A solid bedtime routine is a girl's best friend. If I had to recommend one thing to improve your overall health and wellness and beauty it would be improve your sleep. Lack of sleep and poor sleep quality will literally age you and shorten your life span. In order to help prepare your body and brain for sleep, you need a solid bedtime routine. It's So important.
Our brains love routine and predictability and you can trigger your brain to recognize “oh we are winding down now” mode. I love my bed and sleep and created a pretty solid bedtime routine years and years ago. You do NOT want to be around me if I’m not sleeping well.
This is what works for me, and maybe you’ll see a few things you would like to adopt to create your own soothing nighttime routine:
(1) Melatonin: I need it. I use it. It works. It doesn’t work for everyone but if you’ve not tried it I do recommend it. Your body should produce melatonin on it’s own but it is triggered by darkness. And seriously, how much time do we actually spend in the dark? Not enough. I like the 10mg: https://amzn.to/3ULjGuF
(2) A fan: I cannot sleep if I’m hot. Forget about it. So the fan by my bed provides a nice cool breeze and the added benefit of white noise.
(3) Sheet spray: I use lavender but you can use whatever scent you love. My only suggestion is that you stick to ONE smell that you only use at night on your pillow or sheets. It has to become the “sleep scent” that triggers your brain to relax and prepare for beauty sleep. My fav sheet spray: https://amzn.to/3OR7apD
(4) Avoid the Blue Screens: This is a hard one for me and one I don’t abide by enough. Even my books are on my phone. But if I’m feeling like my sleep is not great, i will pull out a hardcover and leave my phone on the bedside table turned over and sound OFF.
(5) White noise: On top of my fan, I have a set sound mix that I listen to every night. There are tons of fantastic apps out there and I specifically use “Bettersleep”. I have been a subscriber AND have used the free version too. So many options open up with the subscription including Sleeptales, meditations, Sleepmoves and breathing exercies. My current mix is all free sounds and include: Storm, Night, Ocean, Wind and Rain. Can ya tell I’m an East Coast girl!?!?
(6) Preparation: Get organized and be prepared for your day. When I worked 9-5, I had my lunch ready, my outfit picked out including shoes and purse and jewelry. If my day was going to be busy, I would have a list made based on priority of what I needed to do. This alleviated that “worrying about worrying” feeling when you’re trying to fall asleep.
(7) Sleep Meditations: Along with white noise, there are so many sleep meditation and relaxation audios you can listen to as you drift off. I’ve studied hypnotherapy so I know and understand the power of the subconscious. If there is something you’re struggling with, I bet there is a free YouTube sleep meditation session you can just listen to as you fall asleep. You sleep and your subconscious can stay up and attend night school for you. You’de be surprised how easy and fast this can work. Most of these sessions begin with a very soothing full body relaxation that prepares you for sleep and also to be receptive to the message you are about to listen to.
My hero Paul McKenna:
Paul McKenna Sleep: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LA5UlfYrII
Smarter While You Sleep: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQA9Yp7gjf0
Can I make you sleep: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PszW-3Q5fW8
Techniques for Deep Sleep: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAV7mktZreY
Sweet dreams,
Patricia, xo
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