How to wake up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed
How to wake up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed
Are you tired of waking up each morning not feeling rested? I know I was & knew I had to do something different when I kept noticing serious baggage under my eyes that were not going away no matter how much cream I applied. Not to mention, I was waking up tired (what??) and felt depleted of energy that lasted all day. Often, there is something going on deeper than the surface you need to address to get better sleep, but there are simple adjustments you can make to your sleep routine & begin to feel more rested quickly. I applied these simple changes and soon experienced smoother under eye skin, an increase in energy and a refreshed feeling when I woke up. Here are a few things that work for me and hopefully will work for you too.
- Quiet room. If you are anything like me, you like sleeping with the TV on. This was the hardest for me to break from. I could not fall asleep unless I had the TV on. Now, I purposefully turn the TV off (your favorite late night shows can be recorded and watched later). I like the quietness in my room most of the time, but if I find myself needing some noise, I’ll ask Alexa to play relaxing music or nature sounds on a low volume. When I am feeling stressed or have a lot of things on my mind, I’ll do a guided sleep meditation that will end once it is complete, so it won’t wake you once you fall asleep.
- Schedule your bedtime. Yes, that is right…schedule it! This means make sure you are giving yourself adequate time for 8 hours of sleep. If you get up at 7, go to bed no later than 1030, which allows you an extra 30 minutes to doze off.
- Do something to unwind your mind before sleep. You could take a bath, read a book, journal, meditate, stretch, or anything else to transition your mind into a more soothing relaxed state for sleep.
- Put away electronics. So many of us are obsessed/addicted to our phones. A good practice to try is to charge your devices overnight away from your bed. Put them on a dresser across the room, or in the bathroom, anywhere that you can’t get to easily. Give yourself a break and refrain from the bad habit of checking your phone constantly. If you use your phone as an alarm clock, invest in a traditional (old fashioned) alarm clock that can do its job without distracting your sleep.
- Don’t eat or drink a few hours before bedtime. Going to bed on a full stomach is a no-no. It is sure to keep you up and could even make you feel sick. Drinking before bed, may fill your bladder and have you up often to the restroom. No caffeine several hours before bed…and this includes chocolate. Sorry! 😊
Simple, right? It just takes commitment, and that’s the hard part. Try to create a vision of how amazing it would be to go through an entire day feeling refreshed and energized. Assuring you get enough sleep gives your body the time it needs to rest and recharge and will thank you for it! Don’t deprive yourself. Try these things and start waking up bright eyed and bushy tailed in no time.