Sleep tips

Lying in bed, unable to sleep, sucks. We've all had times when despite everything we try we just can't get to sleep and the more we lie there thinking about it, the more annoyed we get and the more we end up convincing our body that we need to be up dealing with something. Helping ourselves get to sleep and sleeping well needs a bit of planning in advance, but we can all do a

few things that will help us, and some of them are more obvious than others. Ironically I'm writing this with eyes like pinholes after a long week but I'm going to make a few suggestions...

Tip1: Have a Regular sleep routine (That means going to to bed at the same time every night, and importantly get up at the same time every day as much as possible). Think about your own sleep rituals to remind your body it’s time to sleep. That might be gentle stretching exercises and quietly reading a book. How might you gently remind your body it’s getting close to bedtime?

Tip 2: Sleep when you’re actually sleepy. Try to avoid too much time lying awake in bed. If you haven’t been able to get to sleep in 20 minutes or more, get up and do something calming or boring until you feel sleepy again. Avoid doing anything too stimulating or interesting as that will just wake you up even more. Don’t be tempted to go for a shower (that’s likely part of a morning routine), and avoid screens; no tv, no phone/computer; no doom scrolling, no emails, no social media, even if you have a really good gif to complain about not being able to sleep.

Tip 3: Avoid caffeine or cigarettes before bed; these stimulate your brain and keep you awake. Don’t take recreational drugs to try to get to sleep. Similar to sleeping pills, this is likely to only work short-term and can encourage dependency.

Tip 4: Avoid alcohol. You may feel that alcohol can help relax you and calm you down but it actually give you a poorer quality sleep.

Tip 5: Keep your bed for sleeping, or sex (or reading books if that’s always been part of your nighty routine). Watching tv in bed, scrolling through social media or dealing with paperwork all get in the way of helping your body associate the bed with sleep.

Bonus tip: Keep your daytime routine the same., even if you’ve had a bad sleep. Don’t be

tempted to nap and don’t avoid activities just because your tired; that will reinforce

the insomnia.

What I’ve just described is some basic sleep hygiene to get the best possible chance of getting a decent night's sleep, an essential part of supporting our mental health and being able to deal with life's challenges.

If anxiety and worry is keeping you up are night and you'd like to talk to a mental health professional, drop me a message via the website or directly at mckellarcbt@gmail.com