QUIET Your Mind:

How to switch of and really sleep.

“Can I see a show of hands if you wake up in the morning feeling refreshed and rejuvenated from a night of truly restful sleep?” … an underwhelmingly disappointing few hands rise. Of those that arose, I could see a number of them signify “eh, sorta, kinda, sometimes”.

This is crazy I thought, how do people function efficiently on déclassé sleep? The simple answer is, they don’t. For the vast majority of humans, productivity is linked to the quality of sleep. There is a reason why sleep deprivation is a form of human torture.

Why is a good night’s sleep important?

When you have a good night’s rest, your brain and mind are quiet. You aren’t thinking about your impending to-do list, your child’s doctor appointment, what could’ve been if James Argent and Lydia Bright from TOWIE stayed together, your pet plant… you get the point. You give your constantly active mind the time it needs to reset, relax and pause. This is very important. Your mind is just like any precious item, overuse could lead to wear and tear. This is the point where you complain of burnout, anxiety, fatigue, depression. Studies have linked depression to a lack of sleep. It has been found that as many as 90% of depression sufferers also report difficulty with sleep.

Not only does your mental health become directly impaired due to a lack of true sleep, your immune system takes a massive hit too. With the situation the world has recently gone through with the COVID-19 crisis, we understand how important it is to take care of our immune system.

What is ‘low quality’ sleep?

How many times have you gotten in bed, placed your head on your cold fluffy pillow, pulled your covers over your shoulders, closed your eyes.. ah, here it is, good night! I am going to sleep… then you find your mind overworking, overthinking, of sometimes silly, irrelevant things, 40 minutes later, wait? I’m still awake! I’ll sleep now. But you don’t. that cycle continues until the early hours of the morning, and you end up starting your day with a severely impacted, low quality ‘sleep’

This is extremely common, especially during periods of high stress, like a new job role, the breakdown of a relationship, moving house or an impending deadline. But what if I told you it didn’t have to be that way.

We will be discussing an action plan and building a bedtime ritual that will ensure you get the very much needed, beauty sleep.

Bedtime Ritual.

1. Dress the part!

You get in from work... its 6pm, you go to change in to your pyjamas.. NO.

Let us reserve our pyjamas for sleep time.  It is beneficial to only wear pyjamas at bedtime and wear comfy loungewear to laze around the house. If you must always wear pyjamas when at home, consider having designated sleep pyjamas and designated chill pyjamas.

I would recommend having soft, free, cosy loungewear to change into when you get home and NOT pyjamas. Why? Well, if your pyjamas are reserved for bedtime, when it comes time to put it on, over time, it will begin to create a signal in your brain saying; time to wind down, sleep time soon.

Action plan:

Browse the web and update your loungewear and pyjama collection.

I would recommend our cozy lounge set as the perfect loungewear, it is made from soft cotton terry fabric and in the most calming shade of limoncello.

 Okay, you have your comfy loungewear on, had dinner, usually you plonk on the couch with sweet snacks, laptop on side, phone in hand, scrolling through Instagram… NO.

2. Be mindful of what you eat before bed.

Almost everyone you ask will tell you; caffeine affects your ability to fall asleep. Most of us know that we should avoid it around bedtime, but what about Sugar? Sugar is an energy source for the body, it fuels a chain of reactions. What happens when you ingest sugar is, a spike in your blood sugar level which then consequently tumbles down leading to restlessness and a desire for a top-up. I’m sure you can appreciate that this isn’t an ideal state to fall asleep in. So, what can you do?

Action plan:

I don’t want to make you eliminate your comfort foods entirely, I believe in enjoyment after all! I would suggest reducing your late-night sweet snack binge. This will mean different things for different people, it may mean only two treats, it may mean only one. Just reduce it.

3. Your bed is your rest sanctuary. NO work allowed.

Do you have a habit of ‘finishing off the email in bed’ strategizing and making work and business plans whilst you lay on your pillow? Stop. This. Now. A harmless scroll through Instagram can cause damage to your sleep rhythm as it awakens your brain and responses. Your bed is your safe haven, the place where you can truly let your hair down! Let it be just that. Bringing in that work email to dissect immediately changes your bed from your sleep station to your work station. Your brain becomes confused. What are we doing now? We have our pyjamas on, we’re in bed, so maybe we’re sleeping… but… we have the work email open and reading glasses on… we’re working. What happens is even when you shut off that phone, your thoughts linger, your mind hangs in the balance and takes a little longer than your body to shut off. This could lead to you having that ‘low quality’ sleep we talked about earlier on, where your body sleeps but your mind is wide awake.

Action plan: The light from the screen of your devices affect the melatonin production which signals to your body that you are not ready for sleep. Giving your body the impression, you aren’t ready for sleep. Combat this by Restricting screen time. Do not actively use your phone within the 30 minutes before bed time. Keep the purpose of your bed clear and defined. Do not bring work into your sleep sanctuary.

4. Create the dream sleep environment.

You need to create the kind of environment that is conducive to sleep. When was the last time you changed your pillow? Not your pillowcase, your pillow! Over time your pillow flattens and looses it’s ‘fluff’ it is important to make sure you have a good pillow that supports your neck and ensures your spine is in a neutral position. A good quality mattress is important for this too! Think ‘The Princess and The Pea’ how can you have a good sleep if you are uncomfortable?

Action plan:

Change your pillow every 12-18 months. Keep your bedroom cool and dark as light signifies daytime to your brain.

5. Invest in supplements.

Sometimes a nutritional deficiency can result in difficulty sleeping. In an experiment, 46 participants were given 500mg of magnesium or a placebo daily for eight weeks. Those in the magnesium group reported better sleep quality. A similar result was reported in another group who participated in lavender aromatherapy. Essentially, they sniffed lavender for 30 minutes before bed.

Action plan:

Consider purchasing a lavender spray which you can spray directly on your pillow for enhanced relaxation. It is also wise to add vitamin supplements to your care plan. These can be magnesium, calcium, omega blend, zinc and many more! A lot of these vitamins can be obtained from a balanced diet.

These are just a few steps you can take to a better quality sleep. Try to follow them and stick to it strictly for 90 days straight. It will then become second nature, and your mornings feeling like you’ve just been dragged through a field, may soon be behind you!