How to use bedtime habits to recall lost sleep?

Sleep is something we all do every day, but sometimes it’s not so easy to do. Some people toss and turn in bed but cannot fall asleep; some people fall asleep but have been dreaming all night and wake up feeling exhausted. These are all symptoms of poor sleep quality, which will affect our physical and mental health and work efficiency.

So, how to improve our sleep quality? In addition to paying attention to factors such as diet, exercise and environment, there is another important aspect, which is our bedtime habits. Bedtime habits refer to a series of activities we do before getting ready to fall asleep. They can help us relax our body and mind, regulate our biological clock, and promote sleepiness. Today, we will introduce three simple and effective bedtime habits to help you fall asleep easily and enjoy sweet dreams.

The first style: relax the body and mind

After a tiring day, our bodies and minds will be tense and depressed. If not released in time, it will affect our sleep. Therefore, before going to bed, we need to perform some relaxation exercises to get ourselves into a comfortable and quiet state.

The most common relaxation exercises are breathing exercises. Breathing exercises can help regulate our nervous system, reduce anxiety and stress, increase oxygen supply, and balance heart rate and blood pressure. There are many ways to practice breathing, one of the simple and effective methods is the 4-7-8 breathing method. The specific operations are as follows:

1. Place your tongue behind your front teeth and maintain this position.
2. Close your mouth and inhale through your nose for four seconds.
3. Hold your breath for seven seconds.
4. Then exhale through your mouth for eight seconds, forcefully exhaling all the air in your lungs.
5. Do this for one breath, four times for one cycle.

The most important thing about this exercise is to maintain the ratio of inhalation, breath-holding, and exhalation, so don’t be too impatient! You can do this exercise while lying in bed or sitting in a chair, as long as your body is comfortable and relaxed.

Another common relaxation exercise is the body scan. Body scans can help us pay attention to how our body feels, relax muscles and joints, and eliminate fatigue and pain. There are many ways to scan the body. One of the simple and effective methods is the head-to-toe scanning method. The specific operations are as follows:

1. Lie on the bed or sit in a chair and close your eyes.
2. Scan the body starting from the head and feel the touch and temperature of the scalp, forehead, eyebrows, eyes, nose, mouth, chin and other parts.
3. Gradually move your attention downwards, scanning the neck, shoulders, chest, abdomen, back, buttocks, etc.
4. Move your attention downwards and scan the thighs, calves, ankles, soles of feet, toes and other parts.
5. After completing the local scan, focus on the entire body, feel the weight and contours of the body, and wait for sleep to come.

The most important thing about this exercise is to stay focused and curious, don’t judge or evaluate your feelings, and don’t force yourself to relax, just let it be.

Second Style: Bedtime Ritual

Sleeping is not just about closing your eyes and snoring, we also need to pay attention to the preparations we make before getting into bed. Establishing a regular bedtime ritual can help you fall asleep because it reminds you that it’s time to sleep and prevents tiredness from setting in. Bedtime rituals allow us to enter a state of rest and relaxation faster by exposing ourselves to environmental cues, making it easier to fall asleep.

A bedtime ritual can be customized based on personal preferences and habits, but there are a few principles to follow:

• Bedtime rituals should be simple and comfortable, not too complicated or exciting, otherwise they will increase stress and excitement.
• The bedtime ritual should be regular and continuous. Do not change or interrupt it at will, otherwise it will affect the biological clock and sleep rhythm.
• Bedtime rituals should be conducive to relaxation and quietness, and should not involve activities that require thinking and memory such as work or study, otherwise it will interfere with brain rest.

Here are some examples of common bedtime rituals:

• Take a hot bath or foot soak to promote blood circulation and relax muscles and nerves.
• Drinking a glass of warm milk or honey water can supplement calcium and sugar and increase the secretion of melatonin.
• Reading a relaxing and interesting book or magazine can divert your attention and relieve stress and anxiety.
  -Write down your plans for the next day or a mood diary to arrange your time and tasks and release your emotions and thoughts.
• Listening to soft and soothing music or lullaby can adjust your mood and lower your heart rate and blood pressure.

In addition to establishing a bedtime ritual, we should also be careful not to commit some bedtime taboos. The most well-known is to avoid using electronic devices such as mobile phones and computers before going to bed. These devices emit blue light, which affects our circadian rhythms. It suppresses the secretion of melatonin, a hormone that makes us feel tired. Therefore, blue light tricks our brains into thinking it is still daytime, suppressing sleepiness and keeping us awake. It is recommended not to use these devices at least half an hour before bed.

The third type: don’t sleep or lie in bed

The function of a bed should be to sleep and rest, but we always like to lie lazily on the bed scrolling on our phones, watching TV, eating snacks, etc. These seemingly innocuous habits may be the culprit behind your sleepiness!

When we do a lot of things in bed that are not related to sleep, our brains associate the bed with these things instead of the bed with sleep. This way, when we really want to sleep, our brains will think we’re doing something else and won’t feel sleepy. This is why some people wake up more and more as they lie in bed, but fall asleep quickly on the sofa or the floor.

Therefore, in order to improve our sleep quality, we need to establish a bed and sleep association. The specific operations are as follows:

1. Only lie in bed when you feel really sleepy.
2. If you haven’t fallen asleep in bed for more than 15 minutes, get up and do some relaxing activities, such as reading, listening to music, etc., until you feel sleepy again.
3. Do not do anything unrelated to sleep in bed, such as playing with mobile phones, watching TV, eating snacks, etc.
4. Keep your bed tidy and comfortable, and choose pillows, quilts and sheets that suit you.

Conclusion

From relaxation exercises, to bedtime rituals, to the relationship with the bed, we can use bedtime habits as a starting point step by step to establish a good relationship with sleep and gradually find the sleepiness to run away. I hope these methods can be helpful to you, and I wish you a good dream!

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