Top 10 Tips to Improve Your Sleep
Sleep is something that is so incredibly important for our bodies and can actually have a large effect on the way our bodies express pain and heal. I always talk about sleep with my Physical Therapy clients and help them optimize sleep in order to maximize healing and recovery.
During sleep, our bodies go through several stages, but the main 2 are deep sleep and light sleep. Deep sleep can be thought of the restorative phase of the sleep cycle. During deep sleep our bodies release hormones that result in repair of damaged cells, and muscle growth and recovery. During light sleep, our bodies tend to relax, our heart rate and breathing slow down significantly, and our muscles go into a relaxed state.
Getting enough sleep is very important for our physical AND even our mental health. The recommendation is around 8 hours of good quality sleep with minimal interruptions. This amount of sleep helps us stay alert and focused during the day, improves our memory and concentration, and helps us maintain a healthy weight. Studies have also shown that getting enough sleep can reduce our risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. Pretty amazing right?!
In my experience as a Physical Therapist, I’ve noticed that a reduction in sleep quality and quantity can also be associated with increased pain levels and delayed injury healing. If you are someone who is injured often or if you experience chronic pain, consider these 10 tips to help improve your sleep!
1. Stick to a consistent sleep and wake schedule. You can set a timer on your phone that will remind you it’s time to wind down each night to help you stay consistent!
2. Spend time receiving daylight first thing in the morning when the sun is coming up and also right before sunset. Increasing this light exposure can help wake up your circadian clock and will in-turn improve your sleep quality at night.
3. Avoid bright artificial lights prior to bed.
4. Create a cool and dark sleep environment. Try turning down your thermostat a couple degrees to start right before bed and take note of how you sleep.
5. Avoid caffeine and nicotine prior to bed.
6. Limit alcohol consumption, especially right before bed. Alcohol is linked to a whole host of negative effects on health, but it is also directly linked to poor quality of sleep.
7. Practice mindfulness and meditation, or take up yoga or tai chi to help limit mental stress. Two great meditation apps are Headspace and Calm.
8. Exercise daily.
9. Consider talking to your doctor or registered dietitian about supplements that might help with sleep.
10. Try not to nap during the day, and if you do keep it short.
If you are particularly interested in the topic of sleep and how to optimize sleep for performance and recovery, make sure to check out this full “sleep toolkit” from Dr. Andrew Huberman who is a professor at Stanford School of Medicine and host of the Huberman Lab Podcast, which offers valuable information on how to improve overall health and wellness.
The bottom line here is that sleep is incredibly important for everyone, but it is ESPECIALLY important if you are injured, or if you have fitness and performance goals. Proper sleep can help promote optimal health and can reduce your risk of certain illnesses and diseases! Remember, this information is not a substitute for individualized medical advice, so please follow up with your healthcare team for advice that is specific to you and your unique needs.
Struggling with sleep? In pain? Schedule a complimentary injury screen with Wildflower Physical Therapy & Wellness today to learn how our qualified PTs can help you break the cycle of chronic pain and get back to sleeping well and doing the things you love to do!