7 Commandments of Healthy Sleep To Overcome Insomnia

Perhaps, the first and last thing you do after and before you go to sleep is check on your phone. If you are guilty of this, you actually share a commonality with billions of other citizens in the world. With the rise of technology, unhealthy sleeping habits have also been prevalent. Although it is often underestimated, sleep concerns, ranging from having insufficient sleep to practicing other unhealthy sleeping habits, are actually a major public health problem. While there are many rare conditions that may hinder a good night’s rest such as sleep apnea, which is sometimes triggered by uvulitis (or a swollen uvula), there are more common occurrences that can cause a detriment to your sleeping patterns. 

Unfortunately, many people, especially teenagers, take sleep for granted. They hardly know that unhealthy sleeping habits will affect their everyday life greatly. According to some surveys concerning sleep, 80% of Americans acknowledge and agree with the idea that lack of sleep contributes to increase in stress and difficulty in concentrating. Health professionals have reiterated it time and time again that healthy sleep habits will, indeed, create a huge difference in a person’s quality of life.  

With this problem at hand, several tips on how to achieve healthy sleep have been circulating around the web. If these practices are followed consistently, people will see positive differences in their life quality, may it be minor major. 

What are the commandments of healthy sleep?

1.     Avoid eating near bedtime

Snacking several minutes before you sleep may stop you from sleeping at all. Lying in bed right after eating may cause extreme stomach discomfort and even indigestion and thus, stomach aches will keep you up all night or if not, excruciating stomach pain might wake you up in the middle of the night—encouraging you to run to the bathroom as fast as you can. Avoiding heavy foods and opting for lighter meal replacements may help you get a sounder night of rest. 

2.     Establish a good schedule for sleeping 

In order for us to properly regulate our body clock, sleeping at the same bed time as well as having a consistent wake up time every single day is a major key. With this practice, your body is set and will allow you to easily fall and stay asleep. Moreover, your sleeping schedule should also not be a consistent 3-am schedule. The best time to sleep is around 8 or 9 to 12 AM when our body is best able to get the REM and Non-REM they need to function best. 

3.     Sleep for seven to eight hours 

We’ve heard this again and again just like the daily life commandment of drinking 8 glasses of water a day. But there is a reason as to why 8 hours of sleep is great for us. Actually, the age range of human beings also determine the number of sleeping hours best for them—however, 8 hours is the safest as it falls in the middle of the ranges. Getting 8 hours of sleep will mean that the body will have enough time to repair tissues, consolidate information, and do all other bodily processes. Researchers have actually found that sleeping 7 to 8 hours increases longevity of people’s lives. 

4.     Create a bedtime ritual 

In order for you to sleep without a problem, it is clever to develop rituals or habits that will help signal your brain whenever your sleeping schedule is fast approaching. Since your body will associate these rituals with sleeping, insomnia will not be much of a problem. 

5.     Prepare your room 

To be able to have a good and healthy sleep, one must prepare the venue. Basically, this means making the room appropriate for an undisturbed sleep—that is having light switches that can be turned off or dimmed, having a comfortable mattress or sleeping surface, having pillows, setting the room temperature appropriately, etc. This will aid in allowing you to sleep healthy. 

6.     Avoid taking naps 

Ten minute naps are the best but naps that go beyond 30 minutes to several hours are just replacing your sleeping hours. Taking a nap that will last for hours may cause difficulty in sleeping at your scheduled time. And because you still have enough energy, you will find yourself sleeping late and therefore, breaking your circadian rhythm.  

7.     Avoid using your gadgets  

When your sleeping schedule is just several minutes away, it may be best for you to put away your phones, tablets, iPod, etc. since these things are the major culprit of today’s sleep deprivation. Using them will just signal the brain to stay up and this will definitely cause you difficulty in sleeping. 

The Bottom Line

A healthy sleep simply means having enough and undisturbed sleep at the right sleeping time. And so, to be able to achieve this best type of sleep, you must avoid activities that may delay or disrupt sleeping patterns. Most importantly, you must be willing to commit to the commandments in sleeping healthy in order to achieve it. With a healthy sleeping habit, you will also ensure yourself with a healthy and good quality life.