How can I have undisturbed sleep at night?
Q: I have returned to India 6 months ago. For the last two months, I am not able to sleep well. Normally I sleep around 11 pm, but I can only get sleep around 3 am. When I am not able to sleep, I smoke nearly 2 or 3 cigarettes for those 2-3 hours. For the last two months I have been going to the gym and working out for 1 hour. I am wondering, whether it is because of this that I am unable to sleep well at night. Since I am not getting enough sleep, I am not able to concentrate on my business. For last two days, I am taking a small nap of 30 minutes in my office, but even after that I am not feeling comfortable at all. For dinner, I mostly take non-vegetarian food only. Could this be one of the reasons? Please give me some tips for having a sound sleep at night.
A:Some basic good sleep hygiene measures will help — here they are: -
- Have a set time to wake up (keep the same time even on weekends)
- When you wake up, if possible, try to have exposure to bright sun light.
- Avoid exercise after 5 PM and have a light dinner.
- Avoid smoking from 2 hours before your bed time till next morning (Quitting smoking completely is best for your overall health).
- Avoid caffeinated beverages, after 2 PM.
- If you want to nap during the day, take a brief nap (20-30 minutes) between 12 & 3 PM only - never before or after that time.
- For some people, relaxation exercises such as meditation/muscle relaxation prior to bedtime may help.
- Avoid any stimulating activity (physically or mentally stimulating activity - by this I mean avoid any interesting show, working on computer / reading an interesting book, etc.) and have the lights dim from 2 hours before bedtime.
- Use your bedroom/bed only for sleep OR intimacy - nothing else - No TV/Radio/Work/ Computer.