Little Known Ways to Improve Our Sleep

Do you scroll social media and check email on your phone before you go to sleep? I must confess, me too.  It is a habit from when I was on call for my job and had to have my phone by my bed at all times. I finally put my phone in the far corner of the bedroom so it would not tempt me. And it surprised me to find out I slept better.   

Do you have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep?

Melatonin and sleep

Light is the most powerful influence on the sleep-wake cycle. The timing and type of light exposure on our eyes affects our hormones and our sleep.

Often called the sleep hormone, melatonin supports healthy sleep and takes part in regulating the body’s sleep-wake cycle, called the circadian rhythm. The levels of melatonin increase in the evening as the sun sets. Exposure to sunlight, especially light in the blue spectrum, decreases the melatonin level. This wakes us up, elevates our mood and promotes alertness.

How do we use this knowledge to improve our sleep?

Limit exposure to blue light before bedtime

Light in the blue spectrum is stimulating to the brain. During the day, we need to be awake and productive. But at night, blue light tells the brain it is still time to be active, instead of sleeping. Unfortunately, LED and fluorescent lights, computers, phones and flat screen televisions all emit a sizeable amount of blue light.

 Too much blue light at night, especially a few hours before bedtime, disrupts melatonin production and affects the sleep-wake cycle. The result can be daytime drowsiness and sleepless nights.

To remedy this, if we have to work on our devices at night, wear blue light blocking glasses to block some blue light effects.  In addition, devices such as phones and computers often have a nighttime setting to reduce blue light.  Or you can purchase physical filters to apply to the screen.

The best idea of all—don’t use a cell phone, laptop or watch television 30 minutes to 2 hours before bedtime.

Get some morning sunlight

What do you do first thing in the morning?

Try adding this to your morning routine to sleep better the same night. Go outside in the sunlight as soon as possible after awakening. Direct sunlight exposure into the eyes suppresses melatonin production. This resets our sleep-wake cycle, and increases energy. At night, when melatonin levels increase again, we are ready to fall asleep.

I know, its counter-intuitive. What we do in the morning helps us sleep better at night. But try it for two weeks and see what happens.

Final thoughts

Now I know why I had trouble falling asleep when I worked in the middle of the night while on call for my job. Between the phone by my bedside and staring at the computer screen at all hours of the night, it’s not surprising. At least now I know to stay off social media on my phone before bedtime and instead, I read an actual book.

Why not try getting sunlight in the morning and turning off devices at night to improve your sleep?
If you do, let me know how it works for you.