Do you struggle with Sleep, like I do?
Sleep … this daily activity that we look forward to each night and don’t feel we’ve had enough of each morning … or that can often be how I feel, what about you?
I think waking up so tired wears me out before I’ve even risen out of bed, do you experience this often or from time to time?
I used to have this every morning! I would wake up mostly in pain for one reason or another, so getting motivated for the day was already a chore before throwing back the covers. Some mornings I could rally and shift my mindset, while other mornings, it didn’t matter what I did the weight of the day bared down.
Sleep is so so precious and so needed for the overall betterment of your life. When we feel rested we’re more likely to be open to happiness, roll more easily with the punches, or have a smoother day all in all. When we don’t feel rested … well this is where the trouble lies.
Over time chronic lack of proper sleep wears on the body and mind, eventually wreaking havoc.
How many hours per night do you sleep on average? Does this feel like enough FOR YOU?
Of course everyone is different and now that more studies on sleep are being done it’s recently discovered that women can often need more sleep than men! Some scientists believe that we need 7 - 10 hours of sleep regardless of gender, while other scientists say women need more than men. I say this would be based on the individual.
For me, I’ve always done my best for the 8 hours of sleep but it never feels enough, I can go on 7 hours of sleep for a few days but it’s not ideal…I need at least 9 to feel solid the next morning.
Sleep is one of the things I’ve worked hard on over the years and want to share with you some tips I’ve picked up along the way which I believe can assist you in your sleep journey as well.
Setting the Stage
The number one thing that’s helped me over the years is having a calming night-time routine. This may include but certainly not limited to the following:
A warm salt bath or shower to rinse off the day energetically speaking, calming the muscles and mind into relaxation.
Not having a blue screen at least ONE hour before bed, if not 2+
Lowering the lights around the time I turn off the blue light devices
Journaling or making a list for tomorrow to quiet the mind
Restorative yoga in bed or cozy on the mat with loads of pillows and blankets
Herbal tea for sleep and digestion balance (1.5 hr before bed)
Making the bedroom cold and the bed cozy
Being Patient
As many years as I’ve been doing my night time routine sometimes it just isn’t working and I need to add extra or more tools to help me fall asleep. Here are some of the deeper processes that I’ll incorporate:
EFT - Tapping - this can help to calm the mind or reduce anxiety around going to sleep. If we’re on the devices all day then the mind stays in motion and can create anxiety around sleep, EFT can help reduce sleep anxiety.
Candle Gazing - a promising Ayurvedic technique of lighting a candle and gazing into the flame, this calms the nervous system, setting up the mind and body for sleep.
Deeper journaling or emotional processing - some days can be really hard, when we slow down the body will sometimes produce emotions that it needs to release near bedtime because it could be the first moment of true surrender of the day. Taking the time to process the emotions, so that they don’t disrupt sleep & dreams.
Herbal medicines - CBD, Copaiba, and Cannabis are the go-to’s that help me during harder times of sleep. Each other these in their own way help to reduce inflammation in the body and calm a racing mind.
Body massage - another Ayurvedic technique to take time to massage areas of the body that are in pain. Massage helps to alleviate stagnation in the meridians, soften the muscles, and help toxins to process out while sleeping.
Turn off EMF - Putting your phone on airplane mode and away from where you’re sleeping, covering the TV if it’s in your room or unplugging it all together - you can go a step further and turn off the wifi at night as this is a MAJOR sleep disruptor.
What’s happening when we attempt to go to sleep is we often go from movement and then straight into bed, some of us might watch TV here; all this does is keep the body and mind alert when it doesn’t need to be. When you take the time to properly set the stage for your sleep, then over time this helps immensely with the betterment of your sleep quality. Give your mind and body permission to “wind down” rather than staying alert and active.
When your sleep quality is improved then so too is your next day!
It can become easier to get out of bed, it can become less painful emotionally and physically to start a new day.
Lastly, one thing that I LOVE and listen to often are guided meditations for sleep, or YOGA NIDRA.
I have a free download of Yoga Nidra to calm the mind and body, check it out and download it for you to listen to tonight…perhaps this will help.
I’ve given you a lot of information in today’s read … so my suggestion to this is…
Choose ONE thing that stands out to you and do it every night for a week. Then if you want to add more, choose a SECOND option to incorporate into your evening.
I give options because we’re all in different places, you may use all of these options over time, some more than others, and some in certain situations. Finding what works is a process that can be enjoyable to explore.
The hardest part about working with your sleep is having the patience that you’ll find something that works, If your disrupted sleep is growing or getting worse, then try consulting a sleep study or TCM consultation. I can become impatient with the process when adapting to a new sleep routine when I want results now…so I get the frustration that can arise.
I’d like to encourage you to BREATHE through it. When one thing doesn’t work, try another, and another, and talk amoung friends to see what’s working for others.
I’ll be honest with you about this, one thing that’s common is taking prescription pills for sleep, this won’t help over time and it won’t help get to the root of an issue at hand. Pharma is designed to keep you a customer not cur what ails you, so if this is something you depend on then I’d like to encourage you to research some different alternatives.
Sometimes chronic sleep issues can be caused by the organ system not functioning at its best capacity and is a sign of something deeper that needs to be addressed, be that hormone imbalance, food sensitivities, overwhelm, etc. Learn the needs of your body so that you can be able to discern the difference between a deeper issue or a lifestyle adjustment.
SLEEP WELL TONIGHT!