One in five people suffer from a lack of sleep in the UK, the Sleep Council have organised National Bed Month throughout March to promote good sleep practice and help us all get a good night’s sleep.
If you struggle to drop off, try some of the following tips to see if there is any improvement:
- Create a bedtime routine to help your body prepare for sleep, make sure you do something relaxing for one hour before going to bed. Try not to watch television, check emails, do housework or exercise too close to going to bed as these are all stimulating activities.
- Have a bath, this helps your body prepare as it will cause your body temperature to lower before bed which will help you to drop off. However, it’s important not to have a bath immediately before going to bed, the body needs a bit of time to regulate its temperature before bed.
- Ask your partner to give you a massage before bed, or use self-massage techniques. This will relax the body and promote good sleep.
- Exercising in the early evening can help you sleep, the body’s temperature will rise as a result of exercising and then regulate itself, this will lead to a lowering of body temperature just before bedtime.
- Caffeine should be avoided from mid-afternoon as it can have a stimulating effect for up to 12 hours.
- Try having a glass of milk around bedtime it contains calcium which soothes the nerves and promotes relaxation.
- If you can’t sleep don’t lie in bed worrying about not sleeping – get up and do something non-stimulating and return to bed when you feel tired.
Visit www.sleepcouncil.com for more information on good sleep, buying a new bed and national bed month.
Compiled and extracted from Insomnia – The Essential Guide (Need2Know).
