Dr. Quan is someone that cares for all kinds of patients that have a variety of sleeping disorders. These sleeping disorders range from insomnia to restless leg syndrome. If you struggle with getting quality sleep, you can use some of the tips he discusses below.
1. Make a Commitment
One of the best things you can do to improve your sleep is to commit yourself. By committing to sleep better, you can put yourself in a better position to achieve quality sleep. You want to give yourself some accountability. One of the best and easiest ways to do this is by telling a family member or friend that you are prioritizing your sleep. By doing this, you can have them hold you accountable for doing so.
2. Come Up With a Routine
Having a routine isn’t only good for babies, but also adults. You want to establish a good sleep routine because it can do wonders for improving your ability to not only fall asleep but also to remain asleep. You want to try to stick to going to bed at the same time daily. Likewise, you want to wake up at the same time, as well. Ensure that you adhere to your sleep routine both during the week and on the weekends. A lot of people fall into the trap of messing up their sleep routine on the weekends.
When it comes to figuring out how much you should be sleeping, there is no definitive answer for everyone. After all, everyone’s body is different and requires different amounts of sleep. However, everyone is recommended to get a minimum of 7 hours of sleep according to the Academy of Sleep Medicine and Sleep Research Society.
3. Improve Your Sleep Environment
Having a quality sleep environment that is conducive to sleep is key. You want to ensure that your room is at the proper temperature and that it’s adequately dark. Ideally, you want your room to be as dark as possible while sleeping. Because of this, you want to look into investing in quality blackout curtains. This can help to keep the light out of your bedroom. If not, you can get an eye mask to ensure your sleep isn’t disturbed. If you happen to live in the middle of the city or an area that has loud and disruptive noises outside, consider using either a white noise machine or your phone to drown out the ambient sounds. Ensure that your mattress isn’t causing you sleep issues, take a look at these My Green Mattress ratings and consider investing in your sleep.
4. Keep Cool
Your bedroom should be kept anywhere from 65 to 70 degrees depending on what you are more comfortable with. This is true both in the summer and winter. You want to find the optimal temperature for yourself.
5. Exercise Consistently
Getting regular exercise is not only good for yourself, but it’s great for your sleep. It can be one of the best ways to improve your sleep. By getting sufficient exercise into your daily life, you can improve your ability to fall asleep and stay asleep. However, you want to try to get this exercise in during the day. Avoid exercising a minimum of two hours before you go to sleep. Otherwise, you can find it making it increasingly difficult to fall asleep since you are stimulating your body when it’s time to wind down.
6. Avoid Heavy Meals
While you should be looking to avoid heavy meals before bedtime for various reasons, one of the most important is to keep it from disrupting your sleep. A heavy meal can lead you to feel discomfort. Because of this, it can negatively impact your sleep.
7. Go Outside
Whenever you wake up, your goal should be to get sunlight exposure. Whether it’s looking out the window or going for a brisk walk, you want to get some type of exposure right when you wake up. The sun helps to regulate your internal clock. Therefore, by getting sunlight exposure when you wake up, you can keep your circadian rhythm in check.
8. Limit Caffeine and Other Stimulants
You want to try to avoid drinking too much caffeine later in the day. Otherwise, it can negatively impact your sleep. You should avoid nicotine since it’s a stimulant, as well.
9. Try to quit smoking
Nicotine is also a stimulant that can disrupt sleep or interrupt sleep through withdrawal symptoms. Another reason is why it is advisable to give up smoking.
10. Avoid alcohol before bed
But a glass of red wine helps me fall asleep. We hear that often and this claim is usually not wrong. The alcohol reduces brain activity and actually makes us fall asleep easier. However, it has a negative effect on the quality of our sleep and leads to sleep interruptions and early waking up.
11. Use the reading or night mode of your smartphone.
This mode reduces the blue light component of the display. The blue light inhibits the release of the hormone melatonin, which is responsible for our tiredness. This mainly delays falling asleep and we lie awake longer. Instead, try to use the awakening effect of the blue light during the day.
