Establish Healthy Sleep Habits

Aug. 7, 2012 - PRLog -- Quality sleep is a vital key to a healthy lifestyle. All too often, whether from stress, bad habits, or a busy lifestyle, something interferes with the bodies need to “reboot”.   We may label the inability to sleep as “having insomnia”. Insomnia is however a chronic condition.  Most people that suffer from sleepless nights are subject to an episodic condition that presents itself after a major event like financial concerns, the loss of a job, a death in the family. This “episodic insomnia” usually subsides and normal sleep patterns resume.

If you need help getting back to your regular sleep cycle, try these helpful sleep tips provided by the Sleep Doctors at Comprehensive Sleep Wellness Center of Knoxville, TN.

Establish a regular routine
Your regular routine is important and should include going to bed and getting up at the same time every day, even on weekends. Maintaining a consistent sleep-wake cycle is the key to better health overall.

Go to bed when you are sleepy
If you have difficulty falling asleep or wake up shortly after going to sleep, leave the bedroom and read quietly or do some other relaxing activity. Avoid overly bright lights as this can cue your wake cycle.

Develop sleep rituals before going to bed
Do the same things in the same order before going to bed to cue your body to slow down and relax.

Avoid stress and worries at bedtime
Address tomorrow's activities, concerns or distractions earlier in the day. Certain activities, such as listening to soft music, reading, or taking a warm bath can help you wind down.

Use your bed for sleeping and sex only
Often, doing other activities in bed like watching TV, paying bills, or working only serve to initiate worries and concerns. Let your mind associate bed with sleeping, relaxing and pleasure.

Avoid heavy meals late in the evening. Avoid going to bed hungry
A light snack, especially dairy foods, can help you sleep.

Reduce your intake of caffeine and nicotine 4-6 hours before going to sleep
Stimulants interfere with your ability to fall asleep and progress into deep sleep.

Avoid alcohol 4-6 hours before bedtime
As a depressant that slows brain activity, alcohol may initially make you tired, but you will end up having fragmented sleep. In addition, being tired intensifies the effects of alcohol. Alcohol also aggravates snoring and sleep apnea.

Exercise regularly
Regular exercise, even for 20 minutes, 3 times a week, promotes deep sleep.

Don’t nap for more than 30 minutes or after 3 p.m.
Avoiding naps all together will ensure that you are tired at night. Longer naps disrupt the body's ability to stay asleep.

Maintain a dark, quiet, and cool room to sleep in.

Use sleeping aids conservatively
and avoid using them for more than one or two nights per month. Avoid sleeping pills altogether if you have obstructive sleep apnea; it can be a deadly combination.

Get an adequate amount of sleep every night
Determine the amount of sleep you need by keeping track of how long you sleep without using an alarm clock for a week. Maintain this "personal" sleep requirement.

An estimated 20 million people experience occasional sleep problems. Inadequate sleep reduces mental acuity, and can compromise your immune system. Try these simple tips to improve your sleep pattern.  If you continue to experience problems, seek the help of a sleep specialist, http://www.comprehensivesleepwellness.com because self medicating with sleep aids is a dangerous and often addicting practice.  

Getting a great night’s night sleep will improve your health, attitude  and your lifestyle.