Getting enough good-quality sleep matters—not just for your physical health, but for how you think, feel, focus, and respond to stress during the day.
And stress and sleep can affect each other. When your mind is busy with work, worries, or unfinished tasks, it can be difficult to settle down at night. And when you haven’t slept well, everyday challenges can feel more difficult to manage.
The good news is that a few simple, consistent habits can support better sleep.
7 Simple Sleep Tips
Here are some recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that can help support healthy sleep.
1. Keep a consistent sleep schedule
Try to go to bed and get up at about the same time every day—including weekends.
A regular sleep and wake schedule helps establish a consistent rhythm for your body and can make it easier to fall asleep and wake up.
2. Create a bedroom that supports sleep
Make your bedroom quiet, dark, relaxing, and comfortable.
Your sleep environment matters. Consider what might be disturbing your sleep—light, noise, temperature, or anything else that makes it difficult to settle in.
3. Keep electronics out of the bedroom
If possible, remove electronic devices such as TVs, computers, and smartphones from your bedroom.
Your bedroom can be a place your brain associates primarily with sleep and rest, rather than work, news, email, or scrolling.
4. Be mindful of what you consume before bed
Avoid large meals, caffeine, and alcohol close to bedtime.
Caffeine can interfere with sleep, and alcohol may make you sleepy initially but can disrupt sleep later in the night.
5. Move your body during the day
Regular physical activity can help support better sleep.
You don’t need an elaborate exercise routine. Walking, stretching, yoga, or other movement that you enjoy can all be part of an active day.
6. Give yourself time to wind down
Don’t expect your brain to go directly from work mode to sleep mode.
Create a simple transition between the two. Dim the lights. Read something calming. Take a warm shower or bath. Practice a few slow breaths. Or simply give yourself a few quiet minutes without trying to accomplish anything.
The goal isn’t to force yourself to fall asleep. It’s to give your body and mind a chance to shift gears.
7. Aim for enough sleep
Most adults need at least 7 hours of sleep each night.
How much sleep you need can vary, but consistently getting too little sleep can affect attention, mood, health, and daytime functioning.
What If You Wake Up in the Middle of the Night?
Waking up during the night can be frustrating—especially when your mind immediately starts calculating how many hours you have left before you need to get up.
Try not to turn waking up into a problem you have to solve.
Instead, notice what’s happening. You might say to yourself:
“I’m awake. That’s okay. I don’t have to make myself sleep.”
Keep the lights low and avoid reaching for your phone or checking the time repeatedly.
If you’re unable to fall back asleep, the CDC has recommended getting out of bed and doing something relaxing until you feel sleepy again, rather than staying in bed becoming increasingly frustrated.
And Remember: Stress Can Follow You to Bed
Sometimes the problem isn’t your bedtime routine. It’s that your mind hasn’t finished processing the day.
Your body may be tired, but you may be lying in bed thinking about:
- the conversation you wish had gone differently
- tomorrow’s meeting
- an unfinished task
- something you’re worried about
- everything you need to remember
When that happens, see if you can notice the difference between having a thought and needing to act on the thought right now.
Do you have to solve it right now?
Take a breath. Notice what’s here. And, if you can, let the next step wait until morning.
That’s a small practice in changing your relationship to stress—and sometimes that’s exactly what we need before we can rest.
When Sleep Problems Persist
Occasional difficulty sleeping is common. But if you’re regularly having trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, or getting enough sleep—and it’s affecting your daytime life—talk with your healthcare provider or a sleep professional.
Learn More
For additional information about healthy sleep habits, see the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
And if you’re interested in practical ways to manage stress during the day, explore my stress management workshops for organizations and teams.
_______________
To learn more:
- Workshops for you and your Organization
- Schedule a free 20-minute Chat with Terre Passero, founder of Mindful Stress Management
- YouTube for guided mindfulness practices and talks about stress, the brain, and the body
Leave a Reply