Importance of a Healthy Sleep
Ideally, a person should get at least 7 hours of sleep to classify it in a healthy sleeping category. Sleeping is a body’s mechanism of complete rest to ensure the health and to regain the strength for the next day.
Insomnia or lack of proper sleep has become a common problem these days. Sleep Deprivation leads to some severe health issues like:
• Short Memory
• Frequent Sickness
• Increase hungriness
• Unable to focus
These issues may sound small at the moment but have proven to be severe in the long run.
How to get healthy sleep?
• Sticking to a sleep schedule:
When we were kids, we used to hear “Early to bed, Early to rise, makes a person healthy, wealthy and wise”. Well, the saying is true. Going to sleep at decent hours and waking up at decent hours not only helps you maintain a healthy sleep but makes you feel active and fresh throughout the day.
• Eating Healthy:
Satisfy your body by eating healthy. Eating healthy also means eating being full and not overstuffed or starved. Also, we must focus on not drinking too much water or any other beverage before sleeping so that we may enjoy a disruptive night without those trips to the toilets at midnight.
• Bedtime Ritual:
Take up any light activity like reading, listening to soothing music or a hot shower before sleeping. This would act as your own small ritual to prepare your body for sleep.
• Avoid Caffeine at late hours:
Having caffeine in the morning is fine but as the morning shifts towards the other half of the day, the consumption must be avoided. Even small traces of caffeine has the tendency of affecting your sleep.
• Exercising:
Exercising is a healthy habit and must be taken into consideration not only for sleeping problems but also in general to avoid any health issue. Exercising helps you sleep better at night and makes you less sleepy during the day.
• Meditation:
Meditation helps in increasing your focus and releasing all the negative thoughts and stress. It helps you attain peace of mind. It also helps you get a peaceful sleep at night.
• Limit Daytime Naps:
Long naps during daytime interfere with the sleep at night. It is advisable to limit your nap to about 10 to 30 minutes to ensure a good sleep at night.
• Comfortable Mattresses and Pillows:
Mattresses and Pillows have the power to alter your sleep if you do not choose the right one. Take your time while choosing the perfect one for you. Also, change the mattress if it has exceeded its life expectancy.
• Dim Lights:
Lowering the light 2-3 hours prior to the bedtime helps the body to prepare for the sleep. Low lights signal the brain to make melatonin, the hormone that induces sleep.
• No to Tobacco:
Similar to Caffeine, Nicotine also keeps you from falling asleep. Further making you insomniac so it is advisable to say No to Tobacco.
• Free your mind:
Release the work tension, serious conversations or complicated decisions 2-3 hours prior to sleep. Thinking too much about anything won’t let you sleep so it’s advisable to write it down somewhere, engage in the usual bedtime ritual and go to sleep.
Having a quality sleep is important for your health. Just release those negative thoughts and focus on resting. It would help you enable a positive mindset and also make you happier in general.