World Sleep Day 2021: XNUMX tips for getting enough sleep

Most of us have probably never heard of the Swedish concept of lagom; It is a term that means sufficiency, and in essence revolves around achieving balance in our lives. With the fast pace of modern life that forces us to spend a lot of time in front of our mobile screens, it is more important than ever to achieve balance and return to simple lifestyles. Especially the ones that the Swedes have proven effective and successful.

 

While the average person spends about 26 years of their life sleeping, which is equivalent to 9490 days or 227760 hours, we may forget the fact that we also spend about 7 years of our lives trying to sleep itself. From sleep can lead to more than just irritability and decreased productivity at work; This may negatively affect mental and physical health in the long term, leading to the emergence of health problems including weak immunity, high blood pressure, mood swings, depression, and a decline in cognitive abilities as well.

In conjunction with the celebration of World Sleep Day, we must realize the importance of sleep as an essential element in maintaining health and safety, as the quality of sleep directly affects the quality of our lives in general. Unfortunately, the spread of COVID-19 has made it even more difficult to get enough deep sleep, as evidenced by the unprecedented increase in searches for the word insomnia on Google during 2020; When people all over the world have had great difficulty sleeping due to anxiety, fear of the future, reduced physical activity, and the interruption of normal lifestyles as a result of the health crisis. Experts called this condition coronasomia.coronasomia), which means insomnia associated with Covid-19 disease.

While it is possible for any of us to experience sleep problems during different periods of our lives; Fortunately, however, these problems can be addressed through a change in normal lifestyles and healthy habits to achieve an optimal balance.

Here are some tips to help you adopt the concept of lagom and get enough restful sleep:

Spend less time in front of screens

Most of us have trouble sleeping despite going to bed early, and this can be due to a very common bad habit of browsing our cell phones without purpose most of the time.

It has been scientifically proven that spending a long time on the screens of various devices before bed leads to brain activation, reducing the speed and duration of sleep. The blue light emitted by computer and cell phone screens illusions that we are in the daytime, which lowers the levels of melatonin in the body, which is the sleep hormone produced by the body at night.

This does not mean that we have to give up using our favorite devices in order to be able to fall asleep quickly, but it is enough to avoid using phones and laptops at least one hour before bedtime to get good results. Listen to favorite music, read a book, take a shower, or take a quick meditation session to help us relax and get a deep sleep instead of staring at our mobile screens. It is also possible to take an extra step and charge the mobile phone outside the bedroom for greater effect and to avoid using it late at night.

 

Set a fixed bedtime

People are divided into two types, night lovers and early risers. And here highlights the role of the biological clock in our bodies, which regulates the timing of sleep and wake up around the clock and during different times of the day. Consistent lifestyles are key to maintaining a regular circadian rhythm. Going to bed and waking up at a set time helps set this clock and allows the body to fall asleep faster and better. To achieve this goal, you can set an alarm clock to wake up and go to bed at the same time every day, even on weekends, no matter how much you want to stay asleep or even stay up late. In other words, all you have to do is follow a simple principle based on getting enough sleep without increasing or decreasing.

Create an ideal sleeping environment

A comfortable and calm environment plays a pivotal role in accelerating the process of falling asleep, and getting a deep and restful sleep during the night. With simple efforts, you can make some changes in your bedrooms to turn them into an ideal sleeping environment, such as the example of the Swedes who are keen on arranging bedrooms and making them simple. The bedrooms should be in calm colors, with clean, soft sheets, and dark-colored curtains to make them as comfortable as possible; In addition to being free of anything that reminds you of work or stimulates your brain activity.

The air we breathe during sleep is a key factor that is rarely taken into consideration despite its great impact on sleep quality. Studies show that air quality leads to better sleep quality. Despite this, indoor air can be five times more polluted than outdoor air without us realizing it, and small particles and dust in bedrooms can make us sleep all night.

keep fit

The COVID-19 crisis has prompted us to adopt sedentary lifestyles, as we conduct most of our activities and work remotely to avoid the risk of infection, but lack of fitness activities can lead to long-term health risks and poor sleep quality.
Studies also show that just ten minutes of daily simple exercise, such as walking or cycling, can effectively contribute to improving sleep quality and duration. Setting the dates for exercising is a key factor in getting a comfortable sleep. Exercising before bed has been a subject of controversy among experts for many years due to its role in raising body temperature and accelerating the heartbeat.

However, with different bodies, some have indicated that they are able to fall asleep more quickly after exercising. So the times to exercise are up to you and your circadian rhythm, but always remember to follow a balanced Swedish lifestyle and stay active during the day.