A bedtime ritual to maximize sleep.

Few people would say that there is not much better than a great night of sleep.  That might be so because approximately on third of Americans don’t get enough sleep according to the CDC.  If you are among one of the 33% lacking sleep, one of the easiest  steps you can take is to establish a bedtime ritual.  

We as humans are creatures of habit, we’ve discussed the cue-routine-reward cycle many times over the years on this blog and just like any other habit, bedtime rituals are establishing habits to help our brains recognize when it is time to sleep.  Once you establish the ritual that works for you and start to perform this ritual on a nightly basis, your brain will start to see these activities as a precursor to a good night of sleep.

We establish these routines for our children and it helps them not only connect with their natural circadian rhythms, but also calm them down in preparation for a good night sleep.  Research has shown that bedtime rituals established and implemented by parents with their children have profoundly positive effects in other areas of their lives including memory retention, mental health, and improved attentiveness. It’s a wonder why we as adults, lose touch of the benefits of this sleep ritual.  

How to establish a bedtime ritual for yourself. 

It is t-minus 30 minutes to your bedtime, it’s time for a bedtime ritual. 

Turn off all electronics (TV, computer, cell phone, etc.).
Put that phone away somewhere if you think you'll be tempted to check it "one last time". The blue lights from your devices are not only distracting you from what you need to do, they are interfering with your melatonin production and keeping you awake.

Lower the lights a bit.
Dim light tells your brain it’s time for bed.

Do a "brain dump".
Pull out a piece of paper and write down all the things you need to do tomorrow then, add anything else you're worried about, or that's on your mind.Set it aside because now to your brain, it's the paper's problem.

Do something that actively calms your mind like listening to relaxing music, reading solo (or aloud to your kids a quiet), petting your dog or cat, meditating (We like the Headspace app.), taking a warm shower or  bath, stretching.  

Once you find out what will best help “gear down” your brain, it is up to you to create the ritual and actually do it. Even if you can only do 10 minutes of some sort of , 10 is more than 0, because your secret weapon for getting a great night sleep is creating bedtime ritual.