4 Tips To Improve Your Sleep & Sleep Quality

Quality sleep is the foundation to great health. If you want to feel your best, have more balanced hormones, less cravings, more energy, then you want to make sure you’re getting some solid shut eye each night.

Quality sleep is just as important as eating a nutrient dense nourishing diet, they are both two pillars for better overall health and well-being. 

And yes, if you have a baby or toddler who doesn’t sleep, I get it. I’ve been there the past two and a half years, the struggle is real, but hang in it, it’s a season of life and just do the best you can when you can to get to bed earlier, or take additional naps during the day if you need to. Regular naps can be a game changer when you’ve got a young baby.

Here are 4 simple things you can incorporate into your lfiestyle to improve the quality of your sleep:

1. Avoid checking your phone/laptop/iPad, any device ideally 1 hour before you go to bed.
Exposure to blue light during the evening sends a signal to your brain that it’s still daytime, suppressing the production of melatonin, a hormone that promotes sleep. By reducing blue light exposure in the evening, you can help your body maintain a natural sleep-wake cycle, you allow your body to produce melatonin more effectively, making it easier to fall asleep and get deeper, healing and restful sleep.
So yes, it’s time to give up checking emails right before bed, or scrolling social media, both are stimulating for the brain, plus you don’t need to evoke a mix of emotions by comparison with whatever appears on your social media.

2. Stop drinking coffee after midday
Caffeine is a stimulant that can affect the central nervous system. It blocks adenosine, a neurotransmitter that promotes relaxation and sleepiness. When adenosine is blocked, you feel more alert and awake. The stimulating effects of caffeine can persist for several hours, depending on individual sensitivity and metabolism.Consuming caffeine too late in the day can interfere with your ability to fall asleep. It can also disrupt the quality of your sleep by preventing you from reaching the deeper stages of restorative sleep. This can lead to more fragmented and less restful sleep, leaving you feeling less refreshed in the morning.
So the answer is simple, if sleep is something you struggle with, enjoy 1-2 cups in the morning before midday.

3. Create a Consistent Sleep Schedule.
Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day. Consistency helps regulate your body’s internal clock, making it easier to fall asleep and wake up naturally. Aim for 7-9 hours of sleep per night. Adjust your schedule if you have to to ensure you get adequate rest.

4. Supplement with a good quality magnesium.
Magnesium is a mineral that plays a crucial role in various bodily functions, including sleep regulation. Magnesium can enhance the activity of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), a neurotransmitter in the brain that has a calming and inhibitory effect. Increased GABA activity can help calm the central nervous system, promoting relaxation and sleep. Magnesium is also involved in the regulation of the body’s internal clock, our circadian rhythm. Magnesium has been shown to reduce stress and anxiety levels. High-stress levels and anxiety can make it difficult to fall asleep and stay asleep. Consider taking 300-400mg of a good quality magnesium such as magnesium bisglycinate before bed.

Some other factors to consider are keep your bedroom cool, quiet, and dark. Consider using blackout curtains to block out external light and white noise machines to mask disruptive sounds.

I hope this helps! If you need further assistance on getting to the root cause of your sleep troubles or any health issues book in a FREE 15 minute healt assessment phone call with me today, we can discuss your health goals, challenges and how I could potentially help