How to Prepare for a Good Night’s Sleep

Getting a good night’s sleep couldn’t be more important. Sleeping isn’t laziness; it regenerates your batteries, energises you and prepares you for another day. It’s essential for a healthy working body, not to mention how incredible a good night’s sleep feels! Sleeping could be said to have its own set of three Rs – Re-energise, regenerate and repair.

Getting a good night’s sleep is easier said than done for some, especially for people who take ages to shut their brain down. There are certain steps you can take though to prepare yourself for slumberland. If you have trouble getting to sleep or, if you have restless nights, try these handy tips below.

• Take a long and hot bubble bath before bedtime
• Drink a warm milky beverage, but without caffeine. Malt drinks or just hot milk make people drowsy.
• Herbal teas work as well, especially chamomile tea.
• Certain foods aid sleep. Other than dairy, which contains calcium that helps alleviate stress, bananas can help to relax over-stressed muscles. Almonds also help as they contain magnesium which encourages the body to sleep. Most fish also helps, as well as being generally helpful for you.
• Do some relaxation exercises before bed for about 10 minutes. If you’re stressed or thoughtful about something, your brain will find it harder to relax and settle into sleep mode. Do some simple breathing exercises, or put some calming music on, to relax your body and mind.
• Some relaxation techniques include squeezing your toes for 1-2 seconds and then releasing them again. Do this slowly and steadily, whilst working your way up from your toes to you calves, thighs, bottom, then shoulders.
• Other techniques are in the mind. One of the hardest things to do, especially if you’re distracted or stressed, is to have happy thoughts right before you fall asleep. However, this is one of the best ways to have a good night’s sleep. Happy, relaxed and inconsequential thoughts help you to drift off as your brain isn’t being preoccupied with important and pressing matters that could keep you up.
• To help with this, before getting into bed try watching some non-stimulating TV or read a book which won’t particularly grab your attention and tempt you to keep watching/reading.
• Some people let their imaginations take them to dreamland. Try imagining a warm and soft place. A golden sandy beach springs to mind. Imagine yourself lying down on the sand, with the sun’s rays warming you gently. Feel the soft sand between your fingers, and hear the rolling waves breathing in and out of the shore. In and out, pushing and pulling… taking you in and out of sleep, until you eventually drift off.
• Learn to forget about your tensions – just momentarily – as you empty your mind for a good night’s sleep.
• Ensure your environment is primed for sleeping. If you need complete darkness, turn off any electronics, cover up any LED lights and twitch your curtains shut. If you need complete silence and the area you’re in is particularly noisy, invest in some good and safe earplugs. Or, put on some quiet and relaxing music to drown out background noises.
• If you sleep with a partner, enjoy some cuddle time if you like, but remember that people sleep best when in their own space. Make sure you both have plenty of room and are in a comfortable position.
• In hot weather, open a window or turn on a fan. In cold weather, make sure you have plenty of blankets or a hot water bottle. Don’t let extreme temperatures keep you up.

Wayne Green is an experienced writer and blogger. He published several articles about tips for improving sleep quality. Now he’s running a website telling people how to buy mattress online.