In the previous post I provided an explanation of the link between depression and sleeping disorders. Here I am posting tips on how to get to bed easily and sleep well.
Try to follow instructions below to get asleep as soon as possible. If you treat your body a nice rest, it’s going to help you a lot if you want to cure depression.
As usually here are the key-points with my comments:
1. Keep the lights low before bedtime.
Remember: melatonin is a hormone of darkness. When it is produced you start felling sleepy. Thus keeping the lights low will help your body to lower daytime activity and prepare you for a sleep.
2. Follow a routine to help relax and wind down before sleep, such as reading a book, listening to music, or taking a bath.
When you are depressed it is hard to relax your body and calm down your thoughts about how everything is bad-bad-bad. However, shifting your activity into reading can make a great deal. Music and bath can also be good natural relaxants which will drive at least some of the worries away from you.
3. Try not to take naps during the day because naps may make you less sleepy at night.
And not only!
Usually human body needs about 8 hours of sleep for regeneration. Thus it will demand these hours either in night or daytime. However, taking naps during the day causes a hormonal misbalance in your body. Again: daylight prevents production of melatonin, which is associated with sleeping.
4. Avoid Caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol late in the day. Caffeine and nicotine are stimulants and can keep you from falling asleep. Alcohol can cause waking in the night and interferes with sleep quality.
Try to awoid overexcitement before going to bed - be it chemical stimulants or physical excercises. Your body will need more time to restore to a calm state before it is relaxed enough for falling asleep.
Try to follow instructions below to get asleep as soon as possible. If you treat your body a nice rest, it’s going to help you a lot if you want to cure depression.
As usually here are the key-points with my comments:
1. Keep the lights low before bedtime.
Remember: melatonin is a hormone of darkness. When it is produced you start felling sleepy. Thus keeping the lights low will help your body to lower daytime activity and prepare you for a sleep.
2. Follow a routine to help relax and wind down before sleep, such as reading a book, listening to music, or taking a bath.
When you are depressed it is hard to relax your body and calm down your thoughts about how everything is bad-bad-bad. However, shifting your activity into reading can make a great deal. Music and bath can also be good natural relaxants which will drive at least some of the worries away from you.
3. Try not to take naps during the day because naps may make you less sleepy at night.
And not only!
Usually human body needs about 8 hours of sleep for regeneration. Thus it will demand these hours either in night or daytime. However, taking naps during the day causes a hormonal misbalance in your body. Again: daylight prevents production of melatonin, which is associated with sleeping.
4. Avoid Caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol late in the day. Caffeine and nicotine are stimulants and can keep you from falling asleep. Alcohol can cause waking in the night and interferes with sleep quality.
Try to awoid overexcitement before going to bed - be it chemical stimulants or physical excercises. Your body will need more time to restore to a calm state before it is relaxed enough for falling asleep.
5. Make your sleeping place comfortable. Be sure that it is dark, quiet, and not too warm or too cold.
If something disturbs your body, it will not be able to relax, but will work on reacting to the irritants. Thus you are more likely to fall asleep when your body is safe and comfortable as well as your thoughts are calm.
6. Try to go to sleep at the same time each night and get up at the same time each morning.
This one is simple. After plenty of repetition your body will get used to fit its rhythms to an everyday ‘schedule’.
If something disturbs your body, it will not be able to relax, but will work on reacting to the irritants. Thus you are more likely to fall asleep when your body is safe and comfortable as well as your thoughts are calm.
6. Try to go to sleep at the same time each night and get up at the same time each morning.
This one is simple. After plenty of repetition your body will get used to fit its rhythms to an everyday ‘schedule’.
7. Try not to exercise close to bedtime. Experts suggest not exercising for 3 hours before the time you go to sleep.
Just like in # 4: your bloodstream, breathing and internals will need time to get to normal state after excercises. Untill that you won't get asleep.
8. Don't eat a heavy meal late in the day. A light snack before bedtime, however, may help you sleep.
Heavy meal for your stomack is just like heavy thoughts for your mind. When your belly is busy taking care for your food - your body is unable to stop the process and shut down imidiatelly.
9. Avoid using your bed for anything other than sleep or sex.
If you watch TV, eat or do whatever else in your bed, your body will fail to recognize it as a place intended for sleep.
10. If you have trouble lying awake worrying about things, try making a to-do list before you go to bed. This may help you to relieve of those worries for whole night.
Instead of thinking you need to do this and that - you unload your mind and write it down point by point. After that you can be easy knowing you have a list of what-to-does and will not miss or forget something during the day.
The list is taken from here.
Good night! Sleep tight! And I will appreciate any comments or questions.
