A good night’s sleep is essential for overall health and well-being. There are 2 stages of sleep: REM( rapid eye movement) and non-REM sleep. Both REM and NREM sleep are equally important in getting restful sleep. During the REM stage, we process emotions and consolidate memories. NREM provides a chance for our bodies to restore functions such as those related to cardiovascular health and the immune system. Getting quality sleep should be a priority for everyone.
Here are some tips to help you get better sleep:
1. Exercise
Aerobic exercise in the morning and relaxation exercise at night such as yoga can help to improve sleep quality.
2. Maintain a healthy diet and eating habits
Avoid eating too much at night and limit your intake of caffeinated drinks, tea, alcohol, or water after dinner.
3. Make your bedroom comfortable
Use light or noise-reducing devices if necessary. Make sure the temperature is not too hot or cold, and ensure there is adequate ventilation. Make sure the mattress is comfortable, and if your spouse snores, consider using earplugs to block out the sound.
4. Avoid nighttime tension
Fighting with your spouse or children, watching violent movies or news (mostly bad news nowadays), using the internet excessively, or working on the computer late at night can disrupt sleep patterns.
5. Have a sleep routine
A regular sleep routine can be beneficial for your sleep. Try taking a soothing bath, listening to tranquil music, or trying aromatherapy with essential oils about one hour before your sleep. Establishing a regular sleeping and waking schedule can help your body’s natural circadian rhythm in balance.
6. Check to see if supplements may help
When we get older, the quality of sleep can decline, and this is usually due to a lack of hormones. In my clinical experience, bio-identical hormone replacement using estradiol and progesterone can really help women who are having trouble sleeping. Melatonin is a sleep hormone that declines with age, so a supplement of this may also help.
7. Process emotions
In most cases when people are having trouble sleeping, it usually comes down to emotional stress. Cortisol, the body’s stress hormone, should be higher in the morning for energy but gradually decrease at night so that we can sleep. If cortisol is too high at night, it will make it difficult for us to fall asleep. Even if we doze off due to fatigue, cortisol could wake us up in the middle of the night, making it hard to fall back to sleep.
To reduce nighttime cortisol, we have to process our emotions in order to reduce the stress in our bodies. Journaling can help us to process emotions and reduce the busy thoughts that interfere with sleep. Other activities such as yoga or meditation can also help calm the mind and body before sleep.
Supplements
CHELATED MAGNESIUM: When magnesium is chelated (means bound with amino acid), it can be easily absorbed by the body in order to relax and improve sleep quality.
MELATONIN: Melatonin is a sleep hormone that declines with age, so taking it can help with insomnia. However, it’s important to not take too high a dosage, as this may suppress your body’s own production and cause drowsiness in the morning. Taking melatonin sublingually (under the tongue) can get it into your system faster and help you fall asleep more quickly without side effects.
CHILL PILL PM: This supplement has relaxing herbs such as valerian roots, passion flower, GABA, magnesium, and phosphatidylserine to reduce cortisol. It also contains melatonin, making it one of the most popular sleep supplements available to help people get a better night’s rest.
CBD SYNERGY: A popular sleep supplement that contains CBD, 5 HTP, melatonin, and GABA which helps with sleep. It uses liposomal technology which helps with quick absorption and increases bioavailability.
