How to Get a Good Night's Sleep

Tips on Falling Asleep Naturally

Apr 3, 2009 Megge Hill Fitz-Randolph

A few changes in diet and bedtime routine may help you fall asleep faster naturally and get a better night's sleep.

Getting a good night’s sleep has become a more and more sought after goal. Our society values action; it has a harder time justifying a good eight hours of sleep a night. And yet one needs to sleep well at night and have enough hours of good sleep in order to function well the next day.

Trouble Falling Asleep

There are many factors contributing to difficulty getting enough sleep. Mostly, an ability to turn off worries and stress from the day’s activity are to blame. Here are a few tips, tried and true, that avoid using sleep medication. Falling asleep naturally is always best; staying asleep can also be problematic.

Sleeplessness can be caused by many factors but one of the biggest culprits is food: What one eats and the time of day one eats influences sleep. Contrary to popular assumptions, it is always better to eat lighter in the evening and to refrain from eating after 10 p.m. Especially it's best to refrain from eating sugary foods, chocolate or anything containing caffeine.

Food and Eating Habits

It is customary in many traditional diets to eat the heaviest meal at mid-day when the digestion is strongest. This is well understood by Indian or Auyurvedic diets, for instance. So make the evening meal lighter. Soup and bread or salad is excellent at this time of day.

Drinking coffee or eating chocolate or anything containing caffeine, even if earlier in the afternoon, can affect how a person sleeps. People who are sensitive to caffeine may be kept awake even by a cup of coffee had mid-day or early afternoon. Decaf, also, can affect some people. After dinner coffee is definitely a sleep inhibitor.

Mental Stimulation Before Bed

Another factor contributing to poor quality of sleep is too much mental activity right before bedtime. Reading, while it can induce sleep, can be mentally agitating if the material is especially taxing and leads to insomnia. So reduce strenuous mental activity or studying too close to bedtime. If one must study, make sure to do some gentle stretches or mind relaxing technique before bed. It is advised by some experts including Feng Shui adherents that a bedroom be free of books, bright colors, stimulating or aggressive artwork or anything else that potentially agitates the mind. Feng Shui advises that softer colors in the bedroom are more sleep conducive.

Physical Activity Before Bed

Strenuous physical activity should not be engaged in right before bedtime. While this may be the only time in the day for the final exercise routine, this can keep the body in a more active state and less inclined to the slowing down of the body one needs to fall asleep. If one has difficulty falling asleep and is exercising right before bed, consider this might be part of the problem.

Ten Tips to Help Fall Asleep and Get a Good Night's Sleep

Try to go to bed by 10 o’clock when the body is naturally slowing down.
Eat lightly at dinnertime, avoid heavy and starchy foods. Make lunch heaviest meal of day.
Napping too long in the afternoon can contribute to sleeplessness at night.
Avoid stimulants such as caffeine, chocolate or sugar earlier in evening or right before bed.
Sip warm milk with honey. A pinch of turmeric and cardamom can help induce sleep
If your feet tend to be cold at night, be sure to wear bedsocks to keep feet warm.
Take a warm bath before bed, but make sure it is not too hot as heat can also activate energy.
Keep the bedroom free of stimulating books, tv etc. Use Feng Shui bedroom colors.
Try not reading or watching TV before sleep as this also aggravates the mind and prevents sleep.
If you do wake up, avoid getting up or going online or even reading because these can make the waking state even more established. Instead, it's best to lie quietly and use the time to for inner reflection, prayer, processing, active imagination or quiet wakeful dreaming. Remember, your body is still getting rest, even if you are not fully asleep.

The copyright of the article How to Get a Good Night's Sleep in Health Field is owned by Megge Hill Fitz-Randolph. Permission to republish How to Get a Good Night's Sleep in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.