How to sleep better in the New Year

Make a better night’s sleep your goal for the new year

With new year’s fast approaching, it’s the time of year where we all start thinking about new year’s resolutions. The new year brings with it a chance for positive change and a new light of hope making it the ideal time to try and implement something new into your life or make a positive change. Even if you don’t fully adhere to the resolution, it gives you the confidence and hope that you can do something to improve your life and everything needs a starting step. What will you write for the next year of your life? One theme that is so very important is mental health and a really important part of that is making healthy lifestyle changes to help create a happier you. Whether that is with sleep, food or taking a little time out for yourself. Here are some new year’s resolution ideas that you could consider making for a happier you and that will help you sleep better:

Try and meditate

Meditation has always been praised for its benefits, but many people still view it as something reserved for the religious or spiritual. But that is most definitely not the case. Meditation has positive benefits for everyone and can drastically improve the quality of life. Meditation is real me time where you focus on just yourself and temporarily leave the world behind. It can help with dealing with stressful and demanding lifestyles and can greatly reduce anxiety and depression. Introducing meditation can also lead to an improved quality in sleep due to decreased tension levels. The effects of meditation are so great that they can reach the body and the brain and physically have a therapeutic effect. For something that requires very little effort, that sounds like a great pack of benefits to me.

Have a healthier diet

This a very popular new year’s resolution and that is not without reason. Nutrition plays a key role in a metal and physical health and can help improve sleep and mood. Healthy food promotes the growth of good bacteria that positively affect the brain resulting in better moods and better moods result in better sleep. Junk food on the other hand causes a temporary good feeling followed by a crash and sugar can result in more frequent wake up’s during the night. A high fibre, low added sugar and high in vitamins and minerals diet can help you drift off faster and regulate your sleep cycles. Better sleep means a happier you (because who doesn’t love sleep) Eating healthy also lowers the risk of certain diseases. 

Exercise regularly

Exercise has been shown to improve mood and decrease feelings of depression, stress and anxiety. It helps with weight gain, obesity and also increases energy levels as well as builds muscle and bone strength. Exercise is also shown to decrease complaints on insomnia and improve sleep quality overall. We’re sure after that hard work the felling of your head on the pillow will be a cherished moment.

Revamp your home

Sometimes, we get so wrapped up in the world we forget to treat ourselves. Revamping our homes is a great way to treat yourself and what better time to freshen up your home than the new year. A new year and a new environment. The environment we live in can impact our moods and lives greatly. Whether it’s a shuffle around, touch ups, organisation or a complete makeover, a little renovation is just the thing we sometimes need. A good home environment can improve your moods and make us feel happier. Try revamping your bedroom. Change the lighting in your room or invest in a new mattress or bed. It won’t only make you happier, it’ll also help improve your sleeping. 

Improve your sleep schedule

With lockdown and a loose timetable in 2020, a lot of sleep schedules have gone out of the window. We might not realise it, but askew sleep schedules can negatively impact us and our lives. It leads to grogginess, interrupted sleep, and a bad sleeping schedule. Start the new year by trying to improve your sleep schedule. Set a sensible and set time to go to sleep (try and make it early) and wake up early in the morning. You’ll be surprised by how productive your day can be and how good you can feel just by waking up early. Use the above New year’s resolutions to also help improve your sleep.

Have a happy new year!