How I Make Quality Sleep My Top Priority
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Our hidden powers are endless. From our internal systems that run in the background keeping our body systems going, to actions we can take to shape our sleep and stress-levels, to simple and logical precautions like wearing a seatbelt, we are in control of countless “hidden” systems that can either work for or against our health.
My TOP priority in the this category is SLEEP, and I do quite a few things every day to prepare for a good night’s sleep.
I’m not trying to tell you what to do every night, but unless you are getting a full seven to eight hours uninterrupted with at least one hour and up to two of deep sleep, I highly encourage you to keep working on improving your sleep habits.
The research is clear and abundant: when you sleep, how long you sleep, and how well you sleep matters.
Here’s what I do every day:
I …
… have one cup of decaf coffee about 8 a.m. and avoid any additional caffeine, give or take an iced tea here and there.
… go outside every morning right after my coffee for a walk and a dose of morning sunshine.
… walk on my treadmill if it’s super cold or raining. If it’s not sunny, I’ll look into a special light box that mimics sunlight (that’s how much morning light affects evening sleep).
… avoid alcohol.
… eat my last meal about 6 p.m. and avoid snacking afterwards.
… turn off bright lights about an hour before bedtime.
… shut the black-out blinds and cover random small light sources.
… run a sound machine to help cut out random noises.
… take a hot bath or shower just before bedtime.
… keep the bedroom cold, about 65 degrees.
… take 1 mg of melatonin with my nightly supplements.
… sleep with a fitness tracker to track my deep sleep patterns.
I personally strive for eight hours of sleep every night, which is pretty dang difficult; my average hovers just below seven.
I figure reading, fluffing pillows, setting up my water, getting up two or three times to find my watch or my glasses or a book, settling in, and dealing with moving the cats, children, and the husband off of my side of the bed takes about an hour every night.
Realistically, to get eight hours of sleep, I really need to be in bed by 10 p.m. if I’m up at 7 a.m.
Intriguing research, however, indicates that consistent bedtime hours may actually be more important overall than actual hours of sleep. Read this quick BBC summary, and consider committing to a routine set bedtime and waking hour.
I’ve had a lot of success with 11 p.m. to 7 a.m., and I get really excited when I can dive into bed about 9 or 10! See if consistency helps you, as well.
These are three habits I’d like to break that will absolutely raise my sleep score:
I need to avoid my phone an hour before bedtime, but I confess this one is particularly difficult because I enjoy a little mindless scrolling under a fluffy blanket after a busy day. Even though my phone shifts to night mode to help block blue light, this habit is very high on my list of ones I would like to break. Besides, I have a stack (or two) of real books and a small reading light waiting for me to put down my phone.
As much as I love snuggling with the kitties, I need to kick them out of the bedroom. It’s very clear my sleep is better without them stepping on me in the middle of the night and waking me up too early at the crack of dawn.
Another phone habit I would like to break is charging it by my head. Plugging it in to charge in the bathroom far out of my reach would be a healthier alternative for the night.
While quality sleep is at the top of my hidden powers list, there’s so much more to this category. I will continue to write about our bodies’ hidden resources in greater detail in the Pounce Pot Post.
My next research project will be a deep dive into Heart Rate Variability (the higher, the better, by the way, not to be confused with your pulse rate). While not precisely monitored (I use my Apple watch), my HRV skyrockets when I’m in the same house overnight with my mother.
It must be an inner sense of protection that tells my body to relax. It’s cray cray. I’m so interested to learn more about this. Longevity experts frequently site raising their HRV as one of their foundational goals. It’s one of mine, too.
Blood pressure regulation, microbiome, stress-reduction, meditation, vagus nerve stimulation, blood sugar awareness, gut-mind connection, “Don’t Be a Dumb A**,” telomere lengthening, and more …
It’s truly a diverse and complex hidden world that drives our health behind the scenes, and I look forward to gather more ideas to help us harness our hidden powers.
Which one intrigues you the most? After HRV, which topic should be next?
