Many People Make These Five Little-Known Mistakes Before Bedtime

Sleep deprivation is common in the UK. Official data reveals that one in every three persons struggle to enjoy the recommended hours of sleep at night, which is anywhere between six and nine hours.

The issue has turned from bad to worse and has been transformed into an indispensable aspect of modern-day living. With factors like taking office work home and the constant distraction brought about by technology, the problem has become very hard to resolve.

Although some may have tried to solve this problem by getting rid of some habits, there are little-known mistakes that many people commit each night. These mistakes can disrupt your sleep process.

Mistakes You Unwittingly Commit

Reputedly known as The Sleep Geek, James Wilson, in an interview, said his work with poor sleepers revealed what could have been causing such sleep loss. He said that while much focus had been placed in drinking too much alcohol or caffeine, there are other little-known, yet highly troublesome mistakes that many people often make. Many of these mistakes are made before bedtime.

Some of these mistakes are going to bed even if not sleepy, having a heavy meal three hours before bedtime, and taking part in many tasks before going to bed. Wilson also pointed out that opting to do wrong things on your devices before getting that shuteye or exercising when it is almost bedtime is counterintuitive.

Going to bed even if you are not sleepy may not be good, after all.

Being too prescriptive about the hours of sleep, you need to have each night does not put into consideration your individual sleeping needs. You can become an owl or a lark or somewhere between that and the time you feel drowsy will be affected by all these. Factor in your own personal situation and properly wind down before bed to make sure you feel sleepy.

Enjoying a heavy meal three hours before bedtime should be avoided.

Wilson explained that attempting to fit everything into your day like bringing your kids to school, working, and going to the gym may be too much of a routine. This can cause you to have a major and heavy meal late at night. Although this may seem harmless, it can affect your sleep-wake cycle as digesting heavy meals causes your core temperature to rise slightly.

An important aspect that your body needs to go through to sleep is for your core temperature to drop. Having a heavy meal at night makes it harder for your body to achieve this.

Engaging in many tasks before winding down for bed can also cause sleep loss.

Participating in several tasks before bedtime can disrupt your sleep cycle. For instance, while sitting on their couch and feeling sleepy, the thought of going to bed crosses their minds, but then they start doing some stuff. These include checking the doors, putting the pets out, filling the dishwasher, and many more. Doing all these things can rouse your body out of a state of relaxation. To solve the problem, Wilson recommends doing all these routine before getting ready for bedtime.

Performing some exercises when it is already bedtime

Exercising is conducive to getting a good night’s rest because it makes your body feel tired, as well as take off the stress of the day. For some people, however, who do it close to bedtime, the adrenaline and cortisol can affect your ability to fall asleep. It also impacts your ability to stay asleep. If you performed a late-night exercise, ensure you properly wind down for the effects of the activity to diminish.

Doing the wrong things on your devices before bedtime causes sleep deprivation

The greater part of the blame on why sleep deprivation is such a problem today should fall on technology. Experts say sleep loss can occur as a direct consequence of smartphone usage. Instead of having your device disrupt your sleep-wake cycle, you might want to interact with it productively and helpfully. For instance, instead of browsing your email, you might want to download meditation apps or watching funny videos.