It’s 3 A.M. and you’re wide awake … again!
You’re not sure why...
- It could be that you are stressed and overwhelmed these days...
- Maybe you're concerned about a health, work or family issue...
- Maybe you had too much coffee today because you needed to stay awake after not sleeping well last night.
- Or... it could be that you’re worried that you will never fall asleep.
The reason doesn’t matter, but the fact is…
You Still… Can’t… Sleep
If any of these sounds familiar, you’re not alone.
A third of the population suffers from some form of insomnia.
This is a scary number, considering how important restful sleep is to strengthen your immune system, eliminate toxins, balance hormones, protect you from depression and anxiety, lower your risk of high blood pressure and heart disease, and perform at your best.
This is what you're going to get in this article:
No matter the reason or the impact, if you’re not getting the sleep you need, it may be time to instill these…
Top Three Mindful Sleep Habits
- Keep electronics out of your bedroom for better sleep quality
This is at the top of the list for good reason - the blue light from TVs, tablets, laptops, and smartphones interferes with falling asleep because it suppresses melatonin, an essential hormone for sleep.
Also, keeping smartphones and tablets out of your bedroom helps you fall asleep earlier, because you are not endlessly scrolling or watching ‘just one more episode’ on Netflix.
Devices can be very stimulating, which is the last thing you need when trying to fall asleep at night. - Take one hour to wind down and prepare for bed
In the first 20 minutes, complete the day by getting ready for tomorrow.
One way to do that is to journal one page with your thoughts. Don’t worry about what to write. Just “download” what’s in your brain, allowing you to fall asleep with a calm mind.
Alternatively, if you expect tomorrow to be a busy day, write your to-do list before getting into bed. This will help you let go the need to go over the plan for tomorrow in your mind again and again...
The second 20 minutes is for body preparation.
Warm showers are especially good because they calm you and prepare your body for sleep.
For the final 20 minutes, just relax.
Quiet reading, low-impact stretching, listening to soothing music or having a massage are some ways to get your mind ready for sleep. - Follow a guided mindfulness sleep practice
Science has proven that mindfulness is almost an immediate stress reliever.
Here’s a crash course in stress relief that you can start practicing tonight:
First… tune into your breathing, noticing if it is fast or slow, deep or shallow, smooth or abrupt.
Then... after noticing your breath pattern, begin to observe the effect it has on your body. What are the sensations of the breath coming in and out? What are your muscles doing?
Next... take a few moments to scan through your body and notice what wants to relax, to let go a little. Breathe in relaxation and calmness, and breathe out tension and stress.
Or… you could take your sleep seriously and let Vered guide you through a deep mindfulness sleep practice...
It’s FREE and it's the best thing you can do before falling asleep to get a good night's sleep, starting... tonight.
Just fill in your name and email address, and we will send the mindfulness sleep practice to your inbox... immediately.
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Mindfulness for Sleep Practice
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Let's Talk...
We love sharing our ideas, insights and experiences with you, and we'd love to make it into an empowering discussion... So... please take a moment and join the conversation in the comments (below)...
We love to hear from you, learn from you, answer your questions, or just say "hello"...
And yes... we respond to each comment (pretty quickly, usually)...
Get Our Top Affirmations for Sleep for FREE…
Let us know in the comment box below what do you do (or not do) in order to get a better sleep, and we will email you our Top Affirmations for Sleep as our "thank you" GIFT.
Repeat these affirmations in the morning and before going to sleep and see how your thoughts transform and with them your mindset, and… your sleep becomes easier, deeper, more restful...
I usually do a short body scan on my mindfulness app. I can do that offline on an old device so no temptation to scan messages or so.
Alternatively I do a breathing exercise. 4 breaths in, 8 out. and I make sure I have warm feet.
Great and valuable contribution Lin. Thanks so much for it.
Curious to know what mindfulness app you use?
Exercise and feeling tired too helps enormously….and having a day job of some sort for satisfaction and letting go of everything, don’t hang onto thoughts, maybe the good ones….drift off listening to radio, but not music..cut out all light, and finally….sex, natures sedative……after not during sex…
Ooohhh LOVE these tips Leslie. Thanks so much for this contribution.
Curious to know why not music and what would you listen on the radio to?
Taking A Hot shower
Listen to relaxing music or Mindfulness apps.
Reading A book and feel my eyes closing after A While.
Thanks for these valuable tips Alma.
Curious to know what Mindfulness app do you use Alma?
I put my phone on airplane mode till i wake up in the morning. I know, i should actually even put it back on even later, after a wake up routine.
Thanks Jacqueline for your input.
I know that many of us use our mobiles as our alarm clock, but it’s best to use the old fashion one & leave the mobile out of your bedroom for a goodnight sleep.
This would also help in not reaching out to it as the first thing you do in the morning & scrolling down your email box even before getting out of bed…
Since many years I don’t have a clock or alarm in my bedroom. I only use the alarm when it is absolutely necessary.
I go to bed between 22 and 22.30 and sleep until I know that I am wide-awake.
Mostly that is between 4 and 5.30 am, sometimes not until seven o’clock and sometimes, when I can’t feel asleep again, it is before 3 am. Oops. But I almost always feel happy and rarely worried.
Thank you for your valuable contribution Harro.
Going to bed before 23:00 is definitely a success factor in getting a good night sleep.
We all have different sleeping patterns. Some people would be totally awake and refreshed at 4:00am after 6-7 hours of sleep and some would need to sleep until 7:00-8:00am to have that energy.
This also changes with seasons and age, we just need to find what works for OUR body.
Thank you again for this input.
Those are three great sleeping tips!
Let me add one.
The “Silva Method” has worked for me – tremendously good!
From having hard times falling asleep and restless nights with many nightmares to falling into a delightful sleep at hitting my pillow. Getting to this point only took a few weeks.
That has never changed ever since. And on the rare occasions where I do not sleep immediately the learned technique takes care of it right away.
Thanks Robert for this valuable contribution
No coffee after 3 PM. Hot shower before going to bed. Blue light filter on phone, twilight app, sleeping program of the lamp with sea sounds and red coloring light. Watching my breath. Don’t worry too much about not falling asleep…
Geen koffie na 15 00 uur. Warme douche voor t naar bed gaan. Blauw licht filter op telefoon, twilight app, Slaapprogr vd lamp met zeegeluid en naar rood kleurend licht. Op adem letten. Niet druk maken bij niet slapen. ..
Thanks Ineke for your input.
In the future please put your input in English as it is an International community and many of our members cannot understand when it’s in Dutch. If you’re not sure about your English Google Translate is always there for you.
It seems strange but watching television (especially older movies which I know by heart) helps me sleep.
In general I sleep pretty good (apart from the stressful periods every now and then) and wake up without an alarm most of the time.
Thanks Ard for your contribution.
If you are on the path of consciousness expansion, you can get confronted with cellular memory files from as far as 20 generations back and/or from past lives that do not wish to be deleted.
No affirmations are going to help you override these. You will need powerful protocols like those of Joe Dispenza for instance.
I myself use other protocols with similar modules.
Thank you for your input, Elise.
Would love to hear from you – which protocol do you find most effective dealing with sleep disorders?
Hi Nisandeh, actually I do exercises I learned on the Avatar course already 30 years.
Cannot share them, due to confidentiality agreement, will get sued if I share.
That is why I refer to Joe Dispenza’s work, only technique and tools I find to be equal and even expand on what I have learned back then.
Having said that, there is also this nifty simple exercise that really works when you can’t sleep because of regular stress, overthinking and not deep unconscious issues: find it on youtube Jim Donovan “how to trick your brain into falling asleep”. Works very well.
Much appreciated, Elise… will check it out.
Thanks Elise for your valuable input. Affirmations do not override what is already in your mind (that’s impossible in any system).
What Affirmations DO is create NEW and SUPPORTIVE files that when repeated and followed with actions that would give your mind proof that this newfile is correct will eventually become your automatic go-to when confronted with situations
Apart from the tips you listed (which are very effective by the way) what also helps me is doing interval fasting – if my last meal of the day takes place before 4:30 pm, I find I sleep much deeper and wake up hungry and rested.
Also – going to bed rather early (no later than 11pm) helps tremendously – there seems to be some wisdom in the old saying that the sleep before midnight is qualitatively better.
In addition, if I spent time outside in nature – preferably around noon when the sun is up and about – I sleep better at night.
Absolutely, Cora…
As one that struggled with sleep disorder most of my life, I totally agree that all the 3 tips you mentioned help tremendously… especially getting enough sun when we used to live in the Netherlands…
Thank you for sharing and make it an awesome day…
These are such valuable and powerful tips Cora. Thanks for sharing them with us
Dear Vered and Nisandeh,
Thank you for all your kindness and efforts to make the world a better place to be.
As for myself, I try to do the same in my little circle. And yes, falling asleep can be difficult and waking-ups during the night are frequent.
I noticed indeed that my crime watching has much negative impact. So I definitely reduce it.
Mindfulness is one helpfull tool or habit and praying for others, the world, myself, another one. Reading a meditation text, repeating my mantra.
Have a beautiful day, Janna
You’re very welcome, Janna, and thank you for the warm words.
It always makes our day, when we know that we actually add value to people’s lives…
I love that you mentioned praying for others, the world, yourself…
Loving kindness meditation is one that we will introduce in the coming weeks and does exactly that…
Make it an awesome day.
Thanks for your valuable input Janna.
It’s always good to hear that what we share is helpful and support others.
Curious to hear if you notice any difference in the quality of your sleep once you implement those actions. Keep us posted
For a better sleep, I switch off the TV one hour before going to bed, I drink tea and read for 20-30 minutes.
In bed I listen to positive affirmations for 10-15 minutes.
Thank you for sharing, Eduard…
Just out of curiosity (as someone who never drinks tea or any hot drink), do you notice a specific type of tea to be more sleep inducing than others?
Rooibos
Thanks, Eduard… Much appreciated…
Fantastic steps Eduard and thank you for sharing them with us.
Curious to hear if you’ve noticed any difference in the quality of your sleep since you’ve taken these steps?