Day 6 — Sleep Hygiene Is Not Garbage
I’m one of those people who likes reading stuff about being more productive and maximizing what I can get out of a day (shocking. I know.). However, I always thought the advice of getting 8 hours of sleep a night was utter nonsense. It wasn’t until my last couple of years in the classroom when I was willing to try even the most nonsensical of things in order to maintain my sanity that I decided to put adequate sleep to the test and I’ll never go back.
Research has emerged showing how sleep is even more significant that we thought. Here’s a quick run down of my sleep routine and this week, especially for the Arjuns out there, make it a priority and see how it feels. After all, like Kimmy Schmidt says, “You can do anything for 10 seconds,” (or in this case 7 days).
Ideal wake time - 8 = Bedtime
Pretty basic math, but how often do we actually do it? Usually it’s, “I got to bed around 11pm. I have to be up at 5 am for work.” That’s only 6 hours of sleep at best! Shorting a couple hours here and there isn’t the end of the world, but doing so consistently is generally detrimental. I say “generally” because as with all advice, your specific situation has an impact. For example, Buck Jaeger and I are worlds apart when it comes to our sleep habits. He prefers nappuccinos on the regular while I prefer them for flights only. This is where the mindfulness comes in. You have to know yourself to know what works. Make sure you have that feedback loop in place and you’re taking an honest inventory of what is working and what isn’t.
Start getting ready 30 minutes before
If I want to be awake at 7 am, my bedtime is 11 pm which means bedtime prep starts around 10:30 pm. I’ll be honest, I’m usually in bed before that, but it took some time to get there.
What does winding down look like
For me, typical winding down is brushing my teeth, flossing, lights off, lamp on, Netflixing one of the shows I’ve watched 10 times already so that it’s more for sound and not something I actually want to watch. Maximum winding down on particularly stressful days I add a warm shower, cup of tea, warm gel socks, and some sleep meditation. I will use my phone to read or play a game before I go to sleep, however, falling and staying asleep aren’t generally difficult for me. If you are having a hard time, try limiting your screen time, as that can have an adverse impact on sleep.
The alarm
I use the Sleep Cycle app as my alarm. I like that it starts quietly and slowly increases in volume so that it’s not a startling shock to my system to start my day. Some folks prefer the gentle buzz of their health tracker. It’s up to you. Run some tests and see what has the best impact on your sleep. I also like that Sleep Cycle asks if I ate late or had coffee along with a couple of other questions and keeps track of all that data for me so I can see trends over time.
That’s it. It’s not a very complicated process. As with all change, observe first and write it down in your notebook. Make slow, easy changes. Don’t try to change your habits from 4 energy drinks and a 3 am bedtime to no energy drinks and a 9 pm bedtime in one day.
