Sleep Hygiene; How to Improve Your Sleep and Overcome Sleep Problems

Sleep Hygiene; How to Improve Your Sleep and Overcome Sleep Problems

Every human being needs sleep in their lives, and this aspect of life is triggered at night but a large population of adults lacks adequate sleep. Regardless of the reason – stress, unfavorable environment, sleep deficiencies - a lack of sleep has major consequences on a person’s health. Scientists have found the correlation between sleep which is too short or too poor with fatal conditions ranging from heart diseases, depression, obesity, and turbulence in diabetes. Fortunately, all these issues can be solved by adherence to certain principles under sleep hygiene practices that enables both the quality of sleep to be increased as well as its duration.

Here in this guide, you will find a comprehensive review of the concept of sleep hygiene, practical ways to approach sleep issues, and further recommendations founded on research to enhance your sleep.

1. Sleep hygiene and why it is important?
The term sleep hygiene in any given population means the behaviours and conditions that facilitate quality and quantity sleep. They include cracked nails and hair loss, insomnia, fatigue during the day, and a suppressed immune system. On the other hand good sleep etiquettes enhance the body natural body clock, decrease stress and also ensure proper functioning of mind and emotions.

The recommended number of hours of sleep that adults should get every night is 7-9 hours according to Cleveland Clinic and Mayo Clinic. Sleep hygiene is all about the amount of health and rest that you get rather than the number of hours you spend sleeping. The use of the following techniques increases them both or separately as the following:

2. This leads to the next of our key point: one must try to set, and maintain, a sleep schedule.
Otherwise, one of the most important aspects of sleep hygiene that can be recommended is schedule keeping. The final rule in a healthy sleep schedule plan is to maintain regular rising and going to bed times throughout the week including on weekends. This assists in strengthening your body’s biological circadian rhythm. Lack of sleep also affects mature persons and the recommended methods include rising from the bed if one does not fall asleep within 20 minutes and engages in an unrelated calming activity such as reading or listen to music.

Research also show that abrupt changes in sleep leads to poor sleep hygiene, increased susceptibility to disease, and decreased brain power. By adopting a regular schedule, your brain gets to understand when it is time to sleep and thus result in more sleep at night.

3. How to Make Ideal Sleeping Conditions
Control of bedroom environment is important in determining the quality of sleep a people get. To create a sleep-inducing space, consider the following:

a) Temperature: The temperature in the bedroom should range between 60-67°F (15-19°C) because lower temperatures are associated with more sound sleep .

b) Lighting: In essence, darkness inhibits formation of the sleep inhibiting hormone and releases the sleep promoting hormone called melatonin. Light should also be controlled; one may use blackout curtain or a sleep mask to avoid being waken-up by light.

c) Noise: Some solutions are using white noise machines or earplugs to mask the disturbing noises.

d) Comfort: You should spend on a good mattress and pillows so that they provide a good posture to the body. Lying in bed should not be done for others things like working or watching television to insure that it is only associated with sleeping.

Ambiance of a sleep should not be threatening and needs to be responsive to the need for quiet that comes with sleep. It is important to note that light and noise disruptions particularly in the urban environment have been found to negatively affect the quality of sleep and the predispose the owner’s to sleep disorders.

4. One area which should not be overlooked is your evening activities.
It means that whatever you engage in before bedtime can have a tremendous impact on your ability to sleep. Specific items of diet, drinks or behaviors are restful or otherwise.

a) Limit Stimulants: Caffeine, nicotine and other stimulants should be eliminated from diet for at least 4-6 hours to the time of going to bed. Coffee and tea contain caffeine which hinders production of sleep inducing chemicals preventing the brain from going to sleep.

b) Watch Your Diet: Large, heavy meals, or spicy foods are great culprits of indigestion which alters the natural sleeping pattern of the body. Try to avoid snacking right before bed and try to consume the last meal 2-3 hours before sleeping. Likewise, alcohol may make it easier for you to fall asleep, but it affects the REM stage of sleep at a later time.

c) Wind Down: Reading a book, meditating or mild exercising like gentle yoga can be other forms of signaling the body that it’s time for a nap or sleep. Do not engage in high intensity cognitive or physical tasks an hour before sleeping time.

This also assures a reduction in the anxiety over sleep which comes with the practice of creating a bedtime routine. It is easy to learn simple exercises such as deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, and mindfulness meditation that can help sooth your mind and get your body ready for sleep .


5. Limit Naps and Daytime Sleep
Frequent and short naps of about half an hour-45 minutes are soothing while long or post lunch naps may affect night sleep. If one must nap, try to do it for a limited amount of time and try to nap early in the day, . A specific suggestion for those people who work at night is to take a nap before going to work in an effort to offset the effects of sleep loss.

It is dangerous to sleep a lot during the day especially if you are not get enough hours of sleep during the night. Instead of using naps to compensate for sleep loss, it’s important to treat the cause of sleepiness.

6. Physical Exercise Should be a Regular Activity
Physical activity is very important in encouraging proper sleep. In the same page of Mayo Clinic, it was stated that moderate aerobic exercises, including brisk walk, swimming, or cycling make a person fall asleep faster in addition to increasing the proportion of his or her deep sleep. However, timing is important. Probably the most universally ascertained rule is the restriction of strenuous physical exertions in the last 3 hours before going to sleep.

As for physical activity, here is what the sources say: ;Daylight exposure – Some studies show that going outside or getting exposure to natural light in the day can enhance sleep quality by regulating the body’s natural sleep-wake cycle.

7. Maintain Health/Stress TO DO: the contents of this section needs work self care in VL can be managed through reduced hours or other techniques like appa Fears: Students Victoria and James There are stresses common to all students which include fear of failure, fear of the future whereas students coupe with VL stress through working few hours in a day, applying Appa techniques, mindfulness, and relaxation practices.

Stress and anxiety are one of the main leading causes of sleep disorders especially insomnia. Depression and anxiety are some of the many disorders that are usually associated with sleep disorders in that poor quality sleep will worsen a mental disorder and vice versa.

To reduce stress use mindfulness meditation or another form of journaling. Keeping a pen and paper by the bedside and writing down all the things that are bugging you or creating a checklist that has to be complied can help in easing the mind before sleep thus completely eliminating pre-sleep anxiety, Cleveland Clinic. CBT-I has been described as a highly useful tool in managing chronic sleep woes because it helps rewire negative sleep patterns.

8. Who needs the help of a professional?
However, if you have attempted the above methods and continue to have issues with your sleep you should seek medical attention. This may mean curable diseases like cancer, gastrointestinal disorders, or sleeping disorders like sleep apnea or chronic insomnia. If they are not controlled, such diseases as ischemic heart disease, obesity, and cognitive impairment become potential consequences.

Some of the therapies that sleep specialists can order and suggest include therapy, medications or use of devices such as Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machines if any underlying conditions are discovered.

Conclusion: Sleeping Matters and Their Influence on a Person’s Health
Sleep is not a luxury it is actually a very necessary product for good health of body and mind. Three main points discussed to improve sleep hygiene include: Maintaining proper sleep timings and routines, organizing your sleep environment and reducing stress during night time as well as going to bed with a healthy perspective. You should also understand that with the application of these changes you will develop improved quality of sleep as well as improved vitality, mood and health.

If some persistent sleep problems occur one should consult a physician. Healthy sleep serves as the foundation of an effective, healthy, and happy life.