One part of my health that I take VERY seriously is my sleep quality. When I am sleeping poorly, it reflects on so many aspects of my health (I’m looking at you anxiety and weight gain!!!!). Sometimes, poor sleep is unavoidable (ie having a newborn or working night shift), but outside of those instances, I have taken on several practices to improve my sleep quality that I have seen make huge differences in my overall health and wellness.
Of course, if you are having severe issues with your sleep, talk to your doctor! A sleep study might diagnose a specific problem. But these practices helped with my minor sleep issues.
Gratitude journaling before bed
I know this first one doesn’t seem like maybe your regular sleep advice, but I almost see gratitude journaling as a meditation and mindfulness practice. I started gratitude journaling a few years back when I was suffering from regular panic attacks and anxiety and it really helped me. Just starting out deciding to write 3 things during the day that you are thankful for helps put your mind in a state of mindfulness. This really helps slow down my mind so that I can fall asleep easier.
While I forget to do it sometimes, I was extremely consistent with it when I did the 75 medium challenge and I think it really helped improve my mental health!
Reading instead of being on my phone before bed
I know this is the most annoying suggestion, but scrolling on your phone and the blue light it emits is not doing your brain any favors on winding down before bed. It’s instead sending your brain the signal of “hey, let’s party!!!”. Try to avoid your phone for at least 30 minutes before you go to bed.
Instead, read a book! A physical book is probably ideal, but I read on a Kindle before bed and I just turn my brightness down.
Also, turn on the “Night Shift” setting on your iPhone. This is located under Settings -> Display & Brightness -> Night Shift. You can set it for whatever scheduled hours you want and however warm you want the colors of your screen to be during those hours. The idea is that it decreases the amount of blue light which can help you sleep!
Black out curtains
Getting black out curtains was something I got when I was working night shift about 5 years ago, so that I could sleep during the day after my shifts. Even though I no longer work the graveyard shift, I still use black out curtains and having a really dark room really does help your brain’s circadian rhythm.
These are the ones we have in our room and my toddler’s nursery. They are under $30 for two panels and block light really well!
The only issue I’ve had with this is in the morning, I need some gradual light to help me wake up. This brings me to my next item which is…
Light alarm clock
I have an older version of this iHome Zenergy Light Alarm Clock that I got on eBay for $30. It’s not super cute, but it gets the job done! When it gets to the time for my alarm to go off, it gradually starts glowing red and yellow (reminds me of a sunrise) and starts making bird noises. It is such a peaceful, gradual way to wake up– I HATE loud beeping noises to wake up. It also has white noise which we kind of have going while we sleep (via the Hatch white noise machine in my son’s nursery through the monitor we have) which I think also helps my sleep quality!
I really want the Hatch Alarm Clock, so it’s on my wishlist when I decide to upgrade my bedside table setup!
Magnesium Biglycinate Supplement
I find that taking a magnesium supplement helps me relax a bit more before bed and therefore improves my sleep quality. I talk more about the supplements I take in this post, but as far as magnesium goes, I take 200 mg of the Nature’s Made Magnesium Biglycinate a couple hours before bed. Magnesium can help relax the mind and body to promote relaxation and sleep.
I listen to Huberman lab pretty regularly and he did an episode about why he doesn’t take or recommend melatonin supplements. They can affect your hormone production and studies show that it isn’t particularly impactful for helping sleep.
Of course, always check with your doctor before you take any new vitamin or supplement though!
Mouth Taping to Sleep
I know this one might sound kind of crazy, but I tape my mouth to go to sleep at night! I wrote a whole post about this, but if you are a mouth breather, it could be affecting your sleep quality. Talk to your doctor if you snore before you start doing this, because if you have sleep apnea, you may need a CPAP instead.
But since I started mouth taping to sleep, I wake up so much more energized and well rested!
I use this silicone tape that is under $10 a roll and lasts me over 3 months!
Going to bed and waking up at a consistent time
I know this is another annoying suggestion. But being in a consistent routine with sleep timing almost trains your body and makes falling asleep and waking up so much easier.
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