body to increase melatonin production provided they aren’t too bright. So, if you enjoy reading at bedtime try changing your reading light to warmer hues.
Bedtime routine:
Establish a routine that will cue your mind and body into readiness for sleep. It might be a bath or reading a book. Perhaps listen to a guided meditation or some soothing, relaxing music and have a caffeine-free warm, milky drink or herbal tea.
Worries Jar:
Schedule some time, possibly after dinner, to acknowledge your worries and to help ease your mind from overwhelm when you are trying to sleep. Recycle a clean jam/coffee jar and decorate it if you like with glass paint, acrylic paint or paint pens. Write each worry on a small piece of paper or post-it notes.
Drawing something like an emoji might feel easier at first. Fold it or scrunch it up very small and pop it in the jar. Once you have completed this screw the lid back on. Either dispose of the worries the next day or dispose of them weekly, but ensure you continue the process every day not too close to bed time. It may take some time, but this process really can help with overthinking at bedtime.
Sleep Affirmations:
Sleep affirmations can help uplift and calm the mind. It can aid letting go of worries or stresses that are keeping you awake. Positive affirmations can help clear your mind of negative thoughts and ready your body for restful sleep. Why not create one for every week or each night. You could write this on a piece of paper after completing your worries jar. Have a look on the internet for some inspiration to get you started, or try any of these below:
‘I let go of all the worries of the day’
‘I am worthy of restorative and restful sleep’
‘My sleep is deep and restful, and I wake up feeling refreshed and energised.’
Links and resources:
https://mindfulnessexercises.com/good-night-quotes/
https://www.anxietycanada.com/articles/getting-a-good-nights-sleep/
https://www.sleepfoundation.org/circadian-rhythm#link
https://www.restinpieces.co.uk/blogs/news/sleep-affirmations?srsltid=AfmBOoqJ9uGTKA8HKpxoFlxZiBHD51AbX6YUliYZ8LgZKO69DO2Fj5PG
