Having referenced insomnia and my caffeine and Red Bull addiction, I’m sure you know by now that I have trouble with both sleeping at night and feeling sleepy during the day. I also know that I’m not alone, since most Americans suffer from chronic sleep deprivation. As a result, I’ve done a lot of research, both reading and experimenting with solutions I find, trying to fix my problems, and I’d like to share my knowledge with you so you can sleep a little better, too.
Cut Out The Caffeine
I know, I know, you love your coffee (Red Bull, tea, chocolate, NoDoz, etc.). Unfortunately, it’s not helping you during the day, and it’s probably contributing to sleep problems at night. If it were helping you and NOT hurting anything, you wouldn’t be here, reading this looking for answers. At best, it’s a short-term fix, and it comes with long-term complications. According to a recent study (original article here, explanation/interpretation here) caffeine doesn’t actually help keep you alert, and it can cause anxiety and headaches.
Cool.
So if sleepiness is a problem during the course of the day, or if you have intermittent or persistent insomnia, cut out or cut back on your caffeine intake. You may have to taper off slowly, depending on how much you currently ingest daily, in order to avoid withdrawal symptoms such as headaches. Just like any other drug, though, the end result is worth it.
Get Some Exercise
If you have trouble staying awake and alert during the day, it may seem like starting an exercise program, even a mild one, would make you even more tired than you already are. That’s not the way it works, though. Here’s a clear, concise article from Holistic Online outlining the benefits of exercise, especially as it relates to sleep.
Exercise can wake you up and give you energy for your day, and it can wear you out and trigger sleepiness at bedtime in order to fight insomnia. Depending on your individual challenges and circumstances, you may have to do some experimenting in order to find the most beneficial time of day for you to exercise. I can say, though, that it almost definitely won’t be right before bed.
Improve Your Eating Habits and Diet
The first thing I would suggest is adding a multivitamin to your daily routine. Unless you’re a consciously healthy eater, there’s the possibility that you’re deficient in nutrient or other. Obviously, you need to improve your diet so you’ll be getting everything you need, but a vitamin is a quick solution until you get your eating habits in order. And when it comes to sleep, and sleep deprivation, a quick solution is good.
B-vitamins are a supplement you can take in order to make you more alert during the day, and tryptophan or melatonin are options if you’re struggling with insomnia. These will only help you, however, if a deficiency is present and causing your problems. Otherwise, the supplement is a waste of money. With B-vitamins, for example, more isn’t better; your body just flushes the excess out with your urine (which may turn bright yellow or slightly fluorescent green).
Another thing you may miss if you’re chronically tired is your calorie intake. You have to make sure you’re getting enough calories, and enough carbohydrates, to give you enough energy to get through your day. If you’re not eating enough, no wonder you’re so tired!
Here’s another good resource from Holistic Online, this time about the relationship between diet and sleep.
Improve Your Sleep Habits
This one is pretty obvious, but it’s worth including because sometimes, especially when we’re tired and not thinking clearly, we miss the obvious. Having regular sleep and wake times every day (yes, that includes weekends) can do wonders for regulating your sleep. It lets your body know when you expect it to be awake and when you expect it to be asleep, and your body will adjust accordingly. As long as you’re giving yourself enough time to get enough sleep (and barring other issues), you’ll start to feel tired at your set bedtime and start waking up without an alarm, feeling rested.
If time and your schedule permit, and it seems to help instead of throwing off your sleep cycle, a short nap in the early afternoon can be beneficial as well. Though the ideal length of a nap seems to be debatable, if you sleep longer than an hour you risk screwing up your nighttime sleep, and if insomnia is your complaint, you definitely don’t want to do that. Try this Guide to Power Napping for some ideas.
When all else fails, see your doctor. They may be able to do something for you, and there may be something medical going on causing your problems.
Have you found anything else that works for you? Have you tried any of these methods, and if so, how did it work out for you? Did I miss anything? Please, share in the comments.
– photo by peasap, courtesy of Flickr
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Great ideas!
Sleeping is the natural way of our body to cope up with the daily stresses. The tips you have provided here are so helpful to have a good night sleep. Thanks.
You bring up an excellent point. Sleep can be a coping mechanism for stress, and if you’re under a lot of stress, fatigue can result. You have to look for the underlying causes of sleep problems and fatigue, or you’ll never fix them.
3 words to cure sleepless nights: Bob Ross Videos!
LOL this is funny but so true. Thanks for the link!
[...] are lots of reasons to get regular exercise. It gives you more energy, helps you sleep better, eases your stress and improves your mood, and, obviously, makes you healthier. Yet many of us [...]