No Personal Space

Right now it is 2:45 in the morning and I know that writing the draft for this post at this hour is a little crazy, but this is definitely something I am going to have to work on. Instead of talking about my research like I have done in all the other getting health series posts, I have decided to write about how I am going to go to sleep earlier and sleep well because of it.

Going to bed at the right time is not going to start an hour before the time I need to be asleep. I need to get up at 8 am, so for 8 hours of sleep, I need to be asleep by midnight. That might sound late to some of you, but being asleep by midnight is going to take some serious changes in my life. I have decided to set my alarm for 10pm each night to remind me to start going to bed. This soothing ring tone will be the start of my night time routine. Here is my schedule once the alarm goes off:

10 pm: Soothing Alarm Rings

• Turn on Spotify sleep playlist

• Light lavender aromatherapy candle from Bath and Body Works.

• Turn overhead lights off and use only lamps

• Turn fan on, temperature in the bedroom is a little bit of a Goldilocks situation: A room that’s too hot and a room that’s too cold can both mess with your sleep.

• Take nightly medication, including Unisom. (I do not advocating the use of a sleep aid, but the prescription I have does not work.)

• Take a shower, even if I am not going to wash my hair.

10:30 pm: Read a book, play on phone or watch tv.

11 pm: Turn off all electronics, including TV, phone, and computer (even Cody’s electronics). Read a book until 11:30 pm, making sure that is it not on an electronic medium.

11:30 pm: Turn off all lights and try to go to sleep.

This is my schedule for getting my 8 hours of sleep. I plan on starting this Sunday night and I’ll keep you posted on how it goes and if there are any alterations to this schedule.

How do you get a good 8 hours of sleep every night? I would love to hear from you and add your suggestions to my schedule!

P.s. It’s 3:45 am right now