Sleep is one of the most foundational elements of a healthy body and mind, but sometimes finding deep sleep can be a little hard to come by. In fact, 40-70% of adults have chronic sleep issues making better sleep a huge priority for all ages.
Why Sleep Can be Difficult
We are all well aware that certain foods or drinks could keep us awake at night, but what else is standing in our way to getting better sleep?
Health Issues
As we age, physical health issues can make sleeping much more difficult. Whether you are dealing with arthritis pain, insomnia, heartburn, or breathing problems, any one of these issues can start to impact your quality of sleep. Sometimes these health issues are new to us making the impact on sleep feel even more frustrating.
Consumption of Media
More than ever before media is more readily available to us at any hour of the day. While screen time itself has been shown to have adverse effects on sleep, we also have to keep in mind the emotional toll our consumption can take. Sometimes a jarring news story or sad post can derail our train of thought and send it into an overactive state right before bed.
Stress
We all have so much on our plates to manage. From family stressors, work tasks, to ensuring our future is secured, stress and anxiety makes the list as one of the top reasons we are all losing top quality sleep.
So, what can you do to find better sleep?
How to Get Better Sleep
1. Exercise
Getting your body moving during the day is one way to promote better sleep at night. If you already have a workout routine established, try adding a few extra elements to make your body work a bit harder. Add in an extra walk or try lifting weights. The goal is to burn extra physical and mental energy to help you relax and the end of a busy day.
2. Use White Noise
Sometimes finding solace at the end of the day can be more difficult than you’d expect. Whether it’s a snoring spouse or irksome household noises, using white noise can help bring you to a state of relaxation. Try using a box fan or white noise apps on your phone to help drown out unwanted noise.
3. Meditate Before Bed
If you are having trouble relaxing at bedtime, try something different. Mindfulness techniques and breathing practices can help calm a racing mind and bring you to a more serene state. Try creating a mental list of things you are grateful for or mentally, slowly relax your body from top to bottom.
4. Address Anxieties
Sometimes anxieties can hit us at the most inopportune times. Try releasing some of your stressors right before bed to alleviate some racing thoughts. Schedule some time to write down things bothering you or at least leave a notepad by your bed in case you wake up with any troubling thoughts. That way, you can address them at a better time creating more time for better sleep.
Bankers Life is Here
What keeps you awake at night? Don’t let financial or health-related issues cause you to lose sleep. Bankers Life is here to help customers with their financial and health insurance needs so please visit us at BankersLife.com to learn more.
