Tips to Help You Get a Good Night's Sleep
The benefits of a good night's sleep are often underrated, but research shows how important sleep is for your memory, mood, immune system and much more. These tips can help you sleep well.
By Angel Rodis, MD, Virtua Pulmonologist and Sleep Specialist, Virtua Pulmonology & Sleep Medicine
Movies, TV shows, blog articles and social media remind us daily that we need to watch what we eat and exercise regularly to feel better mentally and physically. But there's something else we need that’s often overlooked.
A good night's sleep is one of the most underrated aspects of maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
Research has shown that sleep helps:
- Improve memory and learning
- Enhance concentration, attention and decision making
- Boost energy levels
- Reduce stress and anxiety
- Regulate moods
- Battle obesity
- Strengthen immune system
- Decrease risks for cardiovascular diseases
If you sleep better at night, you'll notice how much more active you feel in the morning and throughout the day. Your body needs to have complete rest during sleep. If not, it can increase stress on the heart and can cause heart issues, including high blood pressure, irregular heart rates, and heart attacks.
Tips to fix your sleep schedule
Everyone has occasional sleepless nights and trouble staying asleep, which isn’t a problem for most people. But if a trend of sleeping difficulties arises, then you should take steps to improve your nighttime sleep routine. Here are some helpful tips to fall asleep faster:
- Avoid emotional upset or stressful situations before bedtime.
- Avoid eating heavy meals for 2-3 hours before going to bed.
- Avoid drinking excessive amounts of alcohol in the evening.
- Avoid caffeine for at least eight hours before bedtime.
- Quit smoking and vaping—nicotine is a stimulant.
- Establish a regular bedtime, but don't go to bed if you feel wide awake.
- Exercise regularly, but not 2 hours before going to bed. Exercise, especially aerobic exercise, helps people fall asleep faster and get deeper and more restful sleep.Relax by reading, taking a bath, or listening to soothing music about 30 minutes before going to bed.
- Remove TVs, computers, phones, and tablets from your bedroom. They make it harder for you to fall asleep.
- Use the bedroom for bedroom activities only. Once in bed, use creative imagery and relaxation techniques to keep your mind off unrestful thoughts. Avoid staying in bed for long periods of time while awake or going to bed because of boredom.
Doctors caution using over-the-counter sleep aids such as melatonin or diphenhydramine (Benadryl) to help you escape to dreamland. Most sleep medications are antihistamines that mask problems. They act as temporary fixes and aren’t helpful for chronic conditions. It’s best to talk with your doctor to find out what the best solution is for you.
How much sleep do you need?
While studies have shown that adults typically require seven to eight hours of sleep, it is really the quality of sleep that is more important than quantity.
The definition of “good sleep” is getting enough sleep so you feel better and are more effective the next day. It's different for each person—some require more, while others can do with less. A person who’s sound asleep for five hours will feel much better than someone who’s tossing and turning in bed for eight hours.
As you get older, quality sleep can be difficult to achieve. Aches and pains, trips to the bathroom, stress, interruptions from children or medical problems all challenge your circadian rhythm – your body’s internal clock – during the night.
If better sleep if your goal, Virtua can help you get there.
Virtua's Sleep Centers in New Jersey offer medical evaluation and a full range of diagnostic testing, including sleep studies that measure heart rate, brain waves, breathing, eye and muscle movements, and oxygen levels. Virtua also offers a Pediatric Sleep Center, in partnership with Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, in Voorhees.
Our sleep specialists will evaluate your symptoms and see if you could benefit from a sleep study. To make an appointment with Virtua Pulmonology & Sleep Medicine, call 856-596-9057.
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