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Sleeping Baby
A sleeping baby is the secret to a sleeping Mommy, right? I have certainly found this to be true in our case.
As a co-sleeping Mama, I fall asleep with my son often and that way we both have a really good night’s rest. Having said that, I’ve never had trouble sleeping (unless I’m super excited about something).
And I know this is something many people struggle with… so if you are finding yourself so sleepy you can barely keep your eyes open, this contributed post is for you.
Fall Into The Arms Of Morpheus Tonight
When was the last time you had a good night sleep? If you can’t remember, it’s likely that it was a long time ago.
A good night sleep is essential, not only for your good look in the morning – who seriously want to look and feel like death after getting up? – ; but it is also essential to maintain healthy body functions.
Indeed, when you sleep, your body can best refuel its energy and deal with regeneration and healing processes.
Imagine you’ve got a cut on your finger. Your body will be able to heal itself quicker if you sleep well at night.
Additionally, you’ve probably noticed that your cognitive abilities might appear a little cluttered when you’re tired. While lack of sleep doesn’t make you stupid per se, it reduces your ability to think clearly and to stay alert.
That’s why you make bad decisions when you lack sleep.
So it’s time to fix your problems and fall into the arms of Morpheus.
What can a Greek God do for you?
If you haven’t heard of Morpheus before, he’s the Greek God of Dreams and often appears with a pair of wings.
The actual god of sleep is called Hypnos, and while you may not have read much about him, you can recognise the root of the word hypnosis, a relaxed state in which you are not aware of your mind and body.
Morpheus shapes the dreams of people, and as a result, falling in his arms means that you can both enjoy a sound sleep and dreams. According to the Greek mythology, Morpheus communicates through dreams.
In real life, a dream is the result of your memory processing. It helps you to consolidate learning and remembering tasks, as well as develop your cognitive abilities.
So, falling into the arms of Morpheus is more important than ever as it means you can help your body to rest and your mind to stay on top of its functions.
However, Morpheus doesn’t visit people as a divine figure that puts you to sleep. It’s up to you to create the best possible environment to rest at night.
For tired mommies, you need to know the tricks
Let’s address the first reason while a lot of adults struggle with sleep: Your baby can’t sleep through the night – and consequently keeps you awake too.
Becoming a mother means that you need to prepare yourself for several months of inadequate sleep. Indeed, as baby brains are developing, newborns are unable to sleep for an extended period of time.
In other words, you will need to wake up several times a night for nighttime feeding. But it takes about 6 weeks for babies to develop better sleeping patterns and let you enjoy a few hours of sleep.
When they reach 9 months around 70% to 80% of babies can sleep through. For those who can’t, there are little tips to help improve your baby’s sleep and yours.
- For a start, maintaining a dark room at night, for you and your baby, can be helpful to reset the sleep pattern and let the baby brain know that it’s now night time.
- Additionally, developing a sleep routine, such as putting your baby to bed at the same time every night, can also make a great deal of difference.
- Finally, if nothing helps, maybe you should consider co-sleeping with your child. After all, they might need your comforting presence to get used to sleeping through at night.
But most people are too tired to sleep well
What do you mean I shouldn’t crave coffee now? But I always do!
Ultimately, even if you find a way to help your baby to have a good night sleep every night, it doesn’t mean that you’ll be able to sleep.
Indeed, functioning on minimal hours of sleep, if any, might have forced to you to compensate with energising habits, such as consuming a lot of coffees throughout the day and the evening and keeping alert at all times.
Consequently, you might be so used to deal with little to no sleep that your brain might not know how to react when you can finally sleep.
So, don’t worry, if you experience a few difficult nights before you can finally sleep through like a baby. Additionally, depending on your level of tiredness, you may find it almost impossible to sleep. Even if you’ve skipped the last caffeinated drink of the day.
As funny as it might sound, you might be too tired to sleep.
What does it mean? There is a distinction between being tired and feeling tired. Lack of sleep has an impact on your body. But if you’ve needed to stay awake even through your tiredness until now, it’s likely that your mind will need to unwind before you can finally rest.
Create a routine
In order to help your mind relax, you need to create a sleep routine, in the same way, that you did for your child.
Your bedtime routine is designed to help rest your mind and train your brain to recognise it’s nearly sleep time. In other words, you need to pick your favourite relaxing activities to establish your healthy sleep hygiene.
- It’s a good idea to switch off all electronic devices at least one hour before going to bed, as you want to stop stimulating your brain.
- For a lot of people, there is nothing better than going through a mindful yoga practice before bed, as it soothes the mind and the body at the same time.
- If you’re not one for yoga, maybe some breathing exercises or some mindful meditation can help.
- Finally, leaving your favourite books on the bedside table can kickstart a new healthy routine. Reading is not only fun, but it’s relaxing as it takes your mind away from everything that happened during the day.
A healthy room
A healthy routine is a start. But if you don’t create a healthy bedroom, you will find impossible to have a good night sleep.
- Consider the temperature in the room, as you shouldn’t sleep in rooms that are too warm or too cold. Ideally, your bedroom needs to be a little cooler by a few degrees than the rest of your home.
- Additionally, while you may not sleep with an open window, you need to keep the room ventilated throughout the day to renew the air inside.
- You may also have other factors that might contribute to your discomfort at night. If you’ve never heard of bed bugs, these might be feeding on your blood while you sleep. You might have an infestation without even knowing it, as 50% of people who share a bed with bed bugs are not aware of the critters. One of the most common symptoms is the presence of bites on your body. But as it can take several days for your body to react. It’s a good idea to check your mattress and especially the area near the headboard. If you find bugs, you need to organise a professional bed bug removal to get rid of these critters for good. You might also want to change your mattress!
Think about your interior decor
You’ve probably heard of the Feng Shui philosophy before, but have you ever considered its potential improvements for your bedroom?
- For a start, the main idea of a Feng Shui decor is that it focuses on the main function of each room. Consequently, the main element in your bedroom is the bed. You need therefore to invest in a quality bed and mattress, preferably king or queen size bed.
- Decluttering the room is another essential part of the philosophy. It allows free passage for positive energies. But, from a practical point of view, it means less room for dust and less stressful visuals around you.
Image Credit: Feng Shui Bedroom
Help your body to build up healthy sleep patterns
Sleep is a physical activity, and consequently, you need to prepare your body for it.
As surprising as it might sound, exercising can help to improve your sleep pattern.
Scientists are unclear as to the reason why, but ultimately your afternoon workout can pay off in more than one way.
- As you can eliminate toxins through sports, you can also keep your body in ideal health conditions to guarantee a better sleep. Research has even proven that sports could cure insomnia!
- But working out alone isn’t enough. You need to make sure that your body is consuming the right kind of food too.
- For instance, you should avoid the consumption of caffeinated drinks in the afternoon and evening as it will disturb your sleep.
- Drinking alcohol and smoking can also affect your sleep cycles and cause you to wake up frequently during the night. Finally, you shouldn’t go to bed after a heavy meal, as your body will struggle to digest during a rest period.
Sleep is, in the end, a delicate art to master. Don’t worry if it doesn’t happen overnight!
As long as you focus on developing healthy habits and keeping your cool, you’ll get to meet Morpheus soon.
When was the last time you woke up feeling totally rested and ready for the day?