Sleep Hygiene
Caffeine (in coffee, tea, pop, chocolate, some medications) and nicotine are stimulants, which can interfere with your ability to fall asleep. Alcohol is a depressant, which some people say is relaxing before bed- but it actually interrupts quality of sleep. How many hours before bed should you avoid consuming caffeine, alcohol, or nicotine?
a. 1-2 hours
b. 2-4 hours
c. 4-6 hours
d. 6-8 hours
c. 4-6 hours
You haven’t been able to sleep for over 20 minutes. What should you do?
There are 2 correct answers.
a. Get out of bed and sit on the couch with the lights off until you feel sleepy
b. Get up and do something interesting and exciting
c. Go sit under a bright, fluorescent light for 10 minutes
d. Get out of bed and read something boring until you feel sleepy
a and d.
Do something calming or boring until you feel sleepy (like sitting on the couch with the lights off or reading something boring)
Going to bed and waking up at the same time supports a healthy circadian rhythm (internal clock) - which helps prepare your body for daily expected changes in the environment (time for activity, sleep, times to eat).
What environmental factor has the biggest influence on your circadian rhythm?
answer: light and darkness
Try to avoid blue light (from phone, computer, TV screens; and some LED lights) and bright lights before bed. Blue light suppresses melatonin.
For the evening- dim, red, orange, and yellow lights have minimal effect on melatonin. Dim, warm lights are a good choice for night lights or evening lights.
In the morning, getting bright natural light supports your circadian rhythm.