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March is Sleep Awareness Month! So to honour something as important as sleep, it’s only fitting that I do a little blog about a very important thing for our overall health and well being.

Sleep hygiene…ever heard of it?  It’s a thing.  I’ll unpack it and you can see if you’re doing all the things necessary to have the right amount to wake up feeling pretty darn good and ready to face a good day in the life of you.  So many people aren’t getting enough and it seriously does lead to mental health issues, like anxiety and depression.  (See my last blog post on depression).

Let’s take a look at all the things… Who, What, Where, When and Why.

WHO:  Who are you sleeping with?  It doesn’t have to be another human, it could be a pet that disrupts your sleep.  If your pet or pets are on your bed your sleep could be disrupted when you try to move and you can’t.  Your human might snore, or move around too much. There have been times in my life I’ve moved to a different bed in the house so I wouldn’t be a bear the next day.  John eventually got a CPAP machine, and that fixed the snoring thing.

WHAT: What do you do before going to bed or when you can’t sleep?  Do you have a nighttime routine? What amount of alcohol, if any, did you drink and what did you eat, less than 3 hours before heading to bed? All of these things can be contributing factors for falling to sleep and staying asleep.

Things like taking a warm bath, having a cup of sleepy-time tea, shutting down electronics, some say an hour before lights out. Sometimes keeping a journal close to the bed and writing down a few things to be grateful for is helpful too, especially if you are going through some hard things. When I was going through cancer stuff and unable to go to sleep, for obvious reasons,  a good friend suggested that I make a list of what I can control and what I can not control and it really did help.  Also listening to your own breathing and concentrating on that alone helps to doze off, most times.

WHERE:  Where are you sleeping?  How comfortable is your bed and the temperature of your bedroom?  Having a cool head and a good pillow are key.  I’ve recently been using a weighted blanket and I swear there’s magic in that.  It’s also important to declutter your space.  Like the rest of your house, clutter can have negative effects on the psyche.  Your bedroom might be a good place to start if you have the clutter bug.  Taking away the electronics is a good idea too, and that includes everything from the TV to the clock radio or phone you have beside your bed.

WHEN: When do you go to bed and what time do you get up?  With daylight savings time coming soon we will have another adjustment to make. Circadian Rhythm is the 24-hour internal clock in our brain that regulates cycles of being alert or sleepy. It is how we respond to the light changes in our environment.  In a perfect world we would hit the sack when the sun goes down and get up at sunrise.  Not possible, or even practical, in most people’s lives.  I do think though, that if we know how much sleep we need to be a fully functioning human it’s wise to go to bed early enough to get up with the sun.  That can be a peaceful start to the day (and a whole different blog), by having a good morning routine you can set yourself up for success in other areas of your life.

WHY: Why is all of this important? Good sleep habits are so important for our overall health.  Studies have shown that sleep deprivation can alter the metabolism and hormones.  It can also lead to depression, diabetes, heart disease, obesity to name some of the biggies.  Consistently getting a good night’s sleep has so very many benefits to keep you healthy and happy, and feeling great from…The Inside Out!!

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