5 Tips to Improve Your Sleep Quality

Are you struggling to get a quality night’s sleep? You are not alone. NCBI estimates that around 30% of adults suffer from insomnia or some form of sleep-related concerns. The CDC reports 1 in 8 adults are prescribed medication for sleep-related concerns. Whether you are working on your sleep connected to anxiety treatment, trauma recover, or just management of life stresses, there are some things that you can do to help

 Here are 5 tips to help improve your sleep cycles and work towards a more restful night’s sleep. 

1. Set a schedule and stick to it. Our bodies are cyclic, meaning they work in patterns. This is incredibly true for the hormone or neurotransmitters involves in sleep and wake patterns. If you want your sleep to improve, we have to work with our bodies to create the hormonal pattern to mirror the results that we desire. Consistency is key here. This may even mean setting the alarm or keeping that bedtime routine on weekends and holidays. Once you have a better pattern established, you may be able to be more flexible around those “special circumstances, “ but consistency is imperative in the early stages of change. 

2. Understand the importance of lighting. Our bodies naturally respond to light and light changes with either sleep or wake hormonal responses. If we want to help create the sleep response in the body, choose low light or lamp light in your home. Avoid screen light. Yes, the blue lights from the screens of our TVs phones, tablets, etc really do stimulate the wake response in the body. Check out what Harvard Health has to say about blue lights in their research.

3. Try bullet journaling or “parking” anxious thoughts. One of the most common complaints that we hear in the therapy setting relates to sleep is “I just can’t turn my brain off.” Whether you are spinning with the events of the day or the to-dos of tomorrow, a stimulated or preoccupied brain is not a restful brain. Consider a quick journaling exercise or list for any preoccupation or worries. Let those thoughts be heard and have a “parking spot” to be held until morning. If the brain is fearful of forgetting it’s less likely to rest. 

4. Consider sleep stories or mediation tracks. Once those thoughts or worries are heard and “parked until morning”, consider helping the body learn to rest or relax. Sleep stories or mindful sleep meditations are a great way to help the brain and body learn to relax. Here are a few of our favorite resources related to sleep mediations: 

   • Calm (It has free and Subscription base resources available)

   • Headspace (It’s a subscription-based option, but has some great resources)

   • Snoozecase (New content is released weekly, so no fears of getting bored with the same script every night).

   • UCLA Mindfulness institute guided meditation (These are completely free guided meditations from the mindfulness research institute. And they come in multiple languages!) 

5. Fake it until you make it. We have heard that phrase before related to feelings of confidence or even generating energy to tackle a challenge. The same principle can be true for sleep. If we act as is we are preparing for sleep often times the body will follow. Move slowly. Breathe slowly Put comfortable clothes on.  Think in terms of fatigue and the desire for rest. 

   Anxiety, depression, mood disorders, and trauma can all be correlated with sleep-related concerns, and oftentimes, with the use of quality support and treatment for the underlying cause sleep health and quality can drastically increase. 

   Are you a Texas resident and interested in learning more about how online counseling may be able to help you with your sleep concerns or underlying anxiety, depression, mood disorder, addiction or trauma? Check out our online counseling services or meet with a member of our quality Texas counselors who are ready to help you with the next steps in your mental health journey. 

   Or are you a resident of the Dallas, Fort Worth, Arlington areas and are interested in meeting one of our experienced counselors in person at our Arlington, TX office? 

   Learn more about out Arlington, Texas based counseling group, the counseling services were offer, or how we may be able to partner with you in the next steps of your mental health journey.