Are you struggling to get a good nights sleep?
In this video we are going to go over the top 10 things that you can do to get a better
nights sleep.
Hi, I'm Dr. Erik Richardson a board certified Family Practice physician.
I'd like to welcome you to FamilyMed, a channel that focuses giving you practical and accurate
medical information to help you and your family.
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Welcome to our latest installment of "I have a question".
In this series we tackle common questions that you have about day to day medical issues
that you may be facing.
The question that we are going to be answering today is one that I get a lot.
In today's video we are going to be tackling the ever illusive question of "how do I get
a good nights sleep?"
Sleep is one of the most important things to maintain good physical and mental health
but unfortunately it is something that many of us, including myself neglect.
Most of us walk around in a state of "sleep debt", a situation where we get more and more
behind in our sleep.
Signs of sleep deficiency can be quite varied.
In children you may start seeing issues with attention, behavior issues, depression, aggressive
behavior and poor school performance.
It can also put them at risk for obesity and health problems related to that in the future.
In adults we see similar issues including increased risk for depression, fatigue, traffic
and work related accidents.
It starts to affect your memory, ability to concentrate and perform well in tasks.
It puts you more at risk for becoming overweight and obese as well as increasing your risk
of chronic conditions such as heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes.
Plan and simple we all need sleep and the fact of the matter is most of us don't get
it.
The biggest problem about sleep though, is that it is one of those things, that the harder
you try to do it, the harder it is to succeed.
You can't just make yourself fall asleep, but there are things that you can do to help
create a better environment for it to happen naturally as well as avoid the things that
are getting in your way.
We are going to get into those right now.
The first key to getting to sleep easy is avoiding Caffeine, Alcohol, Nicotine and other
chemicals that interfere with sleep.
Caffeine is the most obvious culprit and besides coffee it can be found in tea, chocolate,
cola and even some pain relievers.
In smokers, the nicotine is also a stimulant and can affect your ability to sleep.
You should avoid any stimulant type chemical at least 4-6 hours prior to bedtime.
Interestingly enough, Alcohol can affect your ability to sleep as well.
It may help bring on sleep but after a few hours it can act as a stimulant and increase
your chance of waking up so it's best to keep your alcohol intake to 1-2 drinks a day and
avoid drinking within three hours of bedtime.
The next key is to turn your bedroom into an environment that aids in sleep.
We all do best in a quiet, cool, dark environment.
If you can't make it quite, use earplugs or white noise devices to block out distracting
noises.
Use heavy curtains or an eye mask to block out light.
Keeping your room temperature under 70 degrees and having a comfortable mattress and pillow.
We also recommend that you limit bedroom activities to sleep.
Having computers, TV's or other distractions or activities in the bedroom blocks your brain
from associating your bed with sleep.
We need to train our brains to be able recognize that when we get in our beds, its time to
sleep.
The third recommendation is to Establish a soothing bedtime routine.
We do this for our children but for some reason we think that we are different.
Doing things such as taking a bath, reading a non-stimulating book, meditating can help
prepare your mind for sleep.
Avoid work, discussing stimulating issues, watching or discussing world events or any
other stress inducing activities.
Stress increases the hormone cortisol which is associated with increasing our alertness.
The 4th suggestion is not to go to sleep until you are tired.
One of the biggest traps people get into is they go to bed and then they lay there for
hours trying to get to sleep.
If you are in bed and haven't fallen asleep after 20-30 minutes then get up, go to another
room and do something relaxing until you feel tired again then go back to bed.
Avoid any stimulating activities and keep the lights dim until you get tired.
The 5th suggestion is to keep a set sleeping schedule.
We do this with our children.
They have bed times for a reason.
Going to bed and waking up at the same time each day helps our body set an "internal clock".
As we do so our bodies are more likely to get tired at a certain time and make it easier
to sleep.
Just as if not more important though is making sure that we get up around the same time each
day, even if you didn't sleep well the night before.
This is important to do even on the weekends.
The more that keep to a set schedule the easier it is to train our bodies and minds to go
to sleep when they should.
The 6th suggestion is to avoid napping or if you do make sure that you do for a short
amount of time and do it earlier in the day.
Keeping naps to 20-30 minutes if you are going to do it and only in thee early afternoon
will help you to still be tired when it comes time to go to sleep.
Avoiding napping all together can help you reset your sleep schedule and make it easier
to get to sleep.
The 7th suggestion is to stop looking at the clock.
Staring at a clock in your bedroom when you're trying to fall asleep or in the middle of
the night just causes stress and anxiety and makes it harder to fall asleep.
Turn that clock away from you and let your body do the rest.
The 8th tip is to keep your dinner meals light.
Eating a heavy, greasy meal can make it more difficult for you to be able to sleep.
For many it contributes to indigestion that can make it more difficult especially when
you lay down to sleep soon after eating.
If you get hungry at night it's ok to have a snack, just keep it light.
The 9th tip is to exercise early.
Daily exercise can be a key factor in not only a healthy lifestyle but also in a goods
night sleep.
If you do it too late though, it can make it harder to fall asleep.
Exercise stimulates the body to secrete the stress hormone cortisol.
Cortisol helps activate the alert mechanisms in the brain which can make it more difficult
to fall asleep.
Try to finish exercising at least 3 hours before bed or work out earlier in the day.
The 10th and final tip is to be consistent.
All of these tips are important to getting a good nights sleep but they are not something
that is going to happen overnight.
It can take several weeks of really working at this to be able see a significant difference.
Insomnia isn't something that you are going to be able to fix overnight.
Keep at it and you will see improvement.
And just like any other medical condition.
If you have been consistently working on these things and still are struggling, get into
your doctor.
There are other conditions that can be contributing to your problem.
So, there's the answer to the question of "How can I get a better night's sleep?"
Hopefully it gave you some ideas on what you can start doing tonight.
These certainly aren't the only ideas that can help improve your sleep, so I would love
to hear from you, What have you found that helps you to get a better nights sleep?
Let us know in the comments below.
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But until next time, this is FamilyMed with Dr. Richardson and remember to take care of
your body because it's the only one you have.