Have you ever slept that kind of deep sleep that you wake up feeling refreshed yet relaxed? This kind of sleep had increasingly been elusive to me, as I get older. Mostly, my sleep is a mix of restless dreams, tossing and turning, dreaming about going to the toilet to pee, actually waking up to pee occasionally, and only sporadic moments of deep sleep. And it’s been a long time since I woke up feeling refreshed, relaxed, excited for the start of the day.. 

But I tasted some of that today, and it made me realised how poor my sleep had become. And I want to change that.

Some things I’m trying/want to try:

⏰ Get your body’s preferred number of hours of sleep. Some need 8, some need less. Over the years I found my ideal is around 8-9h. Oversleeping won’t cut it either, as I get tired from trying too hard to sleep in. 

? Transition to bed slowly. Go to bed 1h earlier than your usual. That way, you can unwind slowly and relaxedly. The mind and body is not a machine that can drop to sleep at the flick of a switch. Even if that happens, the sleep quality will be compromised, because the mind had not had enough time to slow down.

? Drink less water before sleep. Stop fluid intake 1h before, so that bladder is comfortable all the way till morning.

? No food 2h before sleep. A bloated stomach is worse way to get good sleep.

⏲ Don’t snooze. I find I get even more tired waking up after snoozing several times. Because each time I snooze, I expend so much willpower and mental energy trying to make myself get up.

? Try to do some relaxation exercises or meditation before sleep. I find it helps my mind settle even more.

So what’s your bedtime hacks to get a night of restful sleep?