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Insomnia-how you have reared your ugly face in my life? Let me count the ways.
Pregnancy insomnia x 5.
Newborn/infant forced insomnia x 5.
Baby-finally-sleeps-now-I-don't-remember-how-to-sleep x 5.
Not only that, my husband has had insomnia for almost two decades and it has had a huge impact on his life and health. Within the past two years, I/we were DETERMINED to do what it takes to fix our sleep.
Some of us don't have insomnia, but we still wake up feeling unrested. There are season of life where our lack of a great sleep pattern is unavoidable like working the night shift, or caring for a newborn.
I'm going to be honest, depending on all of the internal and external factors, a glorious sleep pattern is not a magic bullet.
I promise the steps and principles below will have you on your way to better nights. My goal is to give you simple and achievable ways to move the needle. Before I go into all of the this, I want to put a disclaimer that it is important to seek medical advice, and this is not medical advice. There may be underlying factors that are affecting your sleep, but I cannot emphasize enough the value of getting to the bottom of this no matter what it takes!
Quality sleep is a key to longevity. Not only that, how much more amazing is your mood and productivity when your sleep is overall going well? No way to emphasize enough how much better life is!
1. Daylight exposure
Upon waking, get natural sunlight immediately if possible. Getting direct sunlight right away in the morning improves your circadian rhythm (Your circadian rhythm is just the mental, physical and behavioral changes we experience in a 24 hour period, but giving it a good routine is key to improving that 24 hour cycle and all the things your body needs to do to feel optimal.)
For those of us in the northern climates or places where it is often dark in the morning, bright indoor lighting is not the same, but it will still do the trick. But whenever possible, try to get outside for a quick 5-15 minute walk in direct sunlight upon waking.
2. Blue light exposure
Reduce electronic use two hours before bed. We all know that it's important to reduce blue light exposure, and the addictive nature of our devices. But, especially in the evening. Not only will your body benefit from not having blue light exposure in the evening, your mind will benefit by not being bombarded with social feeds and information. As a side note- PLEASE, DO NOT sleep with your phone by your bed. Apple issued a warning to not leave your phone plugged in on your nightstand even on airplane mode. Plug it in another room and keep it out of your bedroom.
One big objection that my husband and daughter had to this new rule of keeping phones out of our bedrooms is that they use them for sound machines and clocks. Well, guess what? Way back before there were phones that had apps and clocks, we used fans and digital clocks. And now we even have these handy little sound machines we can put by our beds. They have night lights and all different sounds to fit your background noise preference.
Here's what I got for us:
-Fav sound machine ( I have these in every bedroom.)
-Teen daughters clock (this one is fun for teens. It is also a mirror)
3. Food, drink & caffeine.
Don't eat or drink within 3 hours of bedtime. The reason for eating is that you want your digestive system to have a really nice break from eating in order to repair overnight. For drinking, if you're one of those people who can wake up and use the bathroom and fall right back to sleep, maybe you don't mind. But, if you have hard time falling back to sleep after waking up for a bathroom trip, try to limit. Also, I recommend not drinking caffeine 10 hours before you plan to go to sleep. That might sound extreme, but caffeine remains in your system for up to 10 hours. If your sleep is troubled, this might be something you want to consider.
4. Brain dump/journaling
This is a really great practice to get everything out of your mind before you go to sleep. Take out a journal and just dump everything on your mind in there. It can be to do's you didn't accomplish, or things you're feeling. Whatever comes up, just put it in the journal.
When you wake up in the morning, you can plug in your to-do's on your calendar so hopefully you can accomplish those things and feel satisfaction in completing the tasks that were on your mind the night before.
5. Supplement with Magnesium
Magnesium is a KEY mineral that most of us are lacking. Magnesium helps us maintain normal nerve and muscle function, it supports a healthy immune system, keeps the heartbeat steady, and helps bones remain strong. Magnesium plays an active role in the transport of calcium and potassium ions across cell membranes, which plays a role in protecting blood vessels and improving insulin resistance.
When it comes to magnesium, the form and quality is VERY important. Magnesium glycinate is known for its calming effects and muscle health benefits (if you suffer from leg or calf cramps, it could be a sign of magnesium deficiency.) Magnesium L-threonate is recognized for supporting cognitive function and brain health. Which one is right for you? Depending on the outcome you're trying to achieve, you can switch off taking them, or you can take them together, as they accomplish different purposes, but are both very beneficial. I split my dose of magnesium morning and night, and sometimes I take only at night.
Note- you will know if you are taking too much magnesium if your stools are loose...I'll leave it at that, but if that happens, you could back off or take every other day until your body adjusts. Consult your healthcare provider to know what's right for you.
6. Supplement with Melatonin
People have varying opinions on supplementing with melatonin. One thing I think most can agree upon is that using melatonin for a period of time is generally considered safe. When one of my babies was 12 months and having a difficult time getting on a sleep schedule, our pediatrician recommended a small amount of melatonin for 14-21 days at the same time at night in order to help her get on a routine. We do not give our kids melatonin regularly, but occasionally when their sleep cycles have been off from travel or different routines. We do give our kids these wonderful melatonin-free gummies that I cannot recommend enough.
It's called Kids calm: (Purchase here My link saves $10)
- Support mood regulation with vitamins B12 and B6.*
- Support natural GABA production with a blend of B and D vitamins.*
- Promote peace and relaxation with vitamin D3, magnesium, and Maizinol®.*
- Sugar free. Sweetened with blueberry juice.
- Plant based. Gummy texture made with citrus pectin.
I personally have been taking a bio-identical melatonin that has been working miraculously for my sleep. After my 5th baby started sleeping through the night, I found that I couldn't. My body was so conditioned to being in fight or flight from waking up with an infant, that I just couldn't stay sleeping at night. As a mom of 5, I cannot afford to be exhausted during the day. I absolutely love this supplement. I will not be using it forever, but it's helping me get into a good sleep pattern.
I also love Body health Sleep. This supplement has other benefits to sleep like L-theanine, L-Glycine and L-Glutamine. It's another blog post, but these are all amino acids that can impact your sleep by influencing several of your brain's neurotransmitters and promoting relaxed brain activity. I would probably choose one or the other depending on your health goals, or you could split the dose, or switch off and see how your body feels.
If you're looking for a melatonin free supplement for you, I also love this Sleep+ blend. It's the adult version of the Kid's Calm. There's also a Family sleep pack that is my personal favorite. My link will save $10 on the melatonin-free products. I sometimes take the kid gummies myself, they are so delicious!
7. Follow a bedtime routine.
This may seem obvious, but it really is important. Many of us hit the ground running all day, continue that pattern into the evening with the dinner routine, putting kids to bed, then we binge our screens and eat snacks until we finally shut off the light..
What if you committed to taking 1 hour for yourself before bed? For me, this starts at 8pm during the school year and closer to 9pm during the summer.
I do my nighttime skincare routine- wash my face, pick some of my anti-aging skincare routines. I might take a shower or bath with epsom salt (I like this one.) After this, I might take the time to do my brain dumping or journaling. Then, I lay on my PEMF mat and read a book, stretch and meditate for 15-20 minutes. I will talk more about this in another post, but this PEMF or Grounding mat has been a TOTAL game changer for my sleep and my husband's sleep. It's so awesome and I will tell you more about it later, or feel free to click the link and google PEMF mat benefits on your own.
After my PEMF mat, I rub my pure sleep magnesium cream on my legs and let it soak in. I read an evening devotion, then I turn out the lights.
Developing an evening routine of some sort that is more intentional than watching TV until you fall asleep will give you a more restful experience.
I hope you found these suggestions helpful. Will you try any of these suggestions? What else would you add to the list? I recommend picking at least three of the above things to do each night if you can't get to everything. You can rotate them out as you have time and decide what you're feeling like doing that particular evening.
Disclaimer: I am not a medical provider and these suggestions are not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any condition or disease. Always consult your healthcare provider for any medical advice.