SIX KEY TIPS BY RENOWNED SLEEP EXPERT, DR MATTHEW WALKER, TO HELP YOU GET BETTER QUALITY SLEEP
(Watch him (5’20”) at TED Talks-https://www.ted.com/talks/matt_walker_6_tips_for_better_sleep#t-1013)
1. Regularity: Your body loves order. Go to bed and get up at the same time each day, 7 days a week. Consistent get-up time is the most crucial for your own internal clock to work properly. Use alarms on your phone /radio, if necessary.
2. Temperature: Your bedroom should not be higher than 18 degrees C (65 Fahrenheit) for sleeping. Our core body temperature must drop by at least 1 Degree Celcius (3 degrees Fahrenheit) for sleep to happen and for us to stay asleep.
3. Darkness: Your bedroom should be as dark as possible with no small lights from gadgets /phones/clocks etc visible in the room. We need darkness in the evening time to trigger the release of the hormone Melatonin which induces sleep. So, it’s also good to gradually lower the lights as the evening closes and in particular avoid TV, computer and mobile phone screens for the final hour before going to bed. Blue light from screens induces wakefulness.
4. Get up if you are wide awake – Don’t stay in bed if you find you are still wide awake after 20/25 minutes. Get up and read or do something simple (no screens) until you feel sleepy. It’s very important to develop (or re-develop) an association in your mind between bed and sleep. So don’t stay in bed if you’re wide awake or can’t get back to sleep as that will cause your brain to associate bed with wakefulness rather than sleep. If you go to bed only when you are sleepy, gradually your brain will re-learn the association between bed and sleep.
5. Alcohol and Caffeine: Avoid caffeine after 3pm in the afternoon as it disrupts sleep. Alcohol can also have an effect of sleep so it’s not wise to overdo it in the evening time, especially as it gets later. Normal tea contains caffeine as does chocolate, so you might consider herbal or berry teas that do not. Camomile tea contains a substance that is extracted and used in some sleeping tablets. You may find it calming.
6. Develop a Wind-down routine: Think of approaching sleep wind-down as akin to landing a 747. It takes time for the brain to gradually settle down toward sleep thus the final hours of the day need to involve routines that work for you, that are relaxing – and when you find what does that for you stick to that routine. It is very important to avoid blue light and screens of any kind in the final 90 minutes before bedtime.
Also, try (3’40”) https://www.ted.com/talks/matt_walker_how_sleep_affects_your_emotions#t-1530
The long read: Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker, Penguin Books (Probably the most detailed up-to-date, in-depth report on scientific studies into sleep and its impacts today