When your sleep is disrupted in the middle of night, falling back asleep can be a frustrating experience. However, keeping calm and being prepared can help you feel at ease enough to get back to dreamland. Try these fantastic tips shared by the Daily Express to cut your nighttime awakenings short:
1. Don’t turn on the lights: Embrace total darkness, which includes not looking at electronic devices. Exposure to light, especially blue light, hinders the production of melatonin, the hormone that makes you feel relaxed and sleepy.
2. Make your bed: If sleep isn’t coming after 15-20 minutes, get up, make your bed and go into a different room for a routine task that doesn’t take much thought, such as emptying the dishwasher. When you feel sleepy, returning to your made up bed will help you start fresh with getting back to sleep.
3. Rub your ears: This may sound strange, but your goal is to stimulate an acupressure point called the Shen Men that’s associated with drowsiness. Use your forefinger and thumb to rub the hollow at top of your ear in the area that’s closest to your face.
4. Turn your clock around: Don’t check the time when you wake up. You may create feelings of anxiety about getting back to sleep and your upcoming day, promoting even more insomnia.
5. Beware of your bathroom trip: Keep the lights off and try to embrace your sleepy feeling as you stumble around with half-open, half closed eyes. Since your ability to hold off going to the bathroom in the middle of the night will decrease as you age, try not to drink anything during the hour before tucking in and visit the bathroom at least a couple of times.
6. Roll your eyes: Yes, like you have an attitude! However, roll them upwards in a slow motion a few times, which can help signal your brain to enter its relaxed alpha state to slow down brain waves and help you fall asleep.
7. Practice muscle progression: Keeping still will prevent your brain from thinking it’s time to wake up. Tense your muscles and relax them for seconds at a time, starting from your toes as you work your way up to your abdomen, arms, fingers, shoulders, forehead and eyes.
8. Create a sleep signal: This handy tip can serve is a sign to your body to get back to sleep. The next time that you feel sleepy, rub your leg, ear, or cheek, making it a regular habit to strengthen the connection.
9. Rewind your day: Think of all the positive events that happened throughout your day, counting blessings and embracing the small things. Gratitude and happy thoughts help prepare you for quality snooze by making you feel calmer.
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