Sleep – it’s what you need. You know you need sleep but can’t get enough of it. Or maybe you think you’re good with only getting 3-4 hours of sleep a night. After all, you can still function the next day, right?
It wasn’t until recently that I realized how important sleep really is for your health and wellness. It’s more than just sleeping so you can rest. It is about having energy, thinking clearly, allowing your body to heal overnight, being in a better mood when you wake up, noticing you don’t need to harm people who wake you up. 😉
Sure, you can take things for sleep assistance, but why not go the more natural route. It may be a little hard to start sleep training, but it will be worth it. Learn how to do sleep training in my online course here.
March is National Sleep Awareness month; who knew? How fitting to discuss it now?
Dr. Teralyn Sell, Psychotherapist and brain health expert, shares 5 great foods to keep in your stomach to help with drowsiness and improve sleep quality.
“Sugar and alcohol negatively impact sleep due to the sharp rise and fall of blood sugar levels. You will notice that you will not sleep deeply or become ‘awake’ at 2 am (or just too early for your liking) because of the adrenaline rush due to reactive hypoglycemia. Additionally, though alcohol might help you fall asleep, it also disrupts every sleep phase causing you to not sleep deeply,” says Dr. Teralyn.
Here are Dr. Teralyn Sell’s top 5 foods to help promote a better nights sleep naturally:
Food #1: Collagen Protein
Proteins such as collagen protein and poultry, have amino acids that break down into tryptophan. Tryptophan eventually creates serotonin and then melatonin which helps you sleep. Protein that is consumed before bed also helps to stabilize blood sugar keeping you asleep all night.
Food #2: Chamomile tea
Chamomile is a calming herb that has been shown to help with insomnia or disturbed sleep. It has been studied and found to be an anxiolytic and an antidepressant. Adding a bit of raw honey can add a layer of protection since honey has been linked to supporting the immune system.
Food #3: Dark Chocolate
For my chocolate lovers, this one’s for you all so you don’t have to feel as guilty when you realize that half the box is gone. Dark chocolate is rich in magnesium. Magnesium is a natural relaxer. Taking a magnesium supplement before bed or soaking in Epsom salts can help you relax before bed and fall asleep easier. Magnesium has also been shown to help reduce restless leg syndrome which can impair sleep.
Food #4: Tart Cherries
Several research articles have been published that link drinking tart cherry juice to improved sleep. Tart cherries have a concentration of melatonin, a hormone that helps regulate circadian rhythm and can help to promote healthy sleep.
Food #5: Oatmeal
Oatmeal is a great meal to have for the plethora of health benefits that it provides outside of sleep. However, for our specific topic, oatmeal is considered an anxiolytic, which can be very calming and help you relax before bed. It can also help to stabilize blood sugar levels so you can experience a restful night’s sleep.
Dr. Sell goes on to conclude by saying, “Caffeine impacts sleep starting in the morning. Caffeine is a stimulant that dampens your adrenals (you know the organ that helps you manage stress) Drinking 1 cup of caffeine 6 hours before bed reduces your deep sleep by 1 hr. Caffeine has a half-life of 3-5 hours. This means that if you start drinking caffeine in the morning, you will likely still have caffeine in your system as you try to sleep.”
In addition to Dr. Sell’s 5 Foods for Better Sleep, I recommend trying the following non-food-related techniques. Learn about the different sleep stages for Quality Sleep.
Earthing/Grounding
If you are unfamiliar with grounding, you can read about it here and learn how to use it for better sleep.
Total Body Deep Breathing
You can learn how to do this breathing in my Health and Wellness course. When I explain how to do this technique, it works like a charm and will put you fast asleep.
Regulate Room Temperature
This may seem obvious or perhaps not. But make sure your room is at the right temperature to feel comfortable falling asleep. Even if you’re the slightest bit hot, you’ll wake up or toss and turn all night trying to get comfortable.
Everyone is different, so find the right temp for you. I prefer a slightly cool, almost cold room. Snuggle under the blankets, and I’m fast asleep. I cannot get comfortable or fall asleep if it’s even remotely warm. Then I’m just miserable. So you know what you prefer, so make sure you have the right temp set to go at bedtime.
Practice Stillness/Meditation/Grateful/I am statements
While lying quietly in your bed, close your eyes, take three deep breaths, and become still. You can now practice saying three things you are grateful for that day. Take time to reflect on your day and find the things big or small that you are grateful for. Say them to yourself. (Lights should be off BTW-you’re trying to fall asleep here and phones are put away too).
In addition to stillness and gratitude, you can also practice saying your I am statements. Even more powerful is practicing I Am statements before getting out of bed in the morning. Do your best not the think too hard about these things. Your goal is to relax your mind and focus on positive feelings and not your to-do list. This way, you relax and eventually drift off to sleep. All while still practicing deep breathing.
Lavender Essential Oil
Rub lavender essential oil on your chest midline and lay down and take deep breaths and begin to relax. By placing it on your chest you can inhale the scent while taking deep breaths. Lavender is well known for its relaxation benefits. Check out all the other uses for lavender here.
There are many tips and tricks to falling asleep. But the goal is to get enough QUALITY sleep. Undisturbed sleep.
Waking up ten times a night to roll your partner over because of their loud snoring is not quality sleep. Trust, I know. Do what you have to do to get the sleep health you need and deserve. After a few nights, even weeks of uninterrupted and quality sleep, and you will never go back to sleeping any other way.
You will appreciate and notice how much your attitude and well-being are linked to your sound sleeping.
I wish you peace and guidance on your sleep journey. Take care and be well.
