Good night: Importance of sleep hygiene

I think its great when what you're learning inspires you to make healthy adjustments in your own life. Right now, we're in the middle of our Psychology Module, and one of the guest speakers this week talked about Sleep Disorders, including sleep apnea, movement disorders, circadian rhythm disorders, insomnia and narcolepsy.

In addition to having a primary sleep condition, things like medication, psychiatric conditions, medical conditions, and poor sleep behaviors can be causes of sleep problems for people.

Personally, I have intermittent sleep issues related to stress and anxiety (hello, PA school!). What I mean is, sometimes I just can't seem to get my brain to shut off so I can fall asleep.

If you want to get better sleep, here are some tips:

•  Expose yourself to bright lights at certain times of the day, depending on when you're having troubles. Can't fall asleep at night? Bright lights in the morning. Falling asleep too early? Turn on some bright lights at night. 
•  Don't stare at the clock! Checking the time over and over isn't going to help. Turn your alarm clock around or put it under your bed. 
•  Have the same sleep schedule every day. Yes, 7 days a week. That includes weekends, ya'll. 
• Use your bed for two things. Sleep and, well, I'm betting you can guess the other! This was definitely a challenge for me this summer while I was living in my studio, since my bed served a double purpose as my couch. 
•  Stay away from alcohol, caffeine and even chocolate before bed. Real bummer, I know. Just a good excuse for happy hour instead?? 
•  Exercise! I know this is hard when your time is limited, but endorphins and better sleep. What more could you want?
•  Deal with your worries before bedtime. Maybe this means making a plan for the next day or literally setting a "worry time" so you can clear your brain before it's time for sleeping. 

I've learned that journaling is an excellent method to help get the thoughts out of my brain and onto the paper so I can more easily fall asleep. Journaling also has the great side effect of keeping me away from my phone, so that's a plus! 

I've also had great success with a sleep sounds app. My app of choice is "Rain, Rain" because you can pick from a whole variety of sounds and find one you like. No matter what you choose, I BEG OF YOU, listen to the one of the Shih Tzu snoring. I don't know if I was a little slap-happy when I first listened to this one, but I laughed so hard I cried. Seriously. 

Sleep well, everyone!