Good sleep routine
▸ Ensure as much natural daylight exposure as possible
▸ Regular exercise, but not too close to bedtime, supports sleep—in adults with insomnia, regular exercise can be more effective than ‘sleeping tablets’ in improving sleep quality
▸ Eat regular meals
▸ Do not eat your main meal within 2 hours of bedtime
▸ A light prebed snack (eg, a bowl of cereal, fruit, yoghurt) 30 min before bed can help prevent disruption from night-time hunger, but avoid evening ‘grazing’
▸ Minimise use of alcohol, caffeine and nicotine, particularly in the evening period
▸ These can affect both the ability to get to sleep and the quality of sleep obtained
▸ Set sleep and wake times that permit the amount of sleep that is right for you
▸ Aim to go to bed at roughly the same time each night and get up at the same time each morning
Minimise electronics use for the 30–60 min before bed
▸ Consider relaxation strategies to ‘wind down’ before bed
▸ Do not use your phone as your alarm clock
▸ Your phone should preferably be charged outwith your bedroom while you sleep
▸ Avoid spending long periods of time awake in bed. Your bed should only be for sleep or sex
▸ If you are unable to sleep, get out of bed and do a quiet/relaxing activity (reading, jigsaw puzzle, building LEGO, etc) for 15 min, then return to bed and try to sleep again
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