Blissful sleep is a healthier way of living. It can provide a release from physical and mental tensions. It also helps with problems such as anxiety, depression, and obesity.
If you have a problem to get into sleep, it may be because you have been doing something wrong. It can be simple things like what you eat, drink or think about before bed. Your ability to function well is dependent on you getting enough rest. In this article we will concentrate on things to think about before bed for blissful sleep.
As we sleep, information processing takes place in our brain and it works on solving problems. Sometimes it does this by solving the problem during sleep. This is what scientists call “sleep-dependent memory consolidation”. It’s an important part of our mental health that many people ignore (or forget).
That is why getting quality rest is important.
Unfortunately, you may be struggling to get enough sleep. You may find yourself wide awake at 3 a.m. or tossing and turning throughout the night. However, you have a lot more control over how much shut-eye you get than you realize.
Wake up to the facts
Most individuals can fall asleep within 20 to 30 minutes after getting into bed. To get a good night’s rest, you should be able to sleep continuously without any disruptions throughout the night.
○ Without a good night’s sleep you are pretty useless!
A good laugh and a long sleep are the two best cures for anything. – Irish Proverb
Sleep efficiency can be defined as how much time is spent trying to fall asleep versus how much time you sleep. According to researchers, the bare minimum benchmark for quality of sleep is 85%.
Struggling with sleep onset (in other words ability to fall asleep) and sleep maintenance (ability to stay asleep) can affect your productivity. 35.2% of American adults sleep less than the required hours every night. Losing a few hours of rest can leave you feeling grumpy, anxious, and sleep-deprived.
○ Who is at risk of sleep deprivation?
Inadequate shut-eye regularly is referred to as sleep deprivation. Ongoing sleep deficiency puts you at risk of chronic health conditions.
1 in 3 adults suffers from sleep deprivation. However, certain groups are at more risk of sleep deprivation. These include:
- Individuals who are on medications that cause insomnia
- People with untreated medical conditions, such as sleep disorders
- People who only have a limited time to rest such as caregivers who work for long hours
- People who work against their body’s internal clock, such as night-shift workers
- Those who lead lifestyles that prevent them from sleeping for long hours, such as those who abuse drugs or alcohol.
One of the major signs that show you are sleep-deprived is if you often feel sleepy.
5 Things to think about before bed to sleep better
There are some nights when you might find yourself staying awake. No matter how much you try, it feels very challenging to calm down your racing mind, so that you can fall asleep faster. If you are unable to drowse off to sleep, you can probably benefit from some positive thinking to help you fall asleep.
1. Rewind your day and Get Closure
Before hoping on to bed, give some time to rewind your day. Start with something that happened early in the morning or late at night. It can be anything – a small incident or a major event. Remember all the details of the situation and how you felt during it.
Once you are done with one memory, move on to another one until you have gone through all of them. Go through everything that happened one by one. If there was any trouble, play it out in your mind and try and get closure from it. See what you can learn from it.
With the help of this technique, you can go through the day in detail and get closure before sleep. Lingering anger, stress, and worry from your day can often leave you unable to slumber. That is why it is important to manage your stress levels just before bedtime.
2. Subconscious Mind Cheat Code
Your subconscious mind works continuously, while you are awake, and while you sleep. – Napoleon Hill
It is well-known that the conscious mind is awake during the day and dormant at night. But what about the subconscious mind? Is it also asleep when you are in slumber mode? The answer is no, it’s not! The research has found that the subconscious mind is awake right before sleep.
The subconscious mind can be considered as an organ that works for your ego, showing your thoughts as they come, oftentimes without any interruptions or filters from your rational self.
So right before you are going to sleep, your brain’s pathways are full of potential and all the neural connections are open.
In this phase of sleep (Just before you are fully asleep), you can talk to your subconscious and command it about what you want to do in the future. You can also ask questions and receive answers back from your subconscious.
3. Think About Being Wide Awake
Regular sleep deprivation can lead to anxiety and stress. This can make it impossible for you to fall asleep. One probable way to deal with this is through the use of reverse psychology. Reverse psychology is a persuasion method that gets you to do the exact opposite of what you intend.
Psychologists claim that sleep paradox is effective. So, in this context of you trying to fall asleep, sleep paradox involves telling your brain over and over that it is okay for you to be wide awake instead of fretting about not falling asleep. This reverse psychology will trick your brain into falling asleep.
Telling yourself that you are wide awake and it is ok will also help to relax your brain, thereby making it easier for you to fall asleep.
4. Focus on things you are grateful for
According to research, focusing on things you are grateful for will help you fall asleep much better at night. So, try thinking about all the things you are grateful for. Gratitude is the ultimate positive thinking. Undertaking this activity at night will trigger happy thoughts of calm and fulfillment and will prompt you to doze off without too much worry.
According to the sleep doctor, Dr. Michael Breus, the happier your thoughts are before bedtime, the better. This is because your thoughts often turn into dreams. So thinking about positive things before bed will leave you relaxed.
Positive thoughts will help you relax, which is conducive to you drifting off. Studies have shown that gratitude leads to reduced stress, better health, and sleep.
5. Think about your goals for tomorrow
The future will be better tomorrow. – George W. Bush
What are you going to be doing tomorrow? Think about all the things you want to do the next day and how you will achieve them.
When your mind is littered with what you are going to do the next day, one of the best things to do would be to write down a to-do list. Sleep science coach Chris Brantner, from SleepZoo, suggests putting down your thoughts on paper to free your mind from worries. By sorting out your day, your mind and body will be at rest, making it easier for you to fall asleep.
Doctor of psychology Dr. Daniel Forshee, LLC states that once you have journaled down your priorities, then figuratively close the book and drop off till morning since there is nothing more you can do about it now. You can go to sleep knowing that you will be much more productive after getting some shut-eye.
Are You Ready for Sweet Dreams?
Your state of mind can interfere with your ability to fall asleep fast. When you are unable to fall asleep, it is up to you to switch your thoughts from stressful to calming thoughts to enjoy a goodnight’s rest. If you are willing to put in the effort, the points discussed here will be quite helpful to you.
Positive thoughts are a good way to clear your mind of negative thoughts, help you drift off and enjoy some rest. Try out these tips at night and see the difference that they will make.
