pajamas. bed. mattress.(on sale for 50% off right now!) sheets. diffuser. oils. Hygge Book. Kate Morton book. pillows.
Okay ladies, today we’re going to talk about sleep. Because sleep is really, really important. And that’s something I sort of took for granted for a very long time in my life. In fact, for most of high school and pretty much all of college I had terrible insomnia. It was annoying at times, but not awful, because I could always function fairly well even on very little sleep. I do think some people just naturally need more sleep than others, and I always felt like I was one who didn’t need as much.
I’ve always been a night owl, I feel like my best most creative ideas come at night, and some of the best work I’ve put out has happened at around 3 in the morning. I could pull an all-nighter working on a paper and still be productive the next day.
But a funny thing happened in the last few years. I’m not sure if it’s being in my mid-30’s (probably), but suddenly, I just can’t do the whole running on 3 hours of sleep thing. At least not without feeling like death. After pulling a few late nights for deadlines and waking up feeling so, so awful, then just struggling to get through my days, I realized that sleep is actually super important, and getting good sleep is vital to a healthy lifestyle.
I realized that I was surviving on 3-5 hours of sleep a night, and I wanted to thrive. You don’t thrive without a good night’s sleep. So today, I thought I would share with you guys a few changes I’ve made and tips to help you get your very best sleep.
1. Give yourself a bedtime. Decide on a time when you will put yourself to bed and stick with it. This is tricky to do as a mom because there is always something more I could do, but I’ve just had to learn to cut myself off and go to bed. The more your body gets into the routine of bed time, the faster you will fall asleep and you’re more likely to get good sleep as well. So give yourself a bedtime and stick with it.
2. Get a good mattress (and pillow). We spend like a 3rd of our life asleep, that’s a lot of time to be spending on a bad mattress. You will sleep better on a good mattress. It also helps eliminate a lot of other issues related to back and neck pain. We got a new mattress from Tomorrow sleep just over a year ago and it was a game changer for me. (We also got new pillows from them as well and they are amazing.) I’ve had back pain since I was a teenager (combination of a cheerleading injury and a sway back). I’ve seen multiple chiropractors, done physically therapy, etc. Nothing has had as big of an impact in eliminating my back pain as our Tomorrow mattress. It has been a game changer. FYI: Tomorrow Sleep is having a 50% off sale right now. Like literally you can get a top of the line, mattress for half the regular price.
3. Put your phone away. There’s been a ton of research that shows the blue light from your phone can have a detrimental impact on your sleep cycle. Put your phone away at least an hour before you’re ready to go to bed (iPads and computers too). And don’t keep your phone near your bed! Get a separate alarm. I use my echo dot and just ask Alexa to set an alarm for 5 am.
4. Diffuse essential oils while you sleep. I started diffusing essential oils while I sleep a few months ago, and to be honest when I started, I was skeptical that they would really do anything for me, but my goodness I sleep so much better when I diffuse essential oils as I sleep. My favorite blends to diffuse are: lavender and frankincense (2-3 drops of each in my small diffuser), stress away(2 drops), lavender(2 drops) and valor(1 drop). If you have never used essential oils I recommend getting a starter kit. I’ve got more info about how to do that here.
5. Create a bedtime routine. Spend time winding down before bed. I don’t know why I didn’t implement a bedtime routine for myself, I did this right off the bat with my kids and it I swear is one of the reasons they’ve all always been such great sleepers. Creating a bedtime routine helps relax your body and signals to it that it’s time for bed. It makes falling asleep easier and helps you get better sleep. Try tucking your phone away, drinking some herb tea, reading a book, stretching, setting up your diffuser. All things relaxing.
6. Use lavender. Oh my goodness, where do I even start with this magical oil? It is the Swiss army knife of oils, because there are so many uses for it, and one of my favorites is as a natural sleep aid. I have lavender water spray on my night stand and I just spritz my sheets and pillow before bed at night, it does wonders for my sleep. I never feel restless when I’ve used lavender. Bonus, it reminds me of our time in Provence last summer. Everywhere smells like lavender in Provence. (Yes, it’s heavenly.)
7. Decide on a wake up time. Deciding on a wake up time with help develop a sleep routine for your body. The more you get into a routine with your sleep, the better sleep you’ll get. Plus, setting your wake up time just starts your day off well and when you’ve started your day on the right foot, you’re more effective. Being more effective during the day makes it easier to stop at night and GO TO BED! See how that works? (It’s like the circle of… sleep.;-)
8. Stick to your routine on the weekends. I’m not saying you have to be up at 5 and in bed by 9 on the weekends, but try not to deviate too far from your normal sleep schedule. You’ll spend the first half of the next week trying to get back into a good sleep routine.
