There’s nothing worse than telling someone who’s sleep-deprived that they need to get more shut-eye. One in three adults don’t get the recommended seven hours of sleep each night, and for many, it’s not from lack of trying. If you’re battling sleep, here are six tricks to try before calling the experts:
- Give yourself a bedtime. Sticking to a regular sleep and wake schedule is the single biggest thing you can do to sleep better.
- Skip the nighttime workout. Daily exercise is great for sleep, but not too close to bedtime.
- Close the kitchen. Allow your body two to three hours to digest before lights out.
- Power down. Blue light zaps melatonin, the sleep hormone that helps you feel drowsy, so unplug at least an hour before bed.
- Decaffeinate. Nearly half of us use caffeine to combat daytime drowsiness, but give yourself at least six hours to get it out of your system before bedtime.
Sleep deprivation is a public health epidemic, and I see people every day who are tired of being tired. If you aren’t getting enough shut-eye, try these tactics. If you’re still coming up short, talk to your nurse practitioner or doctor.
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