Combat Daylight Savings Time With a Nap!
The foundation offers some guidance as part of its Sleep Awareness Week:
- Most adults need seven to nine hours to function properly.
- Leave a couple of hours between eating and going to bed.
- Turn off mobile devices before you head to bed. Blue light from screens can affect your ability to sleep.
- Make your room all about sleep: Use a comfortable mattress, pillow and bedding, and keep your room dark.
- Create a bedtime ritual.
deep breathing, stretches and other relaxing exercises part of your pre-slumber routine. - Keep a piece of paper next to your bed. Write down any worries before trying to get to sleep.
As a society, we tend to treat sleep like a luxury or a necessary evil rather than a health issue.
To help regulate our sleep patterns generally, we should try to follow some of these helpful hints:
- Get some sunlight first thing in the morning. It triggers your brain to stay awake and alert early in the day and helps you ease into sleep a little earlier at night.
- Setting an alarm might be the only thing that helps you get up in the morning, but try setting one at night to remind you when it's time to go to bed.
- Did you know that having warm feet can help you sleep? Pull on a pair of socks before bed to speed up how quickly you'll fall asleep.
- Even the smallest amount of light can disrupt your sleep patterns. Keep your bedroom as dark as possible for the best night's sleep.
- Exercise regularly? You'll sleep better. Even a few minutes of physical activity a day can help.
- Paint your bedroom a tranquil color to make your room a restful
- Naps, when limited to 30 minutes and not too close to bedtime, won't interrupt your nightly sleep routine.
- Yoga can help you wind down at the end of the day and calm your mind, which also slows your breathing and heart rate for better sleep.
"There are 70 countries that practice daylight saving time, so you have millions of people suffering from sleep deprivation," said Christopher Barnes, an associate professor of management at the University of Washington. "We work and live in a culture that tries to cram in so much activity. Because of this, everything else suffers. I always tell my students that sleep makes everything better: your work, your life, your health and your relationships."
So now you can snuggle up in your bed with your favorite fluffy if its only 4.00pm