Sleep Tips To Wake Up Rested

After a long day we look forward to a night of restful and deep sleep.  Waking up the next day after deep sleep is a wonderful feeling.  Our mind and body are well rested and ready for the activities of the day.  Unfortunately, many people are getting less sleep due to longer work hours, round the clock entertainment, mental worries and other factors.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says about 1 in 3 adults in the United States are not getting enough rest or sleep every day. Sleep deficiency impacts our work, day to day activities and social functioning. Trouble with learning, focusing, frustration, cranky and reactive behaviors can be attributed to sleep issues.

When you go to bed with mental worries and negativity, you incubate these thoughts and emotions during sleep. If you are waking up feeling bad or nasty then you may not be maintaining awareness of your thoughts and feelings before you sleep the previous night.  Paying attention to how we are feeling when we sleep is key for sleeping well and waking up properly.

While we cannot control the external factors, we can adopt a few practices to get a better handle over our mind and daily routine, which will help us sleep better and wake up rested.

• Getting to bed at similar times every day helps the body get in tune with the sleep cycles. If you are not able to fall asleep, listening to calming music or doing gentle stretches, or deep breathing calms the mind and body so you can fall asleep.

• Finish eating 2 hours before your bedtime. The stomach should be comfortably empty before you sleep. Avoid eating heavy foods at night.  Incorporating fresh fruits, vegetables and eating lightly in the evening will help digest the food faster.

• Take a cool shower before bedtime. Cool showers help with cleansing of the water element in our body– 70 % of our body is water.  Even though it makes you alert, you will eventually fall into a restful sleep in about 30 minutes.

• Shut down all electronics an hour before your bedtime and wind down with a calming activity that helps body and mind get into a restful state.

• Light an organic oil lamp and keep it in the room when you sleep. It is best to use a cotton wick along with linseed oil, rice-bran oil, sesame oil, olive oil or any organic oil.  This will help relieve the negativity in the mind.

• If you are the worrying type, then write down all the things that you need to accomplish and set it aside for the next day. Organizing and prioritizing day to day tasks will ease the anxiety and mental chatter around it at bedtime.

• Be conscious of the passage of time and the mortal nature of your existence. If you maintain the awareness that we are mortal, you will see there is no time to harbor negativity, because you would want to do something meaningful that brings joy and peace in your life.

• Maintain the sanctity of your bedroom by not eating and watching electronics in the same room where you sleep. Keeping the room dark, cool, and quiet will help you fall asleep faster.

• Exercising 20 – 30 minutes during day promotes better sleep. However, avoid doing active workout close to bedtime.

In addition to taking care of these things above yoga and meditation is known to relieve anxiety and stress and greatly enhance the quality of your sleep.  So, incorporate 10 – 15 minutes of yoga on a daily basis and see what a big difference it can make to your sleep quality and overall wellbeing.