How To Have a Better Evening Routine

in Health & Well-being

One of the best things you can do for your own well-being is to establish a regular schedule for going to sleep at night. After working hard all day, you’ll be able to settle down and give attention to what is truly important⁠—your own self-care.

One of the smartest things you can do for yourself is to make a bedtime routine. After being too busy to think straight, you can slow down and think about what’s most important.

The best thing about having an evening routine is that it fits your needs. One of the most common sleep disorders, according to studies, is insomnia. This can be caused by stress from a busy day at work and a busy life outside of work. Having a set routine before bed helps your body calm down, and hopefully, that will make sleep easier to come by. Read on to find out more about what you can do to help yourself.

Don’t Drink Caffeine in The Afternoon

It’s 2 p.m. Feeling sluggish, you decide to make another pot of coffee to wake you up. Everyone can relate to that feeling, and more than likely, we’ve all done it. However, if you want better sleep, you might want to limit your caffeine intake in the late afternoon and evening. A cup of coffee at 4 p.m. may still be in your system at 9 p.m., as caffeine has a half-life of about five hours. Instead of reaching for a cup of coffee in the afternoon, try a herbal tea or seltzer and munch on an energizing snack, like a piece of fruit or some nuts. Sites like https://myherbclinic.com.au/ are a good source of herbal teas.

Turn Off the Screens

Have you found that the later in the evening you use a computer or mobile device, the more alert you feel? And then it’s midnight, and you still haven’t fallen asleep. This is because the blue light given off by electronic devices prevents the body from producing melatonin, the hormone responsible for signalling sleepiness.

Keep the phone on vibrate in case of an emergency, but otherwise, once you start to settle down for the evening, it’s best not to look at your phone, tablet, or laptop. You shouldn’t really look at your TV either, but this can be more of a struggle.

Eat Light and Don’t Drink Alcohol

Eating dinner late and drinking alcohol before bed can make it hard to fall asleep and cause you to gain weight. If you want to improve your metabolism and sleep, try limiting the time you can eat to 10 hours per day. If you get the munchies late at night, you can boost your melatonin levels before bed by eating oatmeal, yogurt, or nuts.

Having a drink or snack in the evening could be hurting you. Since alcohol is a depressant, it can make you tired and make you want to sleep. But the effects wear off quickly, causing your melatonin levels to drop and your circadian rhythm to be thrown off. This can delay REM sleep and make you feel like you can’t sleep. If you drink every night, your tolerance will grow, which means you’ll need more alcohol to get sleepy. If you want an alternative to alcohol that won’t cause these issues, you could try Delta 9 Gummies instead.

Listen To Music

We said that screens weren’t helpful but that it was usually hard to stop watching TV in the evening. What about listening to music instead?

Making a playlist for bedtime can help you start to let go of things that are taking up space in your mind and causing you to feel worried or stressed. Studies in psychology have shown that listening to music can help you fall asleep and get a better night’s sleep. In one study, 62 percent of the people who took part said they used music at night to help them feel less stressed.

Music, especially classical music, has been shown to help people sleep, but you don’t have to listen to a certain type. As long as it fits with the way you usually go to sleep, it should help you sleep better.

Wash Before Bed

Hygiene in bed and hygiene in general go hand in hand. Before bed, brushing your teeth, washing your face, or even taking a shower can help you feel calm, clean, and ready to sleep. If you check out this dentist in vienna va, they’ll also advise you to floss to make sure that no food debris is stuck between your teeth.

Not only that, but if you do it every day, this could be another signal to your brain that bedtime is on the way, and it needs to get ready. This is especially helpful if you’re stressed, or the blue light we mentioned earlier will be a problem and your body doesn’t get its sleep signals in the usual way.


Image Credits: Victoria Akvarel

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