Mastering Sleep: Tips for Better Rest and Health

We spend up to a third of our lives sleeping, yet many of us struggle to be “good in bed.” You likely already know that quality sleep is vital for overall health and well-being, with most people needing a solid 8 hours each night to maintain good sleep health. Sleep boosts brain function, emotional well-being, reduces the risk of obesity and chronic diseases, and improves performance and safety during the day (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, 2017).

However, many people are dealing with what experts call “sleep debt” (National Sleep Foundation, n.d.). Much like overdue mortgage payments or credit card debt, if we neglect our sleep, the “interest” accumulates, making it increasingly difficult to catch up later. The more sleep we lose, the harder it becomes to recover that much-needed rest.

The Science of Sleep

Building up sleep debt can feel very stressful. On the other hand, stress also contributes to sleep loss. If you’ve ever been under significant stress, you may have found it hard to fall or stay asleep, which, in turn, affects the overall quality of your time in bed. So, what’s the connection? Why are sleep and stress so deeply linked?

Stress alters the activity of hormones in your body (e.g., cortisol, adrenaline, etc.). Sleep is essential for maintaining a balance in these hormones and other systems in your body. However, chronic stress forces your body into “fight or flight” mode as a defense mechanism, which is meant to bring you back into balance. Over time, these defense mechanisms can weaken or fail, leading to insomnia or other sleep issues (Sun Han, Kim, & Shim, 2012). The system in your body that regulates sleep onset and termination—the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis—is impacted when stress is present (Sun Han, Kim, & Shim, 2012). This may explain why it’s so difficult to fall and stay asleep when feeling stressed.

Tips for Becoming Great in Bed

Sleep is crucial for achieving balance in your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. To help find that balance, here are some tips to improve your “sleep hygiene”:

1. Create a Personal Sleep Schedule and Stick to It!

One of the best ways to improve your sleep hygiene is by establishing a sleep schedule. Choose a bedtime and wake-up time, and set alarms for both. While you might feel tempted to turn off alarms on weekends, try to avoid doing so. Maintaining a consistent sleep schedule means you may no longer need those long weekend naps. Over time, your body will adjust, and you may even find yourself waking up without an alarm!

2. Establish Bedtime Rituals

After a long day, it’s often hard to unwind. However, it’s essential to slow down and prepare yourself for sleep. Kersta recommends taking a warm bath, meditating, doing some light yoga, or reading a few pages of a book (not on an electronic device). Plater suggests applying calming essential oils to the soles of your feet to set the tone for the night. Lavender, chamomile, and neroli are both relaxing and have sedative properties.

3. Exercise Regularly

Regular physical activity, a few hours before bedtime, can actually help you fall asleep faster and achieve deeper rest. However, avoid intense exercise right before bed, as it stimulates cortisol release, activating your brain’s alertness mechanism (Harvard Medical School Sleep Department, n.d.). Try to exercise earlier in the day, up to three hours before going to bed.

4. Limit Sleep Disruptors

Alcohol and caffeine before bed can negatively affect your sleep. Both are stimulants—caffeine keeps you awake, while alcohol can cause more frequent awakenings during the night. Limit caffeine intake at least six hours before bed and avoid drinking alcohol within three hours of bedtime (Harvard Medical School Sleep Department, n.d.).

5. Create a Sleep-Inducing Environment

Adjusting your bedroom is another way to promote good sleep hygiene. Start by limiting bedroom activities to sleep and intimacy. Consider removing your computer, TV, work materials, and phone from the room, associating the bedroom only with sleep. Minimize other distractions:

• If you have a pet that wakes you up at night, keep it out of the bedroom.

• For outside noise, consider earplugs, a white noise machine, or a fan.

• Keep your room cool and dark with air conditioning, blackout curtains, or a sleep mask.

• Change your bedding or pillows to make your bed as comfortable as possible.