We all know how much sleep we should be getting per night, 7-9 hours seem to be the magic numbers. This is the general recommendation with some people being able to get by on 6 hours sleep while other people may need an extra hour or two to function.
More recently, studies have begun to show a correlation between sleep and pain. Early findings have shown that shorter sleep times, fragmented sleep and a poor sleep quality lead us with a heightened sensitivity to pain meaning it requires less stimulus to elicit a pain response! However, on the flipside of this, improving sleep quality may help to improve chronic pain.
So how do you improve your sleep quality so that you can enjoy a better sleep?
Here are 10 sleep tips below to help you!
- Establish your ideal sleep schedule including what time you would like to go to sleep and wake up. Stick to this wake up time regardless of how you slept!
- This sleep schedule should include a pre bed routine - e.g. Reading a book on the couch, brushing your teeth and then hopping into bed
- Create a comfortable sleep environment - keep your room dark, cool (approx 18 degrees) and a nice warm bed.
- There are plenty of Apps to help you get to sleep, it’s worth giving them a try to see if they are of benefit to you - these Apps often encourage mediation and mindfulness in combination with relaxing music aimed at relaxing your mind to help you drift off.
- Try not to stress about waking during the night, it’s perfectly normal to wake every 90 minutes part of a normal sleep/wake cycle!
- Avoid eating a big sleep meal and vigorous exercise before bed as this can make it more difficult to sleep.
- Avoid cigarettes and caffeine for 4 hours prior to your scheduled sleep time
- People who regularly exercise tend to have a more restful sleep so go outside and get active, the natural light will do you the world of good!
- Address your worries and stresses before bed- try writing them down on a piece of paper and leaving them in the kitchen and telling yourself you’ll address them in the morning.
- Lastly, leave the Bedroom for the 2 S’s, Sleep and the other thing! Avoid watching tv and working/studying as much as possible.
If you’re having trouble sleeping, give these tips a go and see if they help you! If pain is the thing that’s affecting your sleep above all else, it is certainly worth booking in to sleep one of our Physiotherapists or Exercise Physiologists to help you address your pain, call us today on 8682 6665.
Sweet Dreams!!
