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This Guest paper was submitted for publication and is copyright to Sarah Jones © 2017.
Published here July 2017
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More Causes: Environment, Noise, Stimulants, Food
- Your Environment. First of all, it is important to provide yourself
with the correct environment conducive to getting a good night's sleep. Our bodies
are designed to work under certain rules, and by doing the correct things you
can make it much easier for yourself to get to sleep. Comfort is obvious, but
temperature is also important. It should be cool, but not cold. After all, our
bodies evolved to sleep outside, when the temperature drops, and these biological
indicators still live in the recesses of our minds.
- Noise. Noise is key to getting a good night's sleep. The first half an hour of sleep is far lighter and more interruptible, and our senses are still scanning for danger. If possible, minimize all sounds. Earplugs can help, as can white noise like a fan or air conditioner,[1] which will drown out any extraneous sound.
- Stimulants. Caffeine is the obvious one, but alcohol is also linked to a poor night's sleep. I'm guilty of this one. I used to like a drink to help wind down after a heavy day. But it turns out that although alcohol helps us get to sleep, as the alcohol is broken down in our bodies we come out of our REM sleep cycles, or deep sleeping cycle. That makes us more restless and far more likely to be woken up.
- Food. We've all heard the old wives tale of cheese and nightmares. Turns out it's true. Some foods, including cheese, chocolate, meat and chili affect our bodies in ways that contribute to wakefulness, until the food is digested. So try and avoid late-night snacking on anything heavy duty.
1. Providing that it does not stop and start all night!
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Causes
of a Bad Night's Sleep: Health, Sleep Apnea, Psychology
