The importance of Sleep can not be underestimated and unfortunately it’s one of the first things to suffer in modern society. Faced a never ending list of tasks and a shortage a hours in the day, it is often sleep that gets marginalized.

Sleep should be not be an after thought to squeeze into what is left of the day/night, but instead prioritized as the one thing you ensure you get enough of!!!

How much is enough depends on you, some people can get by on 4 hours a night, some on 6 – 8, and others on 8-10 hours……….some need longer (although research suggests longer than 10 is not good for us).

So, the first important part is to get sufficient hours of sleep. This is all to do with your own circadian rythmn, which i’ll discuss in a future post. But for now, let’s assume you need 8 hours — which appears to be the average.  So, here are 8 TIPS to help you fall asleep:

1. Make sure your room is dark and turn the lights off: the light signals your brain that it is still day time and your body isn’t willing to produce melatonin, your natural sleeping aid, so you stay awake.
2. Be comfortable: this can mean finding a comfortable mattress and pillows to sleep on, or even wearing comfortable pajamas to bed.
3. Avoid distractions in your bedroom: Turn the TV off, and any music, concentrate on just falling asleep.
    
4. Avoid Coffee: having a lot of coffee during the day will affect you at night, so limit your cups of caffeine a day or don’t drink any caffeinated beverages after the afternoon.

     4.   Have sex! 

     5.  Exercise during the day — not too close to bedtime tho.

     6.  Have a warm bath. The warm water relaxes your muscles and promotes sleepiness an hour after your warm bath 

     7.  Drink a cup of tea: drinking chamomile or any decaffeinated tea beverage before bed can stimulate sleepiness.

     8.  Do some stretching before bed: stretching relaxes your muscles 

Of course, sleep is about waking up refreshed and we’ll cover that in another post also. But for now, focus on getting the right amount and right type of sleep and I promise you will be on step closer to finding your true Essence