Ever have one of those nights where you spend more time staring at the ceiling than you do sleeping?
Yes – those nights are not fun.
We all have tough nights from time to time, and that’s okay. But you know what they say. Tomorrow is another day.
Go Easy On Yourself
When you can’t sleep, it’s so easy to get nervous and start calculating how many hours/minutes you have before your alarm goes off.
Even though it’s much easier said than done, the best thing you can do is try and relax and see where the night takes you.
Even if you don’t end up getting as many hours of shut-eye as you’d like one evening, there is always tomorrow.
Ditch The Devices
Texting, watching a video or reading the news before bed can take a toll on your sleep.
It’s so incredibly easy for time to fly by while texting a friend or playing on your phone. A few minutes of intended before-bed screen time could easily turn into an hour or more.
On another note, watching or reading something stressful can make it that much harder to relax and unwind.
If you’ve gotten into the habit of spending time on your phone before bed, that’s quite alright. All you need to do is replace that with another habit.
You practice light stretches, read an easy book or journal.
Listen to Your Body
Paying attention to the tell-tale signs of tiredness can work wonders for your sleeping patterns.
If you feel your eyelids starting to get heavy or a yawn coming on a couple of hours before you typically go to bed, don’t try to fight it.
Even if your mind is still awake, lean into what your body is trying to tell you. Get comfortable, lay down and let your muscles relax.
This technique also works in the opposite direction.
If one evening you don’t feel tired, respect that. Trying to sleep when you aren’t tired can be very frustrating.
Instead of hopping into bed, you can participate in a relaxing activity until you start feeling tired.
