Many of us millenials and Gen xers are finding increaing difficulty getting in good sleep as we age. Bad sleep habits, depression, anxiety, as well as responses to previous trauma can slowely cchip away ar good sleep. Here are five tips to help you get better sleep at night
- Sleep only when sleepy. Don't try to force it
- Avoid caffeine four to six hours before bed. These are stimulants. And stimulants will inhibit sleep
- Bed is for sleeping. Try not to use your bed for anything other than sleeping and sex, so that your body
comes to associate bed with sleep. If you use bed as a place to watch TV, eat, read, work on your laptop, pay
bills, and other things, your body will not learn this connection (CIH Sleep Hygiene). - Avoid daytime napping. Anything greater than a twenty to thirty minute power nap. Will steal time away from your night time sleep, which is when restful sleep occurs
- Avoid clock watching.Clock watching creates excessive anxiety that is in compatible with sleep. If you found these to be helpful let us know in the comments. If you would like more tips to help with millenial/gen x aging wellness, please sign up for The Shades Newsletter on the homepage.