A few tips for a good night sleep
When it comes to a good night's sleep there are a few things that can really make a difference. At times, I have experienced quite a few sleepless nights for reasons that, albeit unknown to my conscious, are definitely clear to my unconscious mind. Anxiety and stress are generally top reasons why we can’t have a restful sleep, but of course other factors play into it as well, for example what we ate before going to bed, how much of it, and what we drank. Of course there is a big difference between hard liquor, and wine. Although there is a growing amount of research suggesting that no alcohol is better than even a single glass of wine, one glass might not affect our sleep, two very likely.
So first thing first, if you like to indulge in that celebratory glass of wine that marks the end of the day make sure you are not having it too late, ideally a couple of hours or more before lying down. Preferably at happy hour. In fact, although wine can make you sleepy at first using it as a sedative is not a good idea, as it affects the quality of sleep waking you up in the middle of the night when the calming effect of alcohol on GABA - the neurotransmitters that regulate impulses between brain cells - subsides. So yes, alcohol messes with what is called by sleep experts “sleep architecture”, the different phases we go through when sleeping: deep - the true restful phase -, light and REM, the phase when we dream. Alcohol can also affect the quality of our dreams as we are more prone to anxious and negative dreams.
What we eat and drink before bed affects the quality of our sleep.
Second, eating a light, but filling meal and opting for fish which contains Vitamin D and Omega-3 fish oil will help regulate heart rate and serotonin levels, inducing sleep and most importantly keeping us asleep. Avoid red meat at night: in fact, when we sleep digestion slows down to 50%, and meat takes more energy to digest and it's filled with amino acids which your brain tries to absorb, while impeding the release of important sleep chemicals like tyrosine and tryptophan.
And speaking of tryptophan, turkey, chicken, and dairy all contain good amounts of it which has a sedative and calming effect. That’s probably why you can’t wait to take a nap after a Thanksgiving meal. And if you don’t eat meat you can gorge on seeds like sunflower, pumpkin, peanuts and sesame or enjoy some edamame as they also contain tryptophan.
What we ingest is critical to create the right chemistry for the brain to reach a state of calm, but there is something else we can do to put us in the right state of mind and can be done anytime we feel the need to relax: yoga nidra. This type of yoga is done laying down in a corpse pose (shavasana) and works by bringing attention to each part of the body with the resulting effect of slowing down the brain waves to reach what scientists call “hypnagogic state”, a state of conscious relaxation between awakeness and sleep.
Lastly, an old remedy that still holds its truth it's a warm cup of chamomile tea: this beautiful flower contains a particular type of flavonoid, called apigenin, that has the ability to latch on to the brain’s benzodiazepine receptors with a mild yet effective tranquilizing effect.
As part of my ritual, and it's proven by science, I sprinkle a few droplets of lavender that have hypnotic and sedative effect on my pillows, a make myself a cup of Calming Latte with almond milk, which also has a calming effect as almonds contain melatonin, and I slowly slip into a peaceful slumber.
Try it and let us know what you think!
