We have all been told the importance of a good night’s sleep, though there are a whole host of reasons that may prevent us from sufficiently recharging our batteries when we hit the pillow each night.
According to the latest Great British Sleep Survey, most people in the UK are kept awake by their own stresses and worries about what happened today and what they’ve got on tomorrow. And although there are common physical factors such as noise, bodily discomfort and needing to make regular trips to the toilet, it seems that psychological stress is the most prevalent cause of sleeplessness.
The fact is that poor sleeping habits affect every aspect of our daily lives, and we tend to feel the impact most during the following day, both physically and emotionally. That’s why regular sleeping habits are absolutely essential to secure a healthy lifestyle routine.
With this in mind, let’s take a quick look at some expert tips for getting a better night’s sleep… and no, we don’t just mean counting sheep.
We often think of exercise in terms of its physical benefits, but the psychological plus points are just as important, if not more so. The energy we generate within our bodies by eating food throughout the day needs to be regularly burned, not just to prevent gaining weight, but also to make us more mentally ready for bed.
You don’t need to go too deep into the physiological science behind this to realise that building up a sweat as part of an hour’s daily exercise is often more than enough to ensure we’ll be reaching the Land of Nod sooner rather than later.
They say the two most important possessions you can have in life are a good mattress and good pair of shoes, because if you’re not in one, you’re in the other. Maintaining the quality of your mattress is so important to prevent common ailments like back ache, which in turn can severely affect the quality of your sleep each night.
If you find yourself tossing or turning just to find a comfortable spot where you’re not necessarily being poked by the odd spring or two, it may be time to get down to your local bed shop.
A medium to firm mattress is more advisable than a soft mattress with little support – and it’s an investment that can work wonders for your sleep pattern.
First of all, it’s really important to set yourself a time that you turn the lights off each night and get into bed. Your mind will eventually become conditioned to the action of turning off the lights, and the challenge of falling asleep will become easier and easier.
However, it pays to think about what you’re doing beforehand too. People have a tendency these days to be glued to their smartphone or tablet screen even when they’re lying in bed. By disconnecting earlier in the evening, an hour before you plan to go to sleep for instance, and perhaps spending that time reading a chapter or two of a good book, your brain will feel more ready to hit the hay than it would otherwise.
