Why I Have Sleep Issues

• I drink tea or hot chocolate in the evening. (I mainly drink English Breakfast tea.)
• I read and study in bed.
• I use my computer or watch TV right up to bedtime.
• I don’t have a regular bedtime.
• I don’t exercise much.
• I eat surgery snacks at night -especially if I am studying and/or writing a paper for school.
• I do most of my heavy thinking at night. (I.e. I worry or work on creative projects.)

All of these are sleep no-no’s.

Last week I decided that I’d work on my sleep habits: Get to bed by 10 pm. 4 nights a week. That didn’t happen even one night.

But I did get to bed by 11 p.m. on 4 nights. And I was so tired I didn’t even have to count backwards in order to fall asleep. This is unusual for me. If I stay up past 10, I typically get a second wind and can’t get to sleep for hours!

If I am really serious about learning to sleep well, I need to make a sleep plan. AND FOLLOW IT. I will take 2 or 3 things from the above list and do the opposite.

1. Go to bed at a regular hour. I’ll still aim for 10 p.m. 4 nights a week.
2. I’d like to walk 3-4 times a week, preferably with Chip.
3. I wonder if I could stop all media interaction one hour before bedtime? I’ll try and see what happens.

What advice do you have regarding sleep? I’m all ears.

For more Smart Habit Saturday posts go here. Write one of your own and be sure to let know, so I can have a read.