Sleep is one of the most important activities we need to do on a daily basis. It is one of the best “anti aging” secrets. Yet, overall people are sleeping less and less.
Sleep helps our bodies to:
*Heal and repair
* Detoxify
* Burn Fat
* Help keep estrogen balanced
*Help restore cells and make them healthy
If you are having difficulty sleeping, then these 5 top tips are going to point you in the right direction!
1). In bed and lights out by 10pm. This may sound like an early bedtime for many, but this is the best time to go to bed for your body. Our circadian rhythm works best if we go to bed by 10pm each night. If we need to have extra sleep, sleeping til 9am at the latest is best, otherwise being up en at em at 6am gives you a refreshing sleep.
2). If you are having trouble getting to sleep, a cup of chamomile tea before bed may help. This sleepy herb has a powerful action and may just calm your body to help put it in a sleepy state.
3). If you are waking around 1 – 2 am, it can indicate that your liver may be a little bit sluggish. Drinking dandelion tea, eating artichokes and drinking lemon in water will all help your liver to detoxify easily. Also staying away from processed foods – particularly ones high in fat or sugar, whilst eating lots of vegetables and fruit and drinking 2 litres of water a day will help your liver detox away!
4). Waking around 3 -4am usually indicates you are a little bit stressed. Normally your cortisol should rise at around 6am to help wake you up, but if you are stressed, then it can rise early, making it very difficult to fall asleep again.
Here’s what you can do during the day – cut out caffeine. I know this can be difficult because you are tired, but it may be affecting your sleep!
Start meditation and/or exercise as it helps decrease stress levels.
See a naturopath to help support your adrenals while you are going through this stressful situation. Particular herbal and nutritional medicines may help you to be able to cope with the stress better.
If your mind is ticking over, get up and have a glass of water or count backwards from 5 to 0. This can help get your mind off whatever you are thinking about.
5). Turn off screens and lights at night. The light on your devices can upset your sleep hormone, melatonin. We need good amounts of melatonin to sleep so keep screen time at a minimum before bed. Reading a book or doing a meditation may be much for helpful.
So if you’re not waking refreshed in the morning from a good nights sleep, try these 5 tips. If you are still having difficulty sleeping, I recommend seeing a naturopath who can help restore balance to your body and help you to sleep again.
Public Speaker and Naturopath, Andrea Strand has been successfully helping people to get well over the last 14 years. Andrea’s approach is to blend science and traditional medicine to achieve optimum results for her patients. She has a special interest in helping women rebalance their hormones so that they don’t have to suffer each month. For more information or to book a free 10 min phone chat, call 1300 21 44 25.
