Honestly koalas have it made; those guys sleep for 23 hours a day, and there’s some days where it feels like I could sleep for 23 hours if I had the time. But, since I only have 7 hours, here are some tips on how to make the most of it!!
Be careful with naps.
Napping is great and sometimes super necessary, but long naps can really mess up your sleep cycle. My doctor prefers it when I don’t nap, but if I really have to, my nap shouldn’t be longer than 15 or 20 minutes. Also, the shorter the nap, the less likely you are to wake up groggy and disoriented!
Some people even go as far as downing a cup of coffee and then lying down for 15 minutes, so that when they wake up, the caffeine is really working its magic.
Avoid big dinners.
The more you eat before bedtime (and the closer you eat to bedtime), the less likely you are to fully digest your food. The best way to eat is to eat a huge breakfast, a medium sized lunch, and a smaller dinner (with snacks in between) in order to avoid this.
Your bed is for sleeping, not homework.
Don’t do homework in bed. (I 100% do not follow this rule, I’m literally typing this from my bed.) If you leave your bed strictly for sleeping, then your brain associates it with sleeping, helping you to all asleep faster.
A sleeping mask.
If you put a blanket over a bird cage, the bird is tricked into thinking it’s nighttime and will fall asleep. This works for people, too. I am a firm believer in sleeping masks. If I don’t sleep with my eyes covered, I’ll look around my room and keep making checklists and remembering things I have to do for the next day. If there’s total darkness, then I fall asleep practically instantly.
Total Audrey Hepburn vibes.
Put away your phone and computer.
Okay so this is wishful thinking and will probably never be followed, so at least turn your nightshift on an hour before bed.
Read!
Reading is the cure-all if you can’t fall asleep. I’d like to be able to pick up a book for fun, but during the school year I honestly don’t have time for that. Pick up notes for class instead! When you read before bed, your brain can take that information and store it in long term memory, which is super helpful if you have a big test the next day.
“I barely got 10 hours of sleep last night” – Haley Dunphy