Still awake? Here’s help catching ZZZs

If you’ve read my previous blog posts, you know WHY you can’t sleep and you are working on setting your room up to encourage the Sandman’s visit, but he doesn’t know when to come! You have to get into a healthy sleep routine so he can put you on his schedule. We have heard it from every source and we know it will help but with our ADD, multitasking, FOMO mentality, it can be difficult to lay down a routine. Before you jump ahead and suddenly see yourself sucking down prune juice and watching reruns of Nick-at-Night for the rest of your life, STOP. It’s not same-exact-thing-everyday-FOREVER, but to reprogram your routine, you have to ease up on the nightlife and settle into this for at least two weeks or so.  Reprogramming our bodies to anticipate what’s next helps us transition easier: It takes 11 days for something to become habit (YES, you have to maintain this for 11 days STRAIGHT) so figure out what your routine is going to be and do it, REALLY do it, for 11 days. Don’t take weekends off, don’t go party til 2 am. Take the 11 days to solidify your sleep routine, one month to set it, and then it’ll be okay if you break routine one or two nights a week. Setting your body up for routine is CRUCIAL. How badly do you want this?

Not everyone’s night time routine will have the same requirements so you have to figure out what is right for you, what your body wants and needs. But here’s a guideline:

1- As the sun sets, start going into “night mode:” Turn off overhead lights and move into lamp lighting with softer, warmer hues. LED lights are too bright, too blue. Use lower watt bulbs with a warm tone.These days, almost all technology (phones, computers) have a “night mode”- activate that as soon as the sun start setting.  Be sure you’ve had dinner, it’s okay to have smaller snacks during the evening but your big meal should be done by nightfall.

2- Plan tomorrow. Get out your outfit, pack bags and lunches (children can do this for themselves if you teach them well). Think through everything you’ve got planned and workout your game plan. Big things at work on your mind? Wrap it up right now, set it aside. Remind yourself it will be there tomorrow, no one can do anything else tonight, and you aren’t helping by fretting over it. When you wake after a GOOD night sleep, you’ll deal with the situation much better.

3- Check your email, texts, and make last calls two hours before bed. This gives you enough time to work out issues and leave them before you hit the hay. Talking on the phone or texting with friends is fun but socialization is not what you need when you’re trying to unwind.

4- Two hours before bed, turn down the volume. Use quieter voices (with spouses, kids, roommates). Take a bath (socks with foot cream, lavender lotion, things that bring  familiarity and comfort- things you can do on the road or out of your routine to help refocus to night mode). It’s time to go into full unwind.  It’s YOU time (or family time). Read to your kids, snuggle with your dog, turn down the tv (or turn it off), read a real book (they still exist), avoid the news (on tv, on your phone, etc). Do adult coloring, sit and think (let your brain wander), have a cup of tea on the back porch and stare into the evening, meditate, soak in a long bath, think of things you can do that don’t involve a screen because screens are one of the key factors in sleep issues. Snack and drink something (this should be your last trip to the kitchen before bed, so shut it down; tell yourself you’re full, you’re hydrated).

5- A half hour before bed, go through your night routine (whatever that may be: shut down electronics, lock up, recheck anything that may be on your brain at night- the nagging things you think of when you lie down). Let your pets out to potty, make sure the kids are set up for a successful sleep, do a once over of each room to make sure it’s tidy and ready for tomorrow (it helps). As you walk through the house, let your brain know you’re leaving all of this until tomorrow. It’s okay, it will all be there when you get up. When you get to your room, shut your door. You are shutting out the rest of the world until tomorrow (say it).

5- 15 minutes before bed, journal, write your thoughts or things to remember for tomorrow (no, don’t text it, your phone shouldn’t be near you right now, WRITE. IT. DOWN!)  The lamp should be on, the overhead off. Read, lie there, think of the great things that happened that day. NOTHING negative, keep it out of your brain. Gently guide your brain away from stressful thoughts, remind yourself that tomorrow you’ll be better equipped to deal with it- you have to catch those ZZZs.

6- Bed time. Turn off the lamp, look into the pitch black and feel the weight of your eyelids, tell yourself how heavy they’re getting. Think about things that make you smile or run through the alphabet with mundane things- name an animal for each letter or let your mind name off the the animals you can think of that start with the letter A. All of the boys names with the letter D. Whatever is mindless and repetitive.