by Zach Clement
Few things are worse than not getting enough sleep. Sleep deprivation can make it difficult to remember things, perform tasks, or feel happy. However, even when you’re trying to get enough sleep, it can be difficult if you don’t know how. In this post, I’ll go through four habits that you can develop to consistently feel well-rested. These won’t necessarily work immediately, but eventually, they can contribute to a healthy sleep routine.
1. Set a Bedtime
If you are an adult, you should be getting at least seven hours of sleep (recommended sleep times vary by age and can be found here.) If you find that you are still tired during the day, you should be getting more sleep. Interestingly, it turns out that it matters not only how many hours of sleep you get a night, but also how consistent your sleep is. Variation in bedtime and wake time is associated with poor sleep quality,[i] so sleep must be both consistent and sufficiently long to provide psychological benefits.[ii] The best way to ensure that you are getting enough sleep and sleeping consistently is to set a strict bedtime for yourself.
Setting a bedtime allows you to more easily notice when you’re staying up too late. It’s hard to know if you’re staying up late when you don’t know what “late” is, and this gets harder when you’re already tired. It also helps you to make plans that don’t interfere with time you need to be sleeping and say no to activities that would hurt your sleep. I’ve found that it’s well worth it to reject an invitation to a social activity if that means that I can feel happy and well-rested the next day.
2. Limit Electronics Use Before Bed
In a 2011 poll of Americans and sleep habits, 95% of respondents said they used electronics in the hour before bed. This is a serious problem. Electronics not only directly disrupt sleep when you stay up using them or use them in the middle of the night,[iii] but they make it more difficult to sleep later because the blue light in electronic screens interferes with melatonin secretion and makes people less drowsy.[iv] The national sleep foundation recommends an electronics curfew before bedtime. I’ve personally found it helpful to set a daily alarm for me to stop using my phone, and to set my phone so that I didn’t receive notifications after a certain time. While it was difficult for me to consciously decide not to use my phone at nights, when I automated the restriction, it got much easier.
3. Exercise
Another habit that I’ve used to help myself to sleep better is exercising consistently. Researchers have found that exercise improves sleep quality and helps people fall asleep faster both the night of the exercise as well as after performing an exercise regimen for a longer period.[v] It’s possible that exercise assists in sleep by breaking down muscles, depleting energy stores, or by influencing body temperature.[vi] Whatever the reason is, when I’m in the habit of exercising daily, I find it easier to get drowsy in the evenings and I find myself falling asleep faster.
4. Reduce Caffeine Intake
It seems obvious that caffeine would interfere with sleep. After all, it is frequently used for waking up in the morning and reducing drowsiness. However, the effects of caffeine can last longer than people anticipate. Caffeine has a half-life of 2.5-4.5 hours,[vii] which means that there can still be traces of caffeine in the body long after drinking a cup of coffee or a caffeinated soda. Even in relatively small amounts, caffeine has many effects on people that make falling asleep difficult, including increases in heart rate and blood pressure, and a tendency to make people feel anxious and nervous.[viii] Because of the effect caffeine has on sleep, it’s wise to stop consuming it several hours before going to bed.
If you aren’t getting the amount of sleep that you need even after attempting to use these habits, it may be wise to talk to a professional. They can find underlying problems that may be interfering with your sleep, and they can provide you with additional help.
Sweet dreams!
Check out this video to learn more about how sleep deprivation impacts your body and mind:
[i] Carney, C. E., Edinger, J. D., Meyer, B., Lindman, L., & Istre, T. (2006). Daily activities and sleep quality in college students. Chronobiology International, 23(3), 623–637.
[ii] Barber, L. K., Munz, D. C., Bagsby, P. G., & Powell, E. D. (2010). Sleep consistency and sufficiency: Are both necessary for less psychological strain? Stress and Health: Journal of the International Society for the Investigation of Stress, 26(3), 186–193.
[iii] Mesquita, G., & Reimão, R. (2007). Nightly use of computer by adolescents: Its effect on quality of sleep. Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria, 65(2–B), 428–432.
[iv] Chang, A.-M., Aeschbach, D., Duffy, J. F., & Czeisler, C. A. (2015). Evening use of light-emitting eReaders negatively affects sleep, circadian timing, and next-morning alertness. PNAS Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 112(4), 1232–1237.
[v] Kredlow, M. A., Capozzoli, M. C., Hearon, B. A., Calkins, A. W., & Otto, M. W. (2015). The effects of physical activity on sleep: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 38(3), 427–449.
[vi] Youngstedt S. D. (2005). Effects of exercise on sleep. Clinics in Sports Medicine, 24(2), 355–365.
[vii] Sin, C. W. M., Ho, J. S. C., & Chung, J. W. Y. (2009). Systematic review on the effectiveness of caffeine abstinence on the quality of sleep. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 18(1), 13–21.
[viii] Bruce, M. S., & Lader, M. H. (1986). Caffeine: Clinical and experimental effects in humans. Human Psychopharmacology: Clinical and Experimental, 1(2), 63–82.