A GOOD NIGHTS SLEEP
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TOP TIPS FOR A GOOD NIGHT SLEEP
Have fun exploring the tabs below!
Patients often ask me if I have tips to help them sleep. Because good sleep is such an important part of healing, I am quite keen to offer advice where I can. Whilst not a sleep expert, there are a few simple things that can be done. I hope you find it helpful!
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FALLING ASLEEP
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STAYING ASLEEP
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WAKING UP
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PEN AND PAPER
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MINDFULNESS
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"UNPLUG"
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BLUE LIGHT
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I often find that certain thoughts are keeping me awake, namely the classic “must not forget to do this tomorrow, must speak to so and so, etc“. A helpful tool that I like to use is to always keep a pen and pad on my bedside table. If I remember something important as I am falling asleep, then I can simply write it down and I can then afford to forget about it, peacefully drift off, and be sure to remember it in the morning.
On the nights I find it particularly difficult to fall asleep, for example if I am worried about a lecture I need to give the next day and I’m concerned to have forgotten something important (when there’s no reason I should have), I know a guided meditation will make a huge difference. There are a few I like to use, namely from The Honest Guys (this one below I’ve used many times)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jyy0ra2WcQQ
I also like to smartphone app called Calm (available on Android and iPhone) and again, listening to one of their recordings will put me in a relaxed state where I can fall asleep much more easily.
https://www.calm.com
There are many mindfulness apps out there so have a browse.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jyy0ra2WcQQ
I also like to smartphone app called Calm (available on Android and iPhone) and again, listening to one of their recordings will put me in a relaxed state where I can fall asleep much more easily.
https://www.calm.com
There are many mindfulness apps out there so have a browse.
Falling asleep requires you to fully “let go“ off the worries of the day. I sometimes like to picture an electric plug that I pull, only to be plugged back in tomorrow, when I wake up. I make sure my alarm is set, and I make the conscious decision to not worry about a single thing until it goes off the next morning. This gives me confidence that I can go to sleep peacefully.
Blue light produced by artificial screens seems to have an impact on our sleep cycle too.
Avoid looking at a screen after sunset if possible. Many smartphones can now be set to produce less blue light after sunset -- have a look at your display settings and look for "Night Mode" or "Night Shift".
Avoid looking at a screen after sunset if possible. Many smartphones can now be set to produce less blue light after sunset -- have a look at your display settings and look for "Night Mode" or "Night Shift".
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BREATHING
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CONSISTENT ALARM
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BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS
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If writing thoughts down doesn’t help and I still feel agitated, the following breathing exercise is truly helpful. It involves breathing in on 4 slow counts, and out on 8 slow counts.
The aim is to breath out for longer than you are breathing in. It is the opposite of hyper-ventilating. The 4 in, 8 out breathing decreases the amount of oxygen present in the blood. When you are in a stressful situation (fight or flight), for example when you need to run away from a tiger, you need a high oxygen saturation to feed your muscle and brain cells to act quickly. This is why we tend to hyper-ventilate and our heart rate goes up when we are stressed. The cells pick up on this increased oxygen saturation and go into their stressed state. When the oxygen saturation decreases in the blood, it tells your body that you are in a relaxed situation (rest and digest) and that it can be calm. This type of breathing therefore tricks your physiology into a relaxed state.
The aim is to breath out for longer than you are breathing in. It is the opposite of hyper-ventilating. The 4 in, 8 out breathing decreases the amount of oxygen present in the blood. When you are in a stressful situation (fight or flight), for example when you need to run away from a tiger, you need a high oxygen saturation to feed your muscle and brain cells to act quickly. This is why we tend to hyper-ventilate and our heart rate goes up when we are stressed. The cells pick up on this increased oxygen saturation and go into their stressed state. When the oxygen saturation decreases in the blood, it tells your body that you are in a relaxed situation (rest and digest) and that it can be calm. This type of breathing therefore tricks your physiology into a relaxed state.
It is helpful to always have your alarm set at the same time — this helps your body regulate its sleeping pattern and it’ll be easier to stay asleep until it’s time to wake up. (it’ll also be easier to actually get out of bed!)
If you wake up too early, it may be that hunger is waking you up. Thinking about a normal stress response, when it’s time to run away from the tiger (fight or flight), you need sugar in the blood to feed your muscles. So if the body needs higher blood sugar levels, it can start to secrete stress hormones to achieve this — which is going to wake you up.
The trick here is to make sure your blood sugar levels stay steady throughout the night. I certainly don’t recommend going to sleep on a full stomach (it’s not terribly comfortable), but what you can do is have a little snack before going to bed. Again, thinking about steady blood sugar levels, you want something with a low glycaemic index (no sweets, no refined grains). Instead, think high fat and high protein. For example, oat cakes with peanut butter, hummus, nuts, cheese and the like (unless advised otherwise) just before bed, may help you steady your blood sugar levels through the night and stay asleep for longer.
The trick here is to make sure your blood sugar levels stay steady throughout the night. I certainly don’t recommend going to sleep on a full stomach (it’s not terribly comfortable), but what you can do is have a little snack before going to bed. Again, thinking about steady blood sugar levels, you want something with a low glycaemic index (no sweets, no refined grains). Instead, think high fat and high protein. For example, oat cakes with peanut butter, hummus, nuts, cheese and the like (unless advised otherwise) just before bed, may help you steady your blood sugar levels through the night and stay asleep for longer.
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GENERAL
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CONSISTENT ALARM
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CAFFEINE
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MORE
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The quality of your sleep will be helpful here. Try some of the tips above if the quality of your sleep is poor.
Another interesting thing to keep in mind is that your body’s level of the hormone cortisol (a hormone secreted as part of a healthy stress response) peak just before you wake up. It is that hormone that gives you that “kick“ to wake up. A couple of things to mention here, namely the importance of a consistent alarm and morning caffeine.
Another interesting thing to keep in mind is that your body’s level of the hormone cortisol (a hormone secreted as part of a healthy stress response) peak just before you wake up. It is that hormone that gives you that “kick“ to wake up. A couple of things to mention here, namely the importance of a consistent alarm and morning caffeine.
For the hormone cortisol to be secreted at the right time and actually wake you up, it is helpful to always wake up at the same time, to let your body know when it needs to be secreted. This gives you the kick you need to get up.
If you find it difficult to function without coffee, then that may be where the problem lies. I have found many patients who have said they found it much easier to wake up once they’d given up coffee.
When thinking about it, this makes complete sense. The body is a carefully balanced system, that constantly adapts to its environment. If your body knows it will receive a strong stimulant first thing in the morning, then it will down-regulate the secretion of its own stimulant (in this case cortisol) and you won’t produce the correct amount to wake you up, instead producing much less. After only a few days of giving up caffeine, your body will notice the change and start to secrete more cortisol in the morning, allowing you to wake up and get out of bed more easily.
(Beware that you may also get a slight headache for a few days, which is common if you give up caffeine. This shouldn't last very long however.)
When thinking about it, this makes complete sense. The body is a carefully balanced system, that constantly adapts to its environment. If your body knows it will receive a strong stimulant first thing in the morning, then it will down-regulate the secretion of its own stimulant (in this case cortisol) and you won’t produce the correct amount to wake you up, instead producing much less. After only a few days of giving up caffeine, your body will notice the change and start to secrete more cortisol in the morning, allowing you to wake up and get out of bed more easily.
(Beware that you may also get a slight headache for a few days, which is common if you give up caffeine. This shouldn't last very long however.)
Of course, the old trick of putting the alarm clock on the other side of the room is also an option, as well as jumping under the shower immediately afterwards, but for these winter mornings coming up, I’ll stick to the previous tips myself!
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