Coming by sleep gets a little more difficult as we age.
Sleep is vital for our body to reenergize for the next day. Without enough sleep, we are groggy and can even be cranky. Our memory function is also dependent on the amount of sleep we get in the night. As we get older, our memory becomes more important, and we need to be able to do whatever we can to keep the ability to remember things that have happened and continue to occur in our lives. To improve our sleep schedules, we must understand what happens to our bodies as we age and how that affects our ability to fall asleep and rest.
- Go to sleep at an earlier time.
Ensuring you go to sleep at a consistent time every night will help you wake up at a decent time the next day. If you start to get ready for bed around nine o’clock at night every night, your mind has had time to whine down and be prepared to rest no later than ten. Keeping a consistent bedtime will help you feel rested every day and allow your body to recover from the day before.
2. What is causing you not to sleep at night?
If your medication has a side effect of restlessness at night, see if you can change your medicine with your doctor or the time you take it. Sometimes it’s a simple matter of taking it in the morning versus taking it at night. Another thing that will keep you awake is the amount of stress you have. If you are concerned with family, friends, finances, it can keep anyone from sleeping well and cause you to have a restless night.
3. Diet and Water intake.
Did you know that not eating the right foods and not drinking enough water can keep you from sleeping? Your body reacts to what you give it, and by eating a poor diet, you can cause your organs to overwork, and your brain isn’t able to process so you won’t be able to have a good nights sleep. Make sure you are drinking enough water to allow your organs to stay hydrated to get you through the night and the next day.
4. Napping During the Day.
Taking a nap is necessary at times, but are you over napping? As we get older, it is important for us to nap earlier in the day, take a shorter nap, and take a comfortable nap. If you nap later or take too long of a nap, it can be difficult to go to sleep later at night.
5. How to keep from waking up in the middle of the night.
Sometimes we don’t tire our body out during the day and that causes us not to be tired when it is time for bed. We can find healthy ways to make our body tired. A good way to do this is to exercise. Take a thirty minute to an hour walk daily or swim. If you’re feeling up to it, go to the gym. It is important to exercise for the development of our body as well as making sure we aren’t restless when it is time for bed.
Getting enough sleep shouldn’t be hard to come by, and it is something that only we are responsible for. It takes time to set a routine, but our body will thank us for it at the end of the day. It is important for us to sleep in order to feel rejuvenated for the day to come. Our health depends on it- as well as our family and friends. We want to be able to keep up with them and not want to stop for a power nap during the day. Talk to your doctor about changing your medicine or the time you are taking it, don’t nap too long, and drink plenty of water throughout the day, and you should be sleeping like a baby in no time!