Quality Rest And Sleep In The New Year
Rest is as important as physical activity for general health. Identify periods during the day when you can be passive, without stimulation, doing nothing, and create time for them. Consider the following when planning rest into your schedule:
- Try to get into the habit of napping: ten to twenty minutes in the afternoon, preferably lying down in a darkened room. If you are out and about, you could also find a parking lot to recline your seat, apply an eye mask and grab a quick recharge to take on the rest of the day.
- Spend some time outdoors as often as you can to get exposure to bright, natural light. If you are concerned about harmful effects of the sun, do it before ten in the morning or after three in the afternoon or use sunscreen or a hat and long sleeves during the hours in between.
- Try to give yourself about an hour in dim light before you go to sleep at night. Lower the lighting in your house and bedroom. If other members of the household object, invest in a pair of blue-blocking orange glasses. You can also set the screens on your electronic devices to dark mode to lessen the exposure to lighting that can overstimulate.
- Avoid screen time within the hour before sleep. If you need asleep routine, consider some type of gentle mental distraction like a non-electronic book, puzzle or game. Be sure to make your bedroom as dark as possible while sleeping.
- Pay attention to sleep hygiene. Consider all the details of lifestyle, including intake of caffeine and alcohol and bedroom design, that affect the quality of sleep. When you are ready to go to sleep, try to keep your bedroom completely dark.
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