How to Improve Your Sleep During National Sleep Comfort Month

Our favorite time of the year is any time we get to celebrate our favorite thing: sleep! November is National Sleep Comfort Month, which means an entire month dedicated to getting those precious Z’s. There’s nothing quite like a good night’s sleep in the world’s best bed. Sleep is absolutely essential to maintaining one’s physical and mental health. Right now, due to the hectic nature of the holiday season, we can guess that you may not be getting enough sleep each night, or that you’re at least not attaining the best quality sleep. Improving your sleeping habits is integral to improving your health, and there’s no better time than National Sleep Comfort Month to do so. If you feel like you’re not achieving the best possible sleep, here are 6 ways you can take full advantage of, and truly celebrate National Sleep Comfort Month.

First thing’s first: you need to gauge how much sleep you really need each night. Try to set aside just a couple of days to reset your internal body clock. Go to bed at a reasonable time, but rather than waking up by alarm, allow yourself to wake up naturally to see how much sleep your body needs in a night. From there, you can set a bedtime that’ll ensure you’re getting enough sleep every night, not just on the weekends.

Now that your body clock is set and you now know how much sleep your body needs, set a bedtime and stick to it. Having a set bedtime will allow your body to become a creature of habit: each night around your bedtime, your body will automatically begin to feel drowsy. Having a set bedtime will also make waking up at a set time each morning that much easier! With your bedtime and wake up time now in check, make sure you set aside time before bed every night to let your body power down. This means no screens, no exercise, no work, just relaxing activities that will promote sleepiness. Create a sense of ritual in doing the same activities each night such as drinking tea or taking a hot shower each night before bed. A nightly ritual will let your body recognize when it’s time to start powering down.

We know it can be very difficult not to feed into late-night cravings...literally. However, eating even just a light snack right before bed can hinder your sleep schedule. If your stomach is busy digesting food when it should be sleeping, the rest of your body won’t be able to properly shut down. Be sure to eat a nutritious full dinner earlier in the evening, and steer clear of snacking at night.

This may seem obvious to some, but having the right temperature and amount of darkness while sleeping is extremely important in keeping your body asleep. Having the right temperature in your room and bed is a necessity to keeping yourself comfortable and sound asleep. With winter now rapidly approaching, you’ll need a duvet that can keep you warm, without making you too hot and sweaty. As far as lighting, make sure it’s fully dark in your space: any form of light could be keeping you up. Try to shut off any form of television, computer, phone, or even an alarm clock light.

Exercise plays a big role in your physical health, and also has a great impact on your ability to get a good night’s rest. Engage in some form of exercise throughout the day to ensure your body can achieve good sleep. Whether it's walking, running, biking or taking a workout class, there are countless opportunities to get your needed exercise in. Exercising in the morning or afternoon will raise your body temperature. When it becomes night time and your body temperature begins to lower once again, you’ll start to feel drowsy right on cue!

Lastly, but perhaps most importantly, you’ll want to make sure that you have a mattress and pillows that will fully support your body and neck. In order for your body to feel fully rested, it needs to be properly supported. Sleep would be nothing without having the best quality bedding. After a long day of working, exercising and socializing your body needs a break, and needs to be properly cared for. Let your muscles fully rest on a mattress and pillows that will have you waking up feeling ready to spring up out of bed! Getting proper sleep each night is not only a great way to observe November’s National Sleep Comfort Month, but it’s also necessary to keep your body well-functioning. Celebrate National Sleep Comfort Month every day this year with these 6 tips!