Sleep is foundational to health and wellbeing. Without adequate, restful sleep, every body system struggles. Sleep is the master regulator. When you go to bed each night, your nervous system goes to work dumping accumulated toxins, organizing memories, and balancing signaling chemicals throughout the body. Good sleep supports brain and nervous system function, cardiovascular health, longevity, gut balance, hormone balance, immune function, metabolism, and mental health.
Time to Investigate
Lack of sleep can lead to a plethora of symptoms, including brain fog, irritability, fatigue, sugar cravings, increased perception of stress, and increased frequency and severity of illness. There are lots of things that can contribute to poor sleep, but there are some strategies that can set you up for success. Start by asking yourself a few basic questions:
What is your wake time and bedtime? Are you getting 8 hours?
Consistent wait times support circadian rhythms and improved sleep, so start there. What is a wake time you could pick that would work most of the time? Work back 8 hours from that time: this is your ideal bedtime.
- Pick your wake time and be consistent with it. Don’t hit the snooze button!
- Work back to your goal bed time gradually, 30 minutes per week.
What do you do in the two hours before bed?
If you answered television or Internet, we might have found a major cause of sleeplessness for you. The blue light from screens shuts down your body’s ability to produce melatonin, a hormone needed for sleep. Think of things you enjoy doing that don’t involve screens or bright lights. Reading, conversation, and prayer are all calming things that don’t involve blue lights, but instead set you up for a successful night’s rest. Turn off the bright white LEDs, and switch to warm or amber incandescents instead.
What and when you eat can also affect sleep. It takes energy for your body to digest food, so avoid eating for two hours before bedtime. To prevent yourself from being hungry at that time, eat a satisfying dinner that has adequate protein, fiber, and healthy fats. This will help stabilize your blood sugar and prevent crashes that cause sugar cravings. If you do get hungry in the evening, pick a snack that has protein and fat to keep you from getting hungry. Nuts, seeds, and cheese are good options.
When you get in bed, what are you doing?
Do you turn off the light, close your eyes, and go to sleep? Or do you pick up your phone and start scrolling? Having distractions like screens while in bed confuses your brain about what this location is for. Keep work and phones in another room, so that when you lie down, your body knows it’s time for sleep.
If you wake frequently, what is waking you up?
Everyone’s insomnia story is a little different, so it’s important to find out what is affecting you. Once you’ve identified the issue, you’re more likely to be able to solve the problem. For example.
Nutrients for Sleep Support
Magnesium. Nutrient deficiencies can lead to problems with sleep, and problems with sleep can lead to nutrient deficiencies. One of the biggest contributors here is a magnesium deficiency. Magnesium calms the nervous system, relaxes the muscles, it supports blood sugar regulation, and helps prevent middle-of-the-night waking. This mineral is found in pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, almonds, black beans, quinoa, and avocado.
Zinc. Zinc also supports deeper sleep and helps prevent middle-of-the-night waking. It’s commonly recognized for its role in immune system, reproductive, and thyroid health. You’ll find this mineral in pumpkin seeds, beef, beans, and nuts.
Vitamin B6. This water-soluble vitamin supports sleep initiation and circadian rhythm. It is important for nervous system and cognitive health. This is found abundantly in eggs, salmon, chickpeas, chicken, sweet potato, and avocado.
Lifestyle for Sleep Support
Move your body. Your body needs daily movement. Aim for 10,000 steps a day for your baseline. Several times a week, Do some strength training. This doesn’t have to be anything fancy at a gym. You can use floor exercises and things you have around the house for weights. Strength supports many different body systems and overall longevity, so it’s important to build this habit. When your body works physically during the day, it’s more likely to be tired enough to sleep at night. In addition, exercise reduces cortisol levels in the body, which reduces stress and also supports sleep.
Time your caffeine. Caffeine has a 5-hour half-life. This means that if you drink a cup of coffee with 100 mg of caffeine, in five hours there are still 50 mg of caffeine circulating in your system. 5 hours after that, there are 25. To prevent this from keeping you awake at night, drink your coffee by lunchtime.
Another interesting quirk of coffee is that if you drink it too early, It prevents your natural morning cortisol spike that is supposed to wake you up. Try waiting one hour after waking before your first cup of coffee. It will take a few days for your body to adjust, but it will be worth it.
20-minute rule. If you can’t fall asleep within 20 minutes, get up, leave the bedroom, and try reading a book (not something especially riveting) for 20 minutes. Then try to sleep again. If another 20 minutes goes by and you’re still awake, Get up and read for another 20 minutes. This prevents you from being frustrated lying there awake, without the overstimulation of screens.
Taking Thoughts Captive
If your mind tends to spiral when you’re trying to sleep, You need a plan. There are multiple physiological and emotional contributors to anxiety, But take control of the things that you can. There are a few strategies that can help redirect thought patterns and calm your mind. They take practice and persistence, but they can make a big difference at retraining your brain.
Visualization. Think of someplace you always feel completely relaxed. Somewhere you’ve always been safe and filled up emotionally. For me, that is usually the beach at the national park where I went to college. Work through every sense, painting a picture and imagining that you can see, hear, and smell everything around you. Go slowly and think of every detail. This exercise occupies your mind so thoroughly, that the anxious thoughts fade to the background.
Memorization and recitation. Another way to overcome anxious thoughts is to speak over them. Not necessarily out loud, but you can do that if it’s helpful. Memorize a poem, scripture, or song that contradicts your racing thoughts. Recite it to yourself to drown out the negativity.
Plan ahead. Work on memorizing things during the day, When you’re not trying to sleep. This could perhaps be a good pre bedtime activity that doesn’t require a screen. It could also be a good morning activity that gets you in the sunshine in a chair with a book.
Don’t Give Up!
There are a lot of strategies here, and it takes a while to implement them and for them to have an effect. Don’t expect it to work all at once, but if you keep Working, You are likely to see improvement. If you suspect that there is something else going on, there might be underlying nutritional causes or simple supplemental solutions. I would love to talk with you about improving your sleep.
