Healthy Sleep Habits for a Better Night's Sleep

Healthy sleep is sleep that is restorative. While the appropriate duration of sleep differs for everyone, as long as sleep helps you feel rested and recovered from the previous day, you are typically getting healthy sleep.

The best sleep is often when the duration remains consistent every night, which results in adequate time to feel rested, refreshed and restored the next day. Many things can aid in the ability to get a better night's sleep (CPAP, sleep aids and more), as sleep has such an overwhelming impact on your day — your body and your psychological well-being. It is important to strive for quality, restful sleep.

Why Healthy Sleep Matters for Your Well-Being

Unhealthy sleep can impact cardiovascular function, mood, mental health, diabetes and your overall immune system — all things that can be comprised by not getting healthy sleep.

The Science of Sleep: Stages and Cycles

There are five stages of sleep. The cycles of sleep do not follow a particular order as your sleep is not always a continuous cycle, and you can often sleep throughout a mix of stages throughout the night. For example, you could move from Stage 1, to Stage 2, back to Stage 1 and then Stage 3 during a night’s sleep. The following stages include these different cycles your body sleeps through on any given night.

1. Wake
2. Stage 1 — Light sleep or the process of falling asleep
3. Stage 2 — Predominant sleep, which consists of most of your sleep and takes up about half of the night
4. Stage 3 — Deep sleep, which is restorative and tends to occur earlier in the night
5. Stage 4 — REM sleep, which can include dreams as part of a restored state and tends to occur later in the night for only about 15% of the night

Sleep Disorders vs. Poor Sleep

Poor sleep primarily stems from situational issues (work stress, vacation stress, personal matters and so on) and is usually limited in duration depending on the trigger, while a sleep disorder goes on longer and is persistent. Sleep apnea is the most common sleep disorder, followed by insomnia and narcolepsy. Most often, insufficient sleep or chronic sleep deprivation can affect your quality of life.

How Your Lifestyle Affects Sleep Quality for Better Rest

There are many lifestyle factors that you can implement to prioritize better rest. To optimize your quality of sleep, it’s important to go to sleep at a consistent time each night, create a healthy environment for sleep by not taking stimulants (such as alcohol) right before bed and limit screen time, as well as strenuous brain activity. If you are reading before bed, blue light glasses are recommended if reading on a screen, but hard-copy (printed) books are preferred.

Alcohol, stress, work issues, personal relationships and screen time can all have an adverse effect or negative impact on your sleep. In order to create a positive impact for better rest, you should maintain consistent sleep times, follow a healthy diet, exercise and develop a good sleep environment (dark and quiet).

How to Prepare for Better Sleep

• Establish a regular sleep routine. Set an alarm as a cue to get ready to unwind.
• Establish a consistent bedtime and wake-up time. Try not to vary by more than an hour (two hours maximum).
• Try hydrotherapy — a hot bath or shower before bed can be very relaxing.
• Make a prioritized “To Do” list prior to going to bed. This will avoid that loop of continuous thinking about what you need to do tomorrow.
• Relax before trying to fall asleep. Meditate, stretch, pray, read a book (not electronic) or listen to music to allow your brain time to unwind.
• Keep your bedroom cool and comfortable. The ideal temperature for sleep is 60 to 67 degrees.
• Eliminate noise and light from your sleep environment

Nutrition Tips for Better Sleep

• Do not have any caffeine after lunch.
• Do not have a beer, a glass of wine or any other alcohol within six hours of your bedtime.
• Do not go to bed hungry, but don’t eat a big meal near bedtime either.

More Healthy Sleep Tips

Here are some additional tips for how you can improve your sleep-related habits and get a better night's sleep.

• Don’t go to bed unless you are sleepy. Find something relaxing, but not stimulating, to take your mind off of worries about sleep.
• If you are not asleep after 20 minutes, get out of the bed. Find something else to do in another room that will make you feel relaxed.
• Practice rituals that help you relax each night before bed.
• Get up at the same time every morning, even on weekends and holidays.
• Get a full night’s sleep on a regular basis.
• Avoid taking naps.
• Keep a regular daily schedule.
• Don’t read, write, eat, watch TV or talk on the phone in bed.
• Do not have a cigarette or any other source of nicotine before bedtime.
• Avoid any tough exercise within six hours of your bedtime.
• Avoid sleeping pills or use them cautiously.
• Try to get rid of or deal with things that make you worry.

Source: Per the American Academy of Sleep Medicine

When to See a Sleep Specialist

If you feel that you are experiencing characteristics of sleep apnea (the most common sleep disorder), such as snoring, breathing that stops during the night, tiredness and morning headaches, then you may want to speak to your primary care doctor.

We suggest you start with your primary care doctor or clinician as many sleep issues arise from mental health issues, anxiety or situational stress. While you do not need a referral for a sleep study, your primary doctor will first talk with you about your symptoms and can then order a sleep study. If results suggest it, you would then be recommended to see a sleep doctor.