Most of us are exhausted and don't even realize it. Here, seven ways you can sleep better tonight.
1. Your first step: acceptance
The three habits that experts consider cold, hard proof of sleep deprivation: You rely on caffeine to make it through the day, every day (even with a good night's sleep); you can't wake up on time without an alarm; and on weekends you have to sleep in for hours.
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2. Quit considering sleep a luxury
Experts say too many young women view sleep as a treat, like a facial or new shoes. "Consider sleep as crucial to well-being as proper diet and exercise," said Kristen Knutson, Ph.D.
3. Increase hours painlessly
Go to bed 15 minutes earlier every night for a week, then add another 15 the next week and so on, Dr. Joseph Ojile said: "Tiny increments are less daunting but can make a major difference. In a month, you'll be sleeping an hour more every night."
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4. Trick out your bedroom
Set the thermometer 3 degrees below your daytime normâ€"65 to 68 degrees for most of us. Your body temp naturally drops when you sleep, and a cool room helps it along. Dim lamps before bedtime, too; light makes your pineal gland inhibit melatonin, a hormone that regulates your sleep cycle.
5. Resist the siren call of the screen
Shut down your iStuff, TV and computer an hour before you crash; artificial light fools your brain's hypothalamus (the part that transitions you into sleep) into thinking it's daytime. If you absolutely can't resist a peek at email, at least hold the phone at arm's length to minimize the effects.
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6. Don't drink and sleep
Middle-of-the-night bladder calls aren't doing your good night's sleep any favors,so try not to down a lot of liquid before bedtimeâ€"especially anything alcoholic. Although booze can make you drowsy right after you drink it, several hours later you might wake up; experts hypothesize that's because falling blood alcohol levels disrupt your sleep, particularly R.E.M.â€"the deepest kind.
7. Beat that 2 a.m., wide-eyes thing
Wakefulness issuesâ€"lying in bed totally alert in the middle of the night, getting up earlier than you want toâ€"are common sleep problems, even if insomnia gets all the attention. White noise helps; the steady whir of a fan or a wave machine can soothe you into slumber and cancel out middle-of-the-night car horns and your partner's snoring (plus frustration about said snoring).
This article originally appeared on Self.com.Â
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