Sleep Hygiene: Tips For A Better Night's Sleep

What is sleep hygiene?

Good sleep habits, referred to as “sleep hygiene,” can help set yourself up for better sleep.

Getting a good night’s sleep is more in your control than you think. Following a healthy sleep routine can resolve frequent sleep disturbances and restless nights, evening helping those affected by working nights, jet leg, and insomnia.

So what can a good night's sleep improve?

Sleep is at the heart of our physcial and mental health. It is key for tissue repair, cell regeneration, immune functioning and regulation of daytime emotion. It improves our concentration, productivity and can maximise athletic performance.

Your sleeping position can have a direct impact on the tightness and soreness of muscles. It may even be the underlying cause of lower back pain. A good night’s sleep and comfortable sleeping position can help you relieve your body of these pains.

Why is it important to chiropractors how you sleep?

1. People in pain are more likely to have a poor night’s sleep. With mood and energy levels dropping, they are statistically less likely to get better quickly.
2. Poor sleep quality also changes our perception of pain – the brain tells the body the pain is worse than it actually is.

So a good night’s sleep can fix your back pain! Well, it’s not quite that simple but it is very important.

Tips to help improve your sleep hygiene:

Reduce night-time light:

Stay away from bright lights as they hinder the production of melatonin, a hormone released to help us sleep. Turn off electronic devices; block light coming in from outside your window or from the landing. Eliminating this light will help regulate your circadian rhythm (the body’s internal clock). So invest in some black-out blinds, turn off all your devices and if this can’t be done buy an eye mask.

Change your sleeping posture:

It is important to maintain the natural curve of your spine when in bed. By lying flat on your back and keeping your head, shoulders and hips in alignment ensures the back is well supported. Keeping your arms down by your side helps reduce the strain on the shoulders as well. If this isn’t comfortable for you, try placing a small pillow underneath your knees which can help maintain the spine’s natural curve.

If you want to sleep on your side, make sure your head is well supported and avoid stretching your arms outwards. This helps support your spine and reduces tension in the shoulders. A pillow between the knees can raise the upper leg which restores the alignment of the hips, pelvis and spine.

Exercise regularly:

Not exactly a surprise, exercise is good for you! Exercise has loads of benefits from improving your circulation, strengthening your heart, while shown to reduce anxiety and depression. Another great benefit of exercising is that it has been shown to help you fall asleep more quickly and improve sleep quality. With all these benefits not only for your mental but physical health also, if sleep is a problem then starting to exercise may be a great way to prevent sleepless nights.

Fixed wake-up time:

This is a great way for all of us to get into a routine. Whether it’s Monday or Sunday morning we should try to set our alarm for the same time every day, if we have a fluctuating schedule this stops our body from getting into a rhythm of consistent sleep.

Daily habits that can help:

• Increasing daylight exposure – Yes it’s November and we’re in England but don’t despair! Sit your desk next to a window during the day, wrap up and eat your lunch outside, make sure your work and home environment is well-lit and keep screen monitors bright during the day

• Consider buying a lightbox, which can also help if you suffer from SAD (Seasonal affective disorder)

• Reducing caffeine intake in the afternoon’s and evening

• Avoid large meals before bedtime

• Unplugging from electronics between 30-60 minutes before bed to give yourself time to relax and unwind.

What if the pain when you sleep continues?

If you’ve tried these tips but it’s not getting to the bottom of your pain, book in to see your local chiropractor. Kasper and Gray Chiropractic is located in Christchurch, Dorset, and serve local towns such as Bournemouth, Southbourne, Ringwood, Highcliffe, New Milton, Lymington, Poole, Charminster and Winton.

Sleep Hygiene: Tips For A Better Night’s Sleep