How to Actually Improve Your Sleep

This is a collaborative post

You don’t need us to tell you how important good sleep can be for your overall well-being. Not only does it put you in a better mood, but it also puts you in the right frame of mind to do other good-for-you habits that really can make a difference. After all, no one’s enthusiastic about going to the gym or taking the time to prepare a healthy meal when they’re feeling sleep-deprived.

Alas, good sleep is, for many adults, a distant concept. Studies show that an increasingly large percentage of the country — up to 60% of adults — do not consistently get adequate sleep.

The good news is that even if you don’t naturally have a positive relationship with your bed, it is something that you can nurture. In this post, we’ll run through a few of the most effective, science-backed strategies that should make it easier for you to fall and remain asleep. 

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Consistency is Key

Consistency is key to getting a good night’s sleep. By that, we mean going to bed and waking up at the same time each day. That helps to regulate your body’s circadian rhythm (the ‘internal clock’) to the point where, over time, you’ll find that you naturally drift away and wake up at the same time. This doesn’t just promote good sleep, but it’s also great for people who have to wake up at a certain time and who don’t like alarm clocks. After a while, your body will become the clock!

Wind Down Before Bedtime

Having a sound pre-sleep routine can make it much easier to reach the land of nod once you actually get in bed. All too often, people spend the final hour before bedtime looking at a device, only to then find that their brain is too alert to fall asleep once they actually want to fall asleep.

Invest in pre-sleep relaxation, and your body and mind will be much more inclined to drift away. A routine that consists of meditation, reading, and consuming relaxing delta 8 edibles can put you into the right state. Combine with slow, soft music and ambient lighting, and you should find that you fall asleep faster than ever. 

Create a Sleep-Friendly Bedroom

Your bedroom can set you up for sleep success, or it can be a thorn that makes your goal more challenging. The bedrooms that are considered sleep-friendly are the ones that are dark, quiet, and cool. That’s easy enough to achieve; from there, it’s about ensuring that you use your bed in the right way. It can be tempting to work from bed sometimes, but it’s much better for your sleeping habits if you reserve the space solely for drifting away. 

Start Exercising
It’s no surprise that exercising is good for sleep. After all, it’s good for most things! Commit to regular exercise, and you’ll benefit from reduced stress, regulated body temperature, and improved REM sleep. Just be sure to avoid exercise in the three hours before you want to go to bed, since that can keep the body in a state of alertness.