Often overlooked, yet such an important bit of our wellbeing – SLEEP!
Sleep impact our resilience, contributes to having more positive emotions , positively impacts our cognitive skills and memory, and is good for our health.
While we cannot “force” or even plan to have a great night sleep, what we can do is create the right conditions for it to happen.
Some of the factors that can help you have a better sleep:
relaxation exercises in the evening (meditation, breathing, journaling), calming cup of tea or a relaxed conversation
disconnecting from technology (screens) couple of hours before going to sleep; and avoid coffee, sugar and heavy meals in the evening
making your sleeping place dark, minimizing noise (as much as possible), managing temperature not to be too cold or especially not to be too hot
investing in quality mattress and pillow
use low-intensity bulbs (think “romantic lights”) in your bedroom
maintaining regular sleep schedule – (going to sleep and waking up at roughly the same time every day) and ideally aligning it with the day/time cycle
engaging in physical activity during the day, so we tire out our body and not just our mind – but not in the last couple of hours before going to sleep
for sleep, it is especially important getting outside in the morning, as exposure to direct daylight (even on a gloomy day) kicks off our circadian rhythm
a bit paradoxical: not stressing in moments when we cannot sleep – being it insomnia or small kids/worries/night shifts…. but instead, immerse in a good relaxed book, do a meditation exercise, or a bit of journaling
… and looking for ways to recharge and recover in other moments throughout the day, while this challenge with sleep passes
try out progressive muscle relaxation – a type of meditation that consists of relaxing every part of your body one after another, starting from the feet all the way to the head, for deep relaxation
prone to overthinking and having to active brain in the evening? try relaxing breathing exercises (you can find many on Insights Timer, an amazing app for meditation – just google “breathing for relaxation) or brain dump, where you write all your thoughts and all to-do lists before bed so you are not thinking about what to remember for tomorrow
Moment to reflect - and a moment to connect
What is your best tip for better sleep that you can share with others?
And which of these tips would you like to “strengthen” in order to improve your own sleep?
Share with us in Positive Psychology Tribe, online community for meaningful conversations.
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