So you’re ready for the restful sleep
You know…that blissful sleep you had as a kid. Aaaaah, those were the days! So get ready for the Restful Sleep Challenge. You’re gonna devote 7 days to luxurious restful sleep. Walking through life in a haze is not the way to go. And how many cups of coffee can you really drink? You’ve put time and effort into everything else meaningful in your life. And the quality of your sleep influences every other part of your day.
The rules of the challenge are below. You’ll also want to download the Blissful Zzzzs Nighty Night Checklist to receive a FREE luxurious bedtime routine to lull yourself to sleep like a baby.
But first, some strange things that mess up your sleep:
Hormones – All types of hormones affects your quality of sleep. Too many stress hormones = bad sleep. Sex hormone fluctuations (like with pms and menopause) = bad sleep. Too much sugar induced hormone fluctuations = bad sleep. And to make things worse, an imbalance with one hormone will throw the rest off. You must balance hormones to balance sleep.
Melatonin– This is a very special hormone that tells your brain it’s time for sleep. And when this hormone is off, sleep gets really chaotic. Little things can be big uh-ohs for melatonin. Spend too much time in the evening looking at the bright lights of your computer screen? Your brain might confuse night for day and fail to release melatonin. Not getting enough vitamin B-6 (usually found in animal protein)? The brain will have a hard time even releasing melatonin. And you can kiss restful sleep goodbye.
Sugar – Everyone knows the caffeine is bad for sleep. But did you know that sugar can be just as problematic? Eating too much sugar or consuming it too late in the day can create chaos with your sleep pattern. And sugar is hidden in almost all of the prepared foods you eat. Finding and eliminating hidden sugar, especially the sugar consumed later in the day, can make the difference in achieving restful sleep.
Ok, now we’re ready for the challenge
We’re gonna take 7 days and devote them to building healthier sleep habits. But first: a confession.
It will probably take more than 7 days to see a dramatic improvement. You don’t lose three dress sizes the day you go on a diet, do you? It takes time. And so does building the foundation for blissful, restorative sleep. Each person is special. What you need to improve your sleep cycle isn’t what the next person needs. But building sleep promoting habits is the best place to start.
The rules of the restful sleep challenge
Spend 10 minutes outside without sunglasses every morning (weather permitting.) Sunlight sends signals to your brain that it’s morning. Remember the hormone melatonin? Producing proper melatonin at night is influenced by proper daylight cues in the morning. So getting into the sunlight in the morning sets the stage for proper sleep signals at night.
Take de-stessing breaks during the day. It isn’t enough to let go of stress before bed. The stress during the day puts your body in chaos, setting you up for nighttime insomnia. When you feel stress building up, STOP! Slowly take a deep breath (you should feel the area under your ribs expand if you’re doing it right) and repeat to yourself, “I am relaxed”. Slowly exhale. Repeat this as many times as needed until you feel calmer.
Stop consuming sugar and caffeine at 2pm. Both of these will keep you wired through the midnight hours. Extra credit if you cut out refined carbohydrates like bread and pasta at that time too!
Have a dinner that is high in protein, vegetables and healthy fat, but lower in carbohydrates. This is the ideal type of dinner for restful sleep. Finish dinner at least 3 hours before bedtime. The process of digestion can mess with your sleep.
Create a bedtime ritual that tells your brain that it’s time for sleep. Start winding down at least an hour before you get into bed. Aaack! But you’ll miss your favorite TV show! Did I mention this was only a week? This helps balance our hormones and ready our brains for sleep.
What is a good sleep promoting bedtime ritual?
Download your FREE Blissful Sleep Nighty Night Checklist here! A fantastic bedtime ritual to promote amazing Zzzzzzzs! Print it out, put it on your nightstand and get ready for luxurious sleep. This really works and its free!!
Moving Forward
This is the beginning of amazing, restful sleep. And the longer you do this, the more benefits you’ll achieve. What’s the next step? Here’s some examples of other ways to strengthen your sleep.
- Natural supplements for relieving stress and promoting sleep like kava kava, valerian and chamomile
- Essential oils
- Estrogen /progesterone balancing foods and supplements
- Digestion support
- Exercise
- Meditation
And so on. But the Restful Sleep Challenge creates the foundation for blissful sleep. And once you have the foundation, you can build upon it based on your individual needs. So what are you waiting for? First, grab your Blissful Zzzzs Nighty Night Checklist. Then take the challenge. You’re gonna go to sleep whether you do the challenge or not. Why not help rewind the clock to those nights of blissful restful sleep? It’s only 7 days. And in 7 days, you can set the foundation for amazing Zzzzzs for the rest of your life!
Hello Erica,
This is an important issue these days.
My mom is heavily dependent on sleeping pills. Since the last few years she can hardly get any sleep without those tablets. you are right when you said we should not take carbohydrates at night and should finish dinner at least 3 hours before sleep.
That is too bad about your Mom. Sleeping pills are really over-prescribed these days and so many people are addicted to them.
Erica – I needed to read this as I average on five to six hours sleep a night and this a good night! I have got in the habit of surviving on less sleep and am fine for the most part of the day but come my evening commute I can barely keep my eyes open.
You definitely aren’t at your best when you’re missing sleep. As I recall, I don’t think you have to drive which at least makes your afternoon commute safer. Wish you could get more sleep.
I really struggle with sleep – meaning not getting it ! I will try this – I am going to find the coffee hard to give up as I drink alot !
I know caffeine is such a crutch. I hope you do give this a try.
These are great tips! I think my lack of sleep is from my kids lol.
Sirri, it looks like you have really little kids. Those years are definitely challenging for sleep.
Getting a restful night sleep caught my eye. After reading everything I have a game plan on how to accomplish getting a restful nights sleep. Love not taking anything to accomplish this.
The more natural ways are definitely better. There are studies that show that that you don’t get the same quality of regenerative sleep when you take pills.
YES! A good night’s sleep is everything.. but it took me years to realize it! Now I don’t drink during weeknights since I felt like it was messing with my sleep. And I try to get to be before 10 and I listen to a meditation app to relax. 🙂
Wow, sounds like you have some amazing sleep habits!
Loved all the information you included to explain why these things impact our sleep. I like the idea of spending a period of time working on getting your body in sync with a normal sleep schedule.
It really does make a difference to get a normal sleep schedule. People often start in a place of resistance in the beginning, but are happy they did it in the end.
I really need to take this challenge. My sleeping has been on and off recently. but you are right, when I had enough sunlight, my sleep seems to improve a lot. And I have also start to take vitamin D. That really helps particularly when the weather is so rainy these days.
That is great that you’ve started taking vitamin D. That is so important for so many of us.
It’s very hard for me to fall asleep at times, I’m definitely going to try some of these and see how my body responds, thanks for the great information!
I hope you do try some of these and that they help! Good luck!
Oh yeah, I already do all of the things on your list so I guess that’s why I normally sleep pretty soundly. In fact, I learned the hard way to be very choosey about what I read before sleep time because a good mystery is like taking a wake-up pill and more than a few times I’ve read through the night. Terrific idea for a challenge!
The funny thing for me is that reading has always made me drowsy. I’ll go to bed completely alert, and after 10 minutes of reading, I’ll be ready for sleep. Of course, this didn’t prove very useful when I was in school and trying to stay up late to study!
Hi Erica. It’s so evident to me how closely related sleep is to hormones.
All through my life I’ve never had difficulty falling or staying asleep. UNTIL … I hit menopause. Now, I never get a good night’s sleep without help. My weapon of choice is “Melanie” a herbal concoction I buy at Shopper’s Drug Mart that helps regulate the night sweats and keeps you calm. It really works for me.
The hormone shifts with menopause can be really hard on sleep. Glad you found a NATURAL product that helps. So many turn to sleeping pills.
Out of four kids, I’m the one who never slept. I’m sure I drove my mom crazy. She summed it up well: I always thought I’d miss something…and that has never changed!
That said I’m very happy to try this and see if it works. I’m a decaf drinker, try to avoid carbs with supper, don’t snack in the evenings…and yet I’m awake. So here we go!
Try taking some magnesium at about 9pm at night. If you’ve never felt ready for sleep in the evening, that might help in a natural way (but don’t take too much or you can get the runs.)
I’m going to get some magnesium and give this a whirl, Erica.
Great post! I’m gonna give these tips a try. I def need better and more restful sleep. Sometimes seems no matter how much sleep I get…I still wake up tired. Thanks for sharing!!
I hope you try this and this it helps your sleep!
Great post for me. I have been having bouts of insomnia lately. I fall asleep around 4 or 5 and get up for work at 7.
I will definitely try your suggestions and hope they will help. Thanks for sharing.
That is really tough, William. I hope you try this and you find something that helps.
This is an awesome post for me, and checking out the comments made me realize everyone is facing this sleep related issues I am not the only one.
Thank you for this much-needed post, my friend!
I know! It really is crazy how many people struggle with sleep. It should be something that comes so naturally, but it doesn’t.
I bought a white-noise machine to deal with “excess ambient noise” when I lived in an apartment complex with paper-thin walls not so long ago. My findings:
(1) On a horizontal level – with respect to neighbors who are on the same floor as you are – a white-noise machine will somewhat mask treble sounds but is much less effective regarding bass sounds. (To put it another way, a white-noise machine may block out Mozart but it won’t block out the B-52s.)
(2) A white-noise machine isn’t helpful at all if there’s someone directly above you making noise.
Do you ever use ear plugs, Erica? If so, is there a brand you recommend? I’ve used them in the past and found them uncomfortable, but maybe I bought the wrong ones.
Andy, I hear you. I had a horrible neighbor for years that had parties into the early hours almost every night. I used ear plugs and a white noise machine and I could still hear them. I finally moved when I couldn’t take it anymore. I think you have to keep trying different earplugs until you find ones that work. The ones that work best for me are the generic little pink ones they make for women. The smaller size just makes the difference for me. There are companies that make them in different sizes so I would search online and see if you can get a sample pack of different sizes to see what is most comfortable.
I too use a humidifier, a loud one to drown out noise and small earbuds. I sometimes wonder though is it at all damaging to use earplugs each night?
Awesome challenge – sleep is so important!
These are some great tips! I look forward to using them and getting more rest at night. Thanks for sharing.
This is a great post! I have trouble sleeping so I really enjoyed reading your thoughts and tips! I’m adverse to taking any pills so the kava tea sounds like a great option. 🙂
-SC
SCsScoop.com
This is great! I actually wrote an article very similar – called “How to fall asleep.” it’s amazing how something so simple can be so hard for us adults 😀