Jessica Taylor, LPC
Why Do So Many of Us Struggle with Sleep?
I’m guessing you clicked on this blog post because you are struggling with at least one aspect of sleep. Falling asleep, staying asleep, or nightmares and vivid dreams waking you up in the middle of the night.
Getting enough sleep is essential to our productivity and maintaining good mental health. Yet, statistics show that between 37 and 40 percent of adults report not getting enough sleep, also known as sleep deprivation. Why is that? Well, when working with my clients, and doing a quick assessment of their sleep hygiene, I almost always immediately notice something they are doing or not doing that is probably hurting their sleep quality or quantity.
To improve our sleep, we must first address our sleep hygiene. Sleep hygiene is defined as the things in our life (like behaviors, habits, and environmental factors) that can be shifted to improve our sleep.
Here are the do’s and don’ts of sleep hygiene. And before you hear some of these and say “yeah, duh, those are obvious!” Ask yourself: how any of the do’s am I actually doing and how many of the don’ts am I doing. You might be surprised by how bad your sleep hygiene is!
The Do’s and Don’ts of Sleep Hygiene
DO start winding down an hour before you want to go to sleep.
DON’T use substances right before bed (these are sedatives and might help us initially pass out, but then we won’t really get good restorative REM sleep. Or might even wake up in the middle of the night and struggle to fall back asleep.)
DO a more boring activity before bed (for you, this might be reading or folding laundry)
DON’T exercise close to bedtime.
DO monitor your caffeine intake (The general rule is no caffeine after 2 pm.)
DON’T take naps throughout the day.
DO go to bed at the same time every night.
DON’T hang out in your bed all day.
DO take a warm shower or bath.
DON’T spend time on your phone for the last 30 minutes before the time you want to fall asleep.
DO write your to-do list for the next day.
DON’T ruminate on things out of your control (write them down and release; tell yourself that you can come back to them the next day, if necessary.)
DO say a mantra, do affirmations, or pray.
DON’T drink a bunch of water right before bed.
DO have a routine.
DON’T catastrophize if you can’t fall or stay asleep (Here’s an example of how to do this: “what’s the worst that could happen? I’ll be tired tomorrow. That would suck, but I would be okay.”)
DO a guided meditation before bed and if you wake up in the middle of the night.
DON’T give up after only a short time of trying these do’s and don’ts. Consistency is essential.
DO seek help if needed or to rule out a medical issue.
DON’T get overwhelmed, just integrate one or two of these into your life each month.
If you feel like something else might be going on, aside from poor sleep hygiene, make sure to check in with your doctor to rule out any underlying medical issues. If you do that, and are struggling to maintain consistency with sleep hygiene, therapy is a great place to find accountability.