This morning I’m exhausted because I didn’t sleep well last night…again. I laid in bed for a couple of hours before I fell asleep thinking about all the things I needed to get done at work today, making a list of everything I need to pick up at the grocery store tonight.
Let me ask you a question, how well do you sleep at night?
As young professionals we have a lot of stress, at least I do. Some nights I get into bed at 11 p.m. but I don’t fall asleep until 2 a.m. because my mind won’t – or should I say can’t – shut off.
What keeps you awake at night?
I lay awake at night stressing about work, money and sometimes my future. Sometimes I lay awake replaying whatever awful fight I just had with my family. I can be totally exhausted, but can’t fall sleep because I’m worrying about anything and everything from my busy schedule at work to wondering if I locked the front door to thinking of new topics for this blog. Basically having a full, busy life means having a brain on full throttle. That equals sleepless nights.
My sleepless nights are both good and bad. Sometimes I get my best ideas just before I fall asleep, but that means I’m exhausted and not fully functioning the next morning. If I’m excited I can’t fall asleep, if I’m nervous I can’t fall asleep and if I’m sad I definitely can’t fall asleep.
My lack of a good night’s rest isn’t always emotional or mental, sometimes it’s physical. There are nights when my mind wants to sleep but I just can’t get comfortable. You know those nights right, the nights when your back hurts or your neck hurts and you feel like there are creepy crawlers running all over your body. Do you ever get that or is it just me?
3 ways to put a stop to sleepless nights
Burn off your energy. Thanks to my doctor’s orders I joined a gym and started working out. Being active is a great way to get a good night’s sleep. It burns off unused energy so we don’t harbor it inside; at the same time running on the treadmill helps clear my head. It’s like killing two birds with one stone, I burn calories to lose weight and at the same time I think through all my issues. I leave the gym cleansed with a strong body and a clear mind.
Taking a hot bath or shower. Relaxing my body and muscles with a hot shower definitely helps me relax before bed; it also lets me get into bed clean, comfy and cozy. I like to take a hot shower before bed or if I have the time sit in a bubble bath. It gives me time before trying to go to sleep to help work through whatever issues are filling up my brain. I think our minds run wild before bed because it’s our real first down time of the day. However if I have an hour of me time in the bath before hopping into bed maybe I can go to sleep with a clear mind.
I bought a new bed. This was my last resort and not to jinx it or anything but my new bed is working like a charm. I am definitely sleeping a lot better since buying my new Sealy Posturpedic bed. It cost $1048 but our old bed was 10 years old and it’s money well spent if it lets me get a solid eight hours of sleep every night.
What helps you fall asleep at night?