“Ate does not really sleep, ever.” Probably one of the most frequently uttered comment from my sister about me. Ate (pronounced as /ahh-tehh/) means older sister in Tagalog, one of the many Filipino languages.
Her statement is an exaggeration. Of course, I sleep. I just do not sleep as much as many people but when I do, I do get deep and restful sleep. Years in graduate school does that to a person. Those years of my life required me to read a lot, write a lot, go to lots of classes, and work a lot. As a habit-forming creature, my body seems to have found its rhythm.
I am NOT an authority on the subject of sleep. The only knowledge I have of the subject is that - as a human being, I need it. I aim for high-quality sleep than high-quantity. This means that, even when my sleep seems shorter than others, I feel rested when I wake up.
This was not always the case though. There were years when I just did not feel rested enough even with a “full night” of sleep. Over the years, I have learned a few tricks that seem to work for me by helping my brain slow-down and prepare itself for rest.
Below are some of them:
Task Management
☑️ Make sure I close all tasks that might keep on bugging me as I try to fall asleep.
🗓️ When there are tasks that cannot be finished for the day, I have learned to condition myself to remember that I can finish it the following day. It also serves as a lesson learned for me to be more realistic about what I can and cannot do within a given period.
Personal Hygiene
Personally, if my body does not feel clean and fresh, so does my mind.
🚿 I take a long shower before bed time.
🛀 My most favorite of all, though, is taking a long soak in my bath tub.
I tend to do this especially on Sunday and Wednesday evenings. Sundays are important as part of my preparation for Mondays. Wednesdays, on the other hand, allow me to intentionally care for myself in the middle of the week.
Lavender and jasmine soap or bubble bath is a must. Scents are subjective so it is important to choose which ones work for you.
Physical Space
👁️ The room has to be ⬛ very dark.
👂 White noise is important.
💦 Water sounds have been very effective for me, such as: light rain ☔️, stream, river 🌊.
Here is the Gentle Rains Playlist I follow on Spotify:
🎶 I choose instrumental classical music, mostly piano or guitar. I stay away from music with voices because my brain would start to try to memories the words.
Here is a public playlist on Spotify for Piano and Strings:
💜 Breathing and relaxation techniques before bedtime do help me fall asleep faster:
I do body scans as a mindfulness practice and to even out my heart rate.
Breathing techniques help me manage my stress levels throughout the day, but especially when my goal is to get the restful sleep that my body needs.
👃 An hour before I go to bed, I light my favorite scented candle 🕯️ so the room is filled with its soothing scent by the time I am ready for bed.
🔥 NOTE: remember to put out the candle before you fall asleep.
Here are some helpful references on the topics above:
If you want to try all of the features of the BetterSleep App for free for 7 days, you can do so here.
Note: I am not getting any commission for this recommendation.
Sleep is our body’s most efficient recovery period. It is the time for our body and mind to heal but also, it is during sleep when our brain consolidates all of the things that it learned throughout the day. By getting the restful sleep our body needs, we are enhancing the formation of our memories in the process. It’s a win-win-win situation!
How about you?
🛌 What are your rituals to get restful sleep?
💤 How do you rate your sleep quality now? (1 being low quality, 10 being high quality)
Sending you peace and love as you wrap up the weekend and start a new week! 💕
Great post, Jen! I so agree about the importance of sleep, including what we do with the time before we crawl beneath the sheets. I am listening to that Gentle Rains playlist now, about to prepare for sleep myself.
I could get into another task, but... "this can only end to tears!" (one of my favorite quotes from the animated movie "Anastasia). The tears being over the loss of sleep from completing a task I could leave for tomorrow.
Thank you for taking us through your sleep routine. I love taking Epsom salt baths, & jasmine is the scent in my bathroom diffuser. 🛀
Listening to water sounds, or bird sounds. I have a few incense sticks, patchouli is my favourite.