• Get at least 30 minutes of sunlight early every morning to improve your circadian rhythm
• Set a schedule – go to bed and wake up at the same time each day.
• Exercise 20 to 30 minutes a day but no later than a few hours before going to bed.
• Avoid Caffeine, Guarana and Ginseng after 3pm
• Avoid Nicotine after 3pm
• Avoid alcoholic drinks before bed. Alcohol may help you get to sleep, but you will wake up later in the night because you are dehydrated.
• Use a screen dimmer if you must use a screen close to bedtime
• Have a room for sleep – avoid bright lights and loud sounds, and do not watch TV or have a computer in your bedroom. Cover all lights to darken the room.
• In general, the suggested bedroom temperature should be between 15-19 degrees for optimal sleep. When lying in bed to snooze, your body temperature decreases to bring on sleep. Lowering your room temperature can help you go to sleep.
• Relax before bed – try a warm bath, reading, or another relaxing routine.
• Do not lie in bed if you are awake. If you cannot get to sleep, after 20 minutes, get up and do something else, like reading or listening to music, until you feel tired. Then go back to bed. Lying in bed focussed on not sleeping will not help you get to sleep.
• Get out of bed at the same time each day. Do not “sleep in” even if you had poor sleep the night before, as this will reduce the quality of your sleep the next night. Get up, get some sunlight, and get on with your day.
