Good Night!  How many of us think of those words with dread?  Do you want to have a great night’s sleep but it still escapes you? 

Everyone has sleepless nights and the reasons vary, stress and anxiety, excessive caffeine intake, racing thoughts, shift work, and a poor sleep environment.  The worst is when sleepless nights begin to add up to exhaustion during the day.  Unfortunately, most of us reach for more caffeine to keep us awake during the day and that includes me.  

So what did I do to help myself sleep better?  I changed some of my routines.  I stopped all caffeine at 2:00 p.m.  I go to bed at 10:00 p.m. even if I am not tired. In the bedroom, I have no TV and the room is very dark.  Why a dark, quiet room?  Your brain needs rest, it’s a simple concept, and yet it is routinely ignored.  I have read extensively about brain health and the importance of a good night’s sleep. 

Sleep improves memory recall, regulates metabolism, and reduces mental fatigue. Without sleep, you can’t form or maintain the pathways in your brain that let you learn and create new memories, and it’s harder to concentrate and respond quickly.  

There’s only one problem…social media.  I now charge my cell phone in the bathroom at night so I don’t fall down that rabbit hole of waking my brain up on social media before bedtime.

Please let me know what you do to get a good night’s sleep.