Nocturnal brooding
3 tips to help you fall asleep
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Do you find it difficult to switch off and your sleep suffers as a result? Then these three tips can help so that your head and body can rest in the evening.
Dog tired but still can’t fall asleep? Your head is rattling and your thoughts are already on all the small and big to-dos that are waiting for you tomorrow? Or do you manage to fall asleep but keep waking up in the middle of the night and then wide awake? Each of us has problems falling asleep and staying asleep. Happens. In the long term, however, it can become a problem if we don’t do exactly that during the time in which we are supposed to recover. studies according to one in three people suffer from sleep problems and this in turn can have serious consequences: from concentration problems, memory loss and mood swings to a weakened immune system, weight gain and high blood pressure. In order to sleep better, the following tips that you may not yet know can help.
1. A realistic daily schedule
Everyone knows: We have a long to-do list in front of us that we have planned for today, but we only manage half of it. If any. End of the story: we are stressed and frustrated in the evenings and take it all with us into the night. Here it can help to plan the day backwards to make us aware of the time we really have available and how much we CAN actually do. Here’s how you do it:
1. Gross working time: From when to when are you at work? How many hours are there between opening the laptop and the planned end of the day?
2. Net working time: Now you subtract all planned appointments, breaks and buffers. What then remains is the time you actually have to work on your to-dos.
3. Priorities: Now you write down all the tasks, including a rough estimate of how long you need to complete them, and use them to create a plan, sorted by the importance of your tasks and taking into account your net working time. At best, your list should be empty at the end of the day without you having to work overtime. Good for the head and the feeling.
2. Micro routines help to switch off and let go
It can help to end the day with small rituals so that you don’t lie in bed at night with your job and worry about problems or everyday life keeps you from sleeping in nightly ruminations. This can be something different for everyone, for example a walk, a meditation, a small yoga session. If you don’t feel like it or don’t have the time for it, you can also try these little rituals and review the day and then check it off.
1. What did I do well today? Write down three things you accomplished today and be proud of the little things. Not every day is made for great things. On the contrary, become aware of all the things that are so often taken for granted. You’ll see, little by little you’ll get better and better at it.
2. What are you thankful for? Same game. Write down three things you are grateful for. No matter how tiny they are, you’ll see, over time, there will be more and more of them.
3. What’s up for tomorrow? Taking a few minutes in the evening and anticipating tomorrow gives your brain security and reduces the likelihood that you’ll think about it later.
3. Thinking time, but with the end
Heartache and problems are part of life. Feelings are justified and so are stupid thoughts. But they often catch up with us at night. A simple and at the same time effective trick to avoid this is to plan a fixed grief time during the day in which these worries have space. 15 minutes is enough to get a better night’s sleep.