As many will know and can relate to, the lack of quality sleep can add to an already low mood.

Over the years I have tried many different methods and treatments to help with this ongoing difficulty with very limited results. I have no problem getting to sleep, it is staying asleep that is the biggest hurdle.

Often crazy dreams, night terrors leave me exhausted and terrified leaving a hangover effect which ruins the day. This seems crazy from a 70 year man but that is how it is. 

Below is a list of tips that have proved to be helpful in improving my sleep, hopefully some may be useful to others in a similar situation.

- A warm bath with salts in and listen to relaxing music an hour before bed. If you do not have a bath, a warm shower with smelly sleep stuff, (icing on the cake is getting into a bed with clean sheets).

- DO NOT LISTEN TO ANY NEWS AFTER 6 PM 

- Do not sleep on your back if you can avoid it, ideally sleep on your left hand side with no more than 2 pillows - feather or a cool gel. 

- Try not to have any electronic devices in the bedroom and keep off them as much as possible in the evening. 

- No caffeine drinks after late afternoon and no alcohol which really messes with sleep.

- Practice gratitude before falling asleep, its amazing how many things we take for granted.

- Keep the bedroom cool and dark - if it helps wear a mask.

- If you wake try not to look at the time and do NOT get too obsessed with getting back to sleep. Breathing exercises can and do help you to get back to sleep. 

I have recently subscribed to Calm, I think it was around £30 for the year (discounted price).

I have found it to be helpful with a daily Calm 10 minute mindful meditation in the morning with a very useful piece of advice towards the end of the 10 minutes. There are sleep stories and many helpful sounds and other topics on their app, the downside is it means having an electronic device close by if you need it to get back to sleep.

More recently I am trying something else - trying to keep away from electronic devices for the first hour of the day. Weather permitting I sit outside and read a book for 30 minutes with a hot drink and listen to nature. This time of year it is really nice listening to the birds and observing the plants and flowers.

My normal morning ritual was usually to check out the daily blog on Moodscope, then get drawn to the weather forecast, then the news and so on. Apparently this is giving the brain a fix of cortisol which in turn can cause more difficulties later in the day and night. This is work in progress and I am trying to form a new habit. 

By reading a book it’s a more natural start to the day. I then go to Moodscope which has been invaluable over the years and still is (thank you Caroline and all the team, not forgetting the regular blog writers.)  I then walk my dog, a very lively springer spaniel.

I think having a very active mind in the day adds to disturbed sleep as the mind wants to continue to be active when you are asleep, again Calm helps with techniques to try and quieten the mind during the day which in turn can help during those small hours in the night. Not forgetting healthy eating and exercise when you can, physical tiredness is much better than mental tiredness, go easy on descriptive words -  don’t use words like disaster, nightmare unnecessarily as the brain will jump on it and exaggerate it even more.

Lots of tiny changes can add up to an overall improvement and some of these tips may help others, I do hope so.

Paul

A Moodscope member