November and December always are those months that we are all feeling super busy and maybe even a little bit stressed with everything we have to get done by the end of the year. I don’t know if you guys have this too, but as soon as I have a lot of work to get done, my brain seems to go into overdrive. It doesn’t really matter at what time of day it is; my brain just won’t stop overthinking and overanalysing everything. So every November and December I struggle with quite bad insomnia and usually don’t fall asleep before two in the morning, which is just horrible!
This is how I have gone through the beginning of November. Somewhere halfway through exhaustion just hit me and I needed to get my normal hours of sleep. So I have decided to adjust my evening sleeping routine a bit. It’s been adjusted to prevent insomnia from happening as much as possible, and I thought it would be fun to share with you too!
No caffeine after 2 PM
If you struggle with insomnia and anxiety and stuff, caffeine is never really a good thing. I once had a coffee at three in the afternoon and was awake until the next morning because of a mix of caffeine, insomnia and anxiety. That’s when I made myself a rule to not drink any coffee, tea or any other drinks with caffeine in it after two in the afternoon. This means all the caffeine has left my system by the end of the day, when I want to fall asleep.I tend to avoid caffeine anyway, as it usually gives me anxiety and really bad heart palpitations. This means I usually am drinking decaf coffee with lots of milk or green or herbal tea. I find that these drinks work best to avoid insomnia and anxiety during the night.
No screens an hour before bed
This one tip is the one I probably struggle with most. I personally love nothing more than getting into bed at night before going asleep and watching some Netflix. The bad thing about having stress, insomnia and anxiety all at the same time, is that watching something on TV, my laptop or scrolling through my Instagram on my phone heightens my anxiety and insomnia. Instead of turning my brain off like it usually does when I am not stressed, it makes my brain feel awake again, which leads to me being awake most of the night. That’s why I made myself a deal to not look at my phone anymore an hour before I go to bed. I know it’s actually supposed to be two hours before you go to bed, but that’s still something I struggle with, but I am hoping to eventually expand it to two hours before bed.Pillow Spray
I feel like the anxiety and insomnia is always inside of my head. I know it is, as it’s my own brain that goes into overdrive when I go to sleep. That’s why I always like to be as ‘zen’ as possible before going to bed. So right before I step into bed I like to spray a pillow spray basically all over my bed/room. Pillow sprays usually contain lavender, which is a natural remedy to help calm you down and make you feel less stressed, which basically is just what you need before getting ready before bed.Breathing exercises
The last thing I like to do is when I am actually lying in my bed. It’s breathing exercises. I like to really take a deep breath in for about four seconds. Then I hold my breath for four seconds. Next you exhale for six seconds. I repeat this process a couple of times and usually fall asleep within the next couple of minutes. Usually adrenaline rushes through your body when you feel super anxious or stressed.Breathing exercises really help calm your nerves and help you to feel as if you’re not high on adrenaline just before going to bed. This breathing method works for me personally, but I also read some articles online about the 4-7-8 breathing exercise. I tried that method one evening but nearly choked because I couldn’t hold my breath that long with my asthma. I decided to go back to my own 4-4-6 breathing method. But who knows, maybe with a bit of training I can actually manage to get myself to the ideal 4-7-8 breathing method.
Great advice! I suffer from insomnia due to my chronic illness, Lupus and lavender/rose geranium in my bath, on my pillows etc. help so much. I do need to work on no screens an hour before bed though, it's so hard! Have you tried reading before bed?
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xo
Thank you Jesslyn! I have never tried Rose or Geranium before in a bath, so I am definitely going to give that a go! I love reading before bed, it's the only thing that usually makes me fall asleep within the hour! :) xx
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