If your body is still alert at bed time, it’s going to be difficult to get to sleep.

See which of the following tips will help your body prepare for a good night’s sleep.

Limit daytime naps

If you take a nap or two during the day, and you have difficulty sleeping at night, try reducing or cutting out the nap, or taking it earlier in the day.

Eat early

A large meal late in the evening means your body is busy digesting food, rather than slowing down for the night. Aim to eat your evening meal several hours before bed time, and limit any further eating to a light snack.

Limit the volume of fluid

Taper off the amount you drink as the evening progresses, to minimise bathroom visits during the night.

Exercise regularly

Regular exercise, particularly late in the afternoon, helps your body to feel tired and ready for sleep. I slept particularly well when we had a dog, and I had a short walk last thing at night.

Relax before bed

Relaxing your body is a good way to help it slow down ready for sleep. There are many ways to do this, from listening to soothing music to visualising each part of your body relaxing in turn.

Take a hot bath

A hot bath before bed will make you feel drowsy, so you nod off easily.

Get into a routine

Having a bedtime routine cues your body that it’s time for sleep. So extend your habit of brushing your teeth to include other activities like a session on the chi machine, or some form of relaxation.

Ask your body

I’ve saved the best till last! The most effective way to be sure your body is ready for sleep is to ask what it needs you to do, or not do, to ensure a good night’s sleep. How to talk to your body? That will need to be another article!

The Delicious Nugget: Your body needs to be ready for sleep; there are several practical things you can do to help.

How would it feel to be to go to sleep easily, and stay asleep until you wake feeling refreshed?

When your mind is keeping you awake, your thoughts are probably focused on something that happened in the past – such as a meeting that didn’t go well last week, or the future – such as resolving a conflict with a friend tomorrow.

The key to a calm mind – that will allow you to sleep – is to bring yourself into the present moment, where thoughts about the past and future evaporate.

Three ways to a calm mind

Here are three very different approaches to calm your mind. See which one works for you.

1. Use the TAT Pose

The TAT Pose, which forms the basis of the Tapas Acupressure Technique, is a simple way to place your hands on the front and back of your head, that quickly takes you into a more calm and peaceful state.

We’ll use the Child’s version of the Pose which is easier to hold in bed. Cradle the back of your head in one hand with your thumb along your hairline at the top of your neck. Place the other palm across your forehead, low down so the edge of your hand touches the bridge of your nose.

Relax, and notice yourself feeling progressively more calm….

2. Open up your heart

Most of your thinking goes on in your head, so it’s a good idea to take your attention elsewhere!

As you breathe out, allow your attention to drop down to your heart area. On each outbreath, mentally say ‘Aaah’ to yourself – the sound that opens up your heart. Allow your heart to expand and open.
If your attention wanders, gently bring it back to your heart, and continue to open it more, and feel yourself becoming more calm.

3. Sense the aliveness in your body

First, ask yourself ‘ Am I still breathing?’ That question quickly brings your focus to your body, and the present moment.

Then take your attention to your toes, and notice how they feel – see if you can sense the edges of your toes. Then see if you can feel the energy, or aliveness, inside your toes.

Repeat this sensing of aliveness for the rest of your foot, then your ankles, then your lower leg. Slowly move up your body sensing the aliveness in each part. Hopefully you won’t get too far before you nod off!

The Delicious Nugget: When a spinning mind stops you from sleeping, you can calm it down by: using the TAT Pose, opening your heart, or sensing the aliveness in your body.

“I sleep fairly well, except these days I usually end up having to visit the bathroom in the early hours.”

“I get to sleep OK, but then I get woken up, and I can’t get back to sleep again.”

Do any of these statements ring true for you, or someone in your family?

Poor sleep often leads to a groggy start to the day, tiredness and consequent knock-on effects on your health. I remember those broken nights of early parenthood followed by exhausted days. Fortunately they were short-lived, so I was able to accommodate them. It’s a different story when a poor sleep pattern persists.

If you have difficulty sleeping, you’ve probably already tried various practical ways to get through the problem. Things like changing your mattress, opening the window, getting rid of electronic equipment, introducing a clam décor or a bedtime ritual, and avoiding eating or drinking too much at night. Maybe sleeping pills if it’s really bad.

If you’re still finding it difficult to get to sleep, or to get back to sleep after an interruption, here’s a simple method that works.

Tap into your natural relaxation system

When you breathe in you’re taking in oxygen which stimulates the body – great when you want to be awake and alert, but not so good for sleeping. Conversely, when you breathe out your body is relaxing and shutting down. So the trick, when you want to get to sleep, is simply to focus on your ‘relaxing’ outbreath.

1. Count

First, to get used to counting as you breathe, try breathing in to a slow count of 3, then breathing out to a slow count of 3. Continue to do breathe in and out to a count of 3, until you settle into an easy rhythm. If you’ve done yoga, you’re probably used to this type of breathing, otherwise it may take a couple of minutes of practice.

2. Lengthen your outbreath

Now make the relaxing outbreath longer by extending your count to 4. So you breathe to a count of 3, and then out to a count of 4.

If you like, you can adjust the counts to suit yourself, so long as you keep the outbreath longer than the inbreath.

3. Get into a rhythm

Continue to take a shorter inbreath, followed by a longer ‘relaxing’ outbreath, and feel yourself settling into its rhythm.

4. Visualise

When your ‘relaxing’ breathing has become more or less automatic, you may want to reinforce the message you’re giving your body by visualising it relaxing and shutting down during the long, relaxing, outbreath. I like to imagine my body turning to honey and melting into the bed; be creative and find an image that works for you.

5. Keep going…

Keep counting: in for 3, and out for 4 until … you fall asleep!

PS

In the morning, or any time you’re feeling groggy, just reverse the procedure. So you breathe in to a count of 4 and out to a count of 3. When your ‘activating’ inbreath is longer than your ‘relaxing’ outbreath you’re taking in a lot of oxygen which stimulates your body systems, so your body and mind soon become alert.