Sleep, often elusive but oh-so-necessary. Rest for your body after a busy day is crucial. But it’s not just the break from the activity that makes sleep so important. Those hours of shut-eye also provide time for much-needed hormone flow, which in turn gives us the support to face whatever life throws our way the next day. Lack of sleep also means a strain on some major internal powerhouses - from the brain to heart, to the immune system and more. We’re not trying to stress you out! Just a friendly reminder that sleep is not an indulgence, it’s a necessity.
If it’s not coming easily, here are ways to upgrade your daily routine to make way for some bliss-filled sleepy time.
1. Check Your Evening Routine
Let us introduce you to The Trifecta - an Epsom salt bath, a cup of chamomile tea, and low lighting in the bedroom. This is not the only way to get ready for super slumber, but it does pave the way for evening relaxation. A warm bath on its own is relaxing but with the addition of Epsom salts, you’re adding magnesium, a mineral known for helping relax a busy brain. Chamomile tea is one of our favorite botanicals for enticing sleep - so easy, yet sometimes we just forget to make time to make a cup. Do it, you won’t regret it. One more oh-so-simple way to set the mood for sleep? Early in the evening, turn on your bedside lamp. Even before it’s fully dark outside. Sounds crazy but trust us. Then when you head to bed you’ll be welcomed into a soothing room that’s already gently lit and won’t have to switch on harsh or bright overhead lights.
Implementing this trifecta flips your evening vibe to Chill Mode.
2. Supplements for great sleep
Speaking of botanicals that get us relaxed, calm, and ready for bed, we know a full-spectrum hemp extract that is right for the night. Our Charlotte’s Web extracts, available in oils and capsules, fit into any sleep routine. BASE-jumper and Charlotte’s Web fan Steph Davis takes our hemp oils “right before bed every night because it helps me find a sense of calm.” If Charlotte’s Web isn’t part of your daily or nightly routine yet, don’t miss our post on how to get started.
3. Nutrition day and night
Eating for sleep? It’s not something we stop to think about but what we eat during the day will affect our sleep at night. Building meals around lean, clean proteins, organic vegetables, and healthy fats provide building blocks needed for your body to sustain energy, repair tissue, and optimize hormone flow around the clock.
Sleep Pro Tip: If you find yourself up between 2 am - 4 am, that could be a signal from your brain that it needs a little more sustenance. If you haven’t gotten enough filling nutrition the night before, visit the kitchen for a banana or scoop of nut butter to relieve the hunger signals and send you on your way back to the Zzzzzzz.
4. Rein in electronics and evening stimuli
TV, tablets, computer, phones, exciting conversations - which of these helps you drift off? If you guessed none of the above, then you’d be correct. The blue light from electronics screams DAYLIGHT to your eyeballs and brain. Turning electronics off two hours before bed is ideal. In addition to the light, think about the tones of the conversations you’re watching as well as the other sounds and visual imagery. These can jar you into an awake state. We know, the struggle is real to resist another episode on Netflix but your circadian rhythm will thank you for it.
5. Set a “bedtime”
Yeah, we’re adults, and we thought part of the fun of adulthood was getting to make decisions about life - like when we go to bed. But your body loves consistency. Health coaches suggest 10 pm-6 am as the ideal 8-hour window. If that seems out of sync with your lifestyle, try to get as close to it as possible. Regardless of what hour you choose as your bedtime, it’s the consistency that matters. Think of it this way- letting your body know when to expect sleep can work wonders in actually falling asleep. Try adding essential oils to your humidifier to trigger your mind to that rivals any spa day.
Sweet dreams!
