As a parent, bedtime can be a chaotic time. It’s important to establish a set nighttime routine for your kids, but it’s also helpful for you to have your own nighttime routine. If you’re looking to establish a good nighttime routine, try out these ideas.
Cut the Caffeine
Long before you start thinking about bed, you should stop drinking caffeine. As tempting as that coffee at four o’clock in the afternoon might be, it will negatively impact your sleep later on and probably isn’t worth it. It’s recommended that you try cutting caffeine at least six hours before you go to sleep, but as a general rule avoiding caffeine after three p.m. is a good idea.
Set a Time to Start Getting Ready For Bed
Figure out a specific time that you can start getting ready for bed and try to stick to it. A good way to judge this is to start your nightly routine after your kids have gone to bed. Instead of spending time doing busywork, you can start right into your nighttime routine to avoid going to bed later than you want. 82% of Americans find an extra hour of sleep to be valuable, so it’s definitely worth it to have a set start time for your nighttime routine.
Make Morning Easier
Starting to wind down from the day is a key part of a good nighttime routine, and doing small tasks to make the next morning easier is a good idea of how to start your routine. Whether you want to pack your lunch or your family’s lunches for the next day, pick out clothes to wear in the morning, pack your bag for work, make a to-do list, or do some dishes before you start really getting ready to sleep, you can help get mentally and literally prepared for the next day. Don’t start any big tasks like deep cleaning an entire room, but small chores can be a good use of your time while you’re unwinding.
Use Aromatherapy
Memory and our sense of smell are very closely related, which means that if you use the same scented item every night, you will start to associate it with going to sleep. You can choose any scent that calms you, but some popular ones are lavender, jasmine, and chamomile. Although lighting a candle when you’re starting to get ready for bed can be a hazard since you may forget to put it out, you can still use a sheet, pillow, or room spray, or even an essential oil diffuser to make your bedroom smell like relaxation. The more consistent you are the more you’ll associate the smell with sleep.
Listen to a Sleep Playlist
Creating a playlist dedicated to the time you spend getting ready to fall asleep can start to work as a personalized lullaby after some time. Once you have formed the habit of creating a consistent nighttime routine, you’ll be able to train yourself to associate your playlist with going to sleep.
Keep Your Bed Clean
Having a clean, comfortable spot to go to sleep at the end of the day is important. If you have the habit of doing things like eating in bed, it might be time to stop. Instead, save eating for places meant for it, like the kitchen or even your living room. If you make your bed in the morning, this is the time to “unmake” it and make it a comfortable place to sleep. This is also a good time to change your sheets out if it’s been two weeks, the average amount of time people go between changing their sheets. Of course, you can change your sheets more often, but try to stick to a two-week rule to make sure you’re getting rid of any sweat or dirt that may accumulate.
Ditch Your Phone
Instead of accidentally staying up later than you meant to because you’re scrolling on your phone, try to disconnect once you start to really unwind. Plug your phone in across the room from your bed to really force yourself not to scroll. If you’re playing a sleep playlist, make sure to put it on a timer before you go to bed to avoid having to get out of bed to turn it off if you let your playlist get too long.
Relax Your Muscles
At the end of the day, you may be holding a lot of tension in your body. The main places you hold tension are your head, neck, shoulder, arms, hands, lower legs, and feet, so make sure that if you’re trying to relax your muscles you focus on those areas. Yoga is one great way to unclench everything after a long day, especially if you choose a practice that is slow, relaxed, and focus on getting deep into the different stretches, like yin yoga. If stretching isn’t your speed, you can always give yourself a massage using a foam roller or massage gun. Focus on any sore areas or spots where you’re holding any tension to help really get ready for bed.
Do Your Hygiene Routine
One of the basics of a good nighttime routine is including a time to do your hygiene routine. This should include brushing your teeth, flossing, washing your face, applying moisturizer, and anything else you decide is necessary to clean up from the day. If you know that you’ll be tired at the end of some days, try to come up with a shortened hygiene routine that just covers the basics, especially if you have a lot of steps in your skincare regimen.
At the end of the day, it’s important to take time to wind down and prepare yourself to sleep before you lay down. Going straight from a hectic day to trying to sleep can be difficult, especially if your mind is still going a mile a minute, so establishing a routine to slow yourself down is important.
What do you think is the most important part of your nighttime routine? What really helps you disconnect and wind down at the end of the day? Let us know in the comments!
