for a lot of pushback from both
mind and body. For me, Sundays
are always a good day for
me to try starting or ending
something. I like that its technically
the first day of the week
and that its still the weekend,
so I am not in a regularroutine.
Maybe your day is Tuesday
or Thursday. Just pick a
start day/date.
Understand your body and then
listen to it.
Recognize when you naturally
get sleepy, when you push
through it and when you seem
wired. Feeling naturally sleepy
may only be a fleeting feeling,
especially if youre consumed
watching television or playing
around on your phone or iPad,
but I promise your body will try
to alert you that its tired, even
if it is only for a moment. For
me, it is at 9:45 pm.
Once you understand the time
in which your body gets sleepy,
choose that as your bedtime.
Not a minute before, not a minute
after. In fact, I have
learned that if Im not done
brushing my teeth, washing my
face, turning down my bed,
etc., by 10 pm, I get a second
wind, and I am wide awake
until 1 am. Bedtime is early in
my house lol.
Stick to one bedtime every single
night (yep, even weekends).
Chronic pain and chronic illness
are exhausting. Our bodies
need sleep in order to meet the
demands that chronic pain and
chronic illness expect of it.
Weekends do not change that
fact. 9:45 pm on a Saturday
may be boring, but insomnia
will be that much further from
you.
The 3/3 Rule.
Three hours before your bedtime,
start getting ready for
bed by stopping these three
things:
Stop all snacking three
hours before bed.
Stop any nicotine, caffeine,
stimulant, or alcohol use
three hours before bed.
Turn off all blue-light
screens, which means televisions,
iPads, smartphones,
and laptops/computers. Anything
that emits a screen
light must be turned off
three hours prior to bed because
the color disrupts
neurochemicals, which in
turn affect your sleep/wake
cycle. Now, most of us are
much too addicted to our
phones, so I found a workaround.
Your smartphone
most likely allows you to
set your screen to turn to a
warmer yellow color at a
time of your choice. There
are also apps if your
smartphone does not offer
this. Finally, for your computer,
there are programs
that allow you to design
screen color based on your
circadian rhythm.
Create a routine around bedtime.
Mine includes taking a bath
(which also helps with my
chronic pain), getting into
something comfortable, having
a cup of chamomile, lavender,
or sleepy timetea and reading.
It calms me and helps in
washing away the stress of the
day. If you are not a bath person,
try taking a hot shower. If
you want to skip the water thing
altogether, try doing some
bedtimeyoga. If you put a
search into YouTube, a million
free tutorials will pop up. (If
you are new to yoga, please
make sure that your doctor approves
it.)
No stress.
Do not answer a work email or