Are you always tired? Feel like you don’t have the energy to get you through the day? 2020 was a rough year for everyone. If you’ve been lucky enough to keep your job and had the chance to work remotely, you know now that it often means working more hours. People are always checking emails and responding because they feel like there’s no barrier between home and work life.
If you’ve got a family with kids, it’s even tougher. With so many children doing remote school at home, many parents have to juggle getting work done with making sure their kids are keeping up with schoolwork.
With higher levels of stress, health needs to be even more of a priority. Sleep has gotten a lot of attention in recent years when it comes to physical and mental health. What was once a badge of honor when people said they never slept has become ridiculous, and rightfully so.
Lack of sleep drives down cognitive function. You make poorer choices and have less energy to meet the demands of your day. If you’re interested in learning how you can turn things around and start to get better sleep, you’re in the right place. Here are some tips you can use to improve sleep quality.
Cut Your Caffeine Intake Earlier in the Day
A lot of people need constant caffeine to keep running. Whether you’re a coffee fiend or rely on energy drinks or diet soda, it’s easy to consume too much caffeine in a day. If you’re drinking caffeine late into the day, it’s going to disrupt your sleep patterns. You’ll toss and turn in your bed for what seems like hours before finally dozing off.
Give yourself a hard cutoff to stop drinking caffeine. Make it in the early or mid-afternoon. Don’t drink coffee after dinner.
Stay Away from Screens in the Evening
We know this one is hard, but this will have a massive impact on getting you better sleep. We’ve all become so accustomed to checking our emails hundreds of times each day. Add to that the constant checking of social media. As we lay in bed, we watch some videos and send some texts.
All of this screen time is putting a strain on our eyes and keeping our brains stimulated right up until we hit the bed. It’s hard for your brain to suddenly know it’s time to shut down. A better way to do things is by avoiding screen time an hour or so before you want to fall asleep. It will give you mind and body time to slowly wind down.
Invest in Good Bedding
The quality of your mattress and the sheets and pillows you use affects your sleep. Spend the money to buy a good mattress that fits your sleep profile. Purchase some high thread count sheets and a good pillow. With the right bedding, going to sleep becomes a pleasure instead of something you dread every day.
Eliminate Sugar from Your Diet
Sugar, like caffeine, is a stimulant that will keep your body and brain churning when you want to go to sleep. Late-night snacking is detrimental to sleep patterns, so cut down on the amount of sugar you are eating, especially after dinner. Your diet impacts sleep, so a healthy diet will get you better sleep.
Peptides and Sleep Quality
Sermorelin is a peptide that’s a growth hormone-releasing hormone, or GHRH. Growth hormone is associated with growth and healing, and it’s commonly known that the hormone is secreted during sleep. Research done on rainbow trout suggests that sermorelin increased the amount of growth hormone and proper orexin secretion. There is research underway into the benefits of using sermorelin in sleep disorders.
Exercise Before You Go to Bed
A good run or a nice long walk is the perfect wind-down to get your stress out before bedtime. Indeed, having an exercise routine will keep you sleeping longer and more deeply. You have to train your body so it knows when it’s time to rest. There’s nothing quite like the feeling of hitting the bed when you’re worn out. Your body will enter sleep faster and you’ll get all of the regenerative benefits that sleep provides.
Buy a White Noise Machine
A lot of people have success getting better sleep with a white noise machine in their bedrooms. With these devices, you can fall asleep listening to the soothing sound of falling rain or waves crashing on the beach. If you’re someone who has a hard time falling asleep, you could see a big difference with a basic white noise device. They’re affordable and available online and at most department stores. You can set them for a certain time and some even sync with your phone. Most have several different noise options and volume controls to help you customize it for your sleep time.
