Hi and welcome to today's video all about how to get a better night's sleep during pregnancy.
You might be finding at the moment that sleep is pretty elusive. Maybe you're struggling to get
to sleep maybe you're waking up a lot in the night. A lot of women can struggle with
pregnancy insomnia and restless nights so I'm hoping that this video is going to share lots
of helpful tips so that you can get better sleep during your pregnancy. If you're new to my channel
"Welcome!" my name's Anja and I'm an antenatal class teacher specialising in hypnobirthing.
On my youtube channel you'll find pregnancy, birth and postnatal related content. I upload a new video
every single Tuesday so don't forget to click the subscribe button and the bell icon so you
won't miss any of my upcoming videos. My first tip for getting better sleep during pregnancy
is to go for a 20 to 30 minute moderately paced walk each day. If you can get outside during
daylight hours for a walk that will automatically lower the amount of melatonin the hormone that you
have flowing around your bloodstream which can induce feelings of sleepiness. You need to lower
the amount of melatonin in your body during the day so that your body will automatically release
more melatonin at night to help you to fall asleep. Also, going for a walk each day or doing some form
of exercise every day will also help to release and reduce any discomfort or achiness that you
might be experiencing related to your growing baby bump. Obviously, if you feel less uncomfortable
when you go to bed at night it's going to be easier for you to fall asleep. My second tip
is to reduce any noise or activity that might be keeping you awake at night.
Looking at a laptop, a mobile phone or watching the television isn't really advised before you go
to bed. You should try to turn off those devices at least one to two hours before you go to bed.
Mobile phones, laptops and tv screens emit a blue light which is similar to daylight and
that blue light stimulates your brain telling you to stay awake and telling you that it's daytime.
What you want to be doing at night is reducing activity, stop stimulating your brain with those
blue lights and tell your body and your brain that it's night time, that it's dark outside and that
it's time to sleep. Instead of scrolling through social media and watching tv shows,
the best things that you can do at night time to help you sleep better in pregnancy
are to read a book, listen to some relaxation music or check out one of my hypnobirthing
sleep meditations on my YouTube channel. You'll find the link to those on the screen right now :)
My third tip is to encourage the flow of melatonin as much as possible and you can do that in the
evening by relaxing and chilling out in your living room with the lights turned down low so
rather than turning on your ceiling light - have a lamp on in the corner of the room instead. Also,
when you go to bed at night, make sure that your bedroom is as dark as possible. If you haven't
got blackout curtains it might be a good time to purchase some of those just so you can block
out any light that might be coming from street lamps outside your house. My fourth tip is to avoid
eating large quantities before bedtime. You really want to avoid eating large meals in the evening
because it can cause you to have indigestion at night. Also, if you eat a lot before you go to
bed it will actually cause your body to be working harder to digest your food rather than helping
you to get a good night's sleep. You might also wake up in the night because of your heavy meal
because your body will cause you to have glucose spikes in the bloodstream which will wake you up.
If you do feel hungry at night it's okay to have a few snacks like a glass of milk, maybe a banana
(because bananas contain potassium and magnesium which can help you to sleep more deeply) and it's
also okay to have a slice of toast or a small bowl of porridge - but you don't
want to be overwhelming your digestive system with too much food. My next tip is to purchase
a maternity pillow because that by far was one of the best things I bought during my pregnancy.
When I got to the third trimester, I was struggling to get to sleep comfortably on my left-hand side
and I was advised by my midwives to sleep on my left-hand side because it's best for digestive and
circulatory reasons and it allows optimal oxygen and blood flow to be traveling around your body
to your baby and their placenta. When you have a maternity pillow, it supports your head
and your neck and it also supports your back and your hips which can feel increasingly achy
as your pregnancy progresses. If you haven't already bought a maternity pillow
now would be a good time to purchase one! You can find loads of bargains online you can get
them on Amazon, ebay and you can try some out at baby and mother stores in your local area.
My next tip is to keep cool. During pregnancy your core body temperature rises and it's easier for
you to overheat so when you go to bed at night you really want your ambient room temperature
to be between 16 and 18 degrees celsius because that's perfect for good pregnancy sleep. So turn off
the radiators, make sure that your bedroom is well ventilated, that the windows are open
and make sure that you're not sleeping under heavy blankets or thick duvets.
My seventh tip is to have an Epsom salt bath at night before you go to sleep.
Epsom salts contain magnesium and magnesium can help you to feel sleepy, it can help you to unwind
in the evening and it also helps to reduce aches and pains that you might be feeling in your body.
If you can have a bath every night that would be great! Make sure that it's not too hot because
you don't want to overheat or overheat your baby. A nice warm bath with candles lit around you - make
sure that the room is dimly lit and then just put a cup full of those Epsom salts in your bath,
relax and enjoy! My final tip is to diffuse about four to six drops of lavender oil into your
bedroom 30 minutes before you go to sleep. Lavender oil contains properties which will calm and soothe
you, help you to unwind, help you to fall asleep and stay asleep. When you're diffusing lavender oil
into your bedroom at nighttime make sure that your bedroom is well ventilated with the windows open
because the smell of lavender oil can be quite strong and overpowering especially during
pregnancy when you're more sensitive to smell. Lavender oil is a great one to diffuse into
your room to help you to fall asleep and I highly recommend it because I diffused it so many nights
during the third trimester when I was struggling to fall asleep. Thank you so much for watching this
video today! I hope that you found it useful and informative :) Let me know in the comments
section which tip you're going to try first to help you get better sleep during your pregnancy.
If you'd like to sign up for one of my FREE hypnobirthing taster sessions on zoom, simply
click the link in the video description below to sign up! Take care and see you in my next video :)