1. Calm Your Mind with Meditation

Meditation is a great way to calm the mind, and it’s especially effective when you’re trying to fall asleep.

Meditation can help you sleep because it helps regulate your heart rate, blood pressure and breathing. This helps lower your stress levels, allowing you to relax and feel more peaceful before bedtime.

There are many different styles of meditation—you just need to find one that works best for you! If you want something easy-to-follow but still beneficial, we recommend guided meditations where someone guides you through the process with their voice (e.g., Calm or Headspace). Or if silent meditation appeals more to your style, there are plenty of apps out there that make this easier than ever before by giving instructions through text rather than audio recordings (e.g., Insight Timer).

2. Get Some Exercise

• Get Some Exercise

Exercise stimulates the body’s natural endorphins, which are chemicals that make you feel good and relaxed. After exercising, your body is in a naturally tired state and it’s easier to fall asleep. It’s best to exercise at the same time every day so that your body becomes accustomed to this routine and starts producing endorphins on its own when you work out. Additionally, exercising during the morning helps you wake up and stay awake all day long—which makes getting into bed at night easier than when you’re exhausted after a long day at work or school.

3. Maintain a Regular Sleep Schedule

• Keeping a regular sleep schedule is important for your health. Our sleep cycle is regulated by circadian rhythm which tells us when to sleep and wake up. If you keep a regular schedule, it’s easier for your body to know when it’s time for bed, so getting into bed at the same time each night helps establish good habits that will help you fall asleep more easily.
• Good sleep hygiene includes making sure your room is dark and quiet, choosing comfortable clothing and sheets (and no cat-hair comforters), avoiding caffeine or alcohol before bedtime, exercising regularly but not too close to naptime, avoiding screens at least an hour before bedtime (including TVs/phones/tablets), etc.

4. Address Your Health Issues

• 4. Address Your Health Issues

If you’re having trouble sleeping, consider seeing your doctor. Talk to your doctor about your sleep and their advice will help you determine if there are any medical issues that could be causing the problem. If you continue to have difficulty sleeping after speaking with your doctor or if they suspect an underlying health issue, it may be time to see a sleep specialist. A sleep specialist can perform a thorough evaluation of your habits, environment and lifestyle in order to determine ways that might help improve the quality of your sleep and reduce daytime fatigueiness.

Sleep specialists often encounter patients who have never been evaluated for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), which is a common cause of poor quality nighttime rest and daytime drowsiness among adults.[7] OSA occurs when tissues at the back of throat collapse during sleep interrupting normal breathing patterns.[8] Nighttime oxygen levels decrease as does blood flow through brain tissue resulting in poor memory recall; decreased energy after waking up; mood swings due to less serotonin production during REM cycles.[9] These symptoms may feel like chronic fatigue syndrome so don’t be embarrassed if this diagnosis comes as a surprise! If you think it could apply—ask!

5. Limit Blue Light Exposure

• Limit Blue Light Exposure

This is probably the most important thing you can do to get better sleep. Blue light keeps us awake and it’s emitted by all screens, from your phone to your TV to your computer screen. Try to shut down all these devices at least one hour before bedtime, or use blue light blocking glasses if necessary (we like this pair of affordable ones). If that’s too much for you, there are also apps on your phone that will help filter out blue light after a certain time is set.

The takeaway is that while we can’t always control when we fall asleep, most of us can utilize these techniques to help calm our minds and slip into a deep sleep.

While we can’t always control when we fall asleep, most of us can utilize these techniques to help calm our minds and slip into a deep sleep.

• Be mindful of your body’s signals
• Exercise regularly (but not to excess)
• Take a warm bath or shower before bedtime
• Eat a light dinner, or no dinner at all
• Avoid caffeine after noon