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Tired of lying in bed wide awake when you should be fast asleep? Then it’s time to leave behind the things that are keeping us from the quality shut-eye we need every night. Sleep experts share the top sleep mistakes we’ve been making. Leave these behind in 2022 to step up your sleep game.
- Staying in bed when you can’t fall asleep- We think that if we keep tossing and turning, we’ll eventually doze off, but sleep expert Dr. Rebecca Robbins says the opposite is true. She explains that by staying in bed when we can’t sleep, we’re “classically conditioning our brains to understand that in bed is where insomnia happens.” Instead, she advises getting up and doing something mindless to help reset your brain until you feel tired again.
- Not sticking to a bedtime routine- Bedtime routines aren’t just for kids, grown-ups can benefit from a pre-sleep ritual, too. Sleep doctor Jennifer Kanady says establishing a consistent routine helps our brains learn when it’s time to sleep and that it should include three key elements: doing something that relaxes you, avoiding screens and creating an optimal sleep environment that’s dark, cool and quiet.
- Stressing over not getting enough sleep- Lots of us do this, but it doesn’t help and actually can do the opposite. Sleep psychologist Dr. Joshua Tal explains, “The more you worry about sleep loss from the previous night, the more likely sleep is to evade you the next night, too.”
- Not using sleep-friendly lighting-Dr. Michael Grandner, director of the Sleep and Health Research Program at the University of Arizona, says red light is best. So put a red light bulb in your bedroom night light to help with those ZZZs.
- Going to sleep angry- Anger activates our fight-or-flight response, which makes it challenging to feel sleepy at bedtime. So when you’re mad before bed, try to calm yourself by going for a walk, reading or doing something to get out of your head. Remember, whatever you’re angry about, it’s not worth literally losing sleep over.
Source: Well and Good