Lifestyle Changes That Will Revolutionize Your Sleep Part 2

‘We deserve the consequences of our actions’

Like it or not, how we feel in the future is largely based on the actions we do today.

But the good news is, we also deserve positive as well as the negative consequences. Below are all activities that will nearly certainly add value to your future self.

If you haven't read part 1 yet, I recommend checking that out first.

Cutting Back On Alcohol.?

Alcohol is a net negative on sleep. There is a mountain of evidence to back this up. To add further to this, there is no safe dose. Even a small glass of wine will impact your sleep if drunk in the evening. You should always ask yourself, do I really need this drink? I drink 1-3 times per YEAR! But you need to do what is right for you. Taking a break or drinking more strategically can improve your life!

PS, there are no exceptions to this. A lot of cultures have tales from Grandmas/Grandpas saying this local specialty is good for sleep. While our heritage is important and generally our elders are right about most things. This doesn’t apply to alcohol and sleep.

There is no safe dosage.

Actionable steps:

• Start trying non-alcoholic alternatives
• Read 'How to Win Friends and Influence People' (Yep, improving social skills is the easiest way to reduce alcohol consumption, you heard it here first)

Evening lights.

Like with morning light, we want to do the opposite in the evening. Try to reduce the light levels in your house/apartment 1-2 hours before sleep. This will help trigger your body to get into sleep mode. Ideally get lights that come from the side, not above, for example, switch to lamps. You can also add in a night mode on tech devices that will dim and redden the screen.? Also if you have dimmer switches, use them.

Some people opt for using blue light-blocking glasses. As of 2024, the science suggests that blue light and screens in general are not that impactful on sleep as first thought. Nonetheless, light 100% does have an impact on sleep and taking steps to darken your evenings will help.

Actionable step:

If you want a cool tech solution. Consider using Vitea lights, they are programmed to dim during the evening.

Link

Discount codes:BEEDLE10 and BEEDLE10E

Reduce technology use in the evenings.

Especially if you struggle with discipline. The main issue with technology use is we spend too long on it. This means we go to bed later than planned. Which for reasons I will explain later in this chapter, will wreck your sleep. Ideally aim to get away from technology 30 minutes before bed so you can prep for bed.

Actionable steps:

• Make technology harder to access at night
• Set some realistic rules that you can follow to reduce consumption. Personally, I have the rule of no phone in the bedroom.

A bedtime routine.

As kids, we had a bedtime routine. If you are a parent, you will understand just how important it is to have a routine for your kids. Yet, end of the day, we are just big kids!

Adults benefit immensely from having a set routine before bed. Below is a none exhaustive list of things you might want to add to your routine.

• Locking the front door
• Turning off lights
• Reading a chapter of a book
• Journaling
• Playing relaxing music
• Lighting a candle or incense stick
• Doing some yoga.

Do what works for you. But trust me, it will help. Once your brain gets into a constant routine before bed, falling asleep will get easier. The best routines are ones you can do anywhere, even when traveling.?

Overarching sleep hygiene and lifestyle objectives:

1. Consistency. The science is very compelling on this, a consistent sleep schedule improves sleep and literally can add many years to your life! Trying to go to bed the same day every day is the holy grail of a healthy sleep lifestyle. Nonetheless, it’s not always realistic. But if you can implement the above lifestyle changes, it will be easier. Remember, we are not looking for perfection, we are looking for improvement.?

1. Avoid using your bed for non-sleep activities (sex is ok, don’t worry). This has been used for treating insomnia patients for some time and the logic is simple. If we use our bed for eating, watching tv, homework, relaxing etc. It is no longer feels like a place for sleep. Therefore, the advice is to try to avoid using your bed during the day for non sleep activities. I appreciate that for some people this is hard, especially if you don’t have a chair or a desk. But do what you can.

1. If you really can’t fall asleep. It’s ok. Sleep isn’t something we can force. It’s a state of being that quite frankly, if you had to explain it to someone, you’d struggle to know how to. Hence if you can’t fall asleep, it’s ok to get out of bed and do something else for a while. Just try to avoid things like bright light and stimulating tech.?

1. You need to earn your sleep. It’s harsh and I know some people may be offended by this statement. But at the end of the day, if we don’t exercise and don’t work to our potential. It becomes a lot harder to get to sleep. For both physical and mental reasons. We will explore more into this in future episodes.

If you found value in this newsletter, consider sharing with others. I'm also always open to feedback as I am currently writing a book on these topics!

Next episode we move to the first E in the S.L.E.E.P framework, emotional health. This will likely be a 4/5 part series as this is where things get more complex.