12 Tips for a Good Night's Rest

Having trouble sleeping at night? You are not alone. Just survey your friends and see how many are popping pills or using alcohol to get a good night's rest. Notice the numerous ads for Lunesta, Ambien and the plethora of anti-depressants, all in an attempt to settle down our over-active minds and bodies.

With the busy and time-pressured lives most of us lead, it is no easy feat to relax and settle down for a good night's rest. Today I am sharing some natural, time-proven ways to calm the mind and the body without resorting to pill-popping.

1.  Eat a balanced diet. Include high quality protein, especially fatty fish such as salmon, sardines, and mackerel. Lots of green veggies and fresh fruit in season. Skip packaged items. Balance your intake of minerals such as potassium, sodium, calcium, magnesium and iron.

2. Limit alcohol and sugar consumption several hours before bedtime. Alcohol may relax you for a while but when it wears off it affects your REM dream sleep which is critical to feeling rested in the a.m.

3. Avoid falling asleep with the television on. 

4. Get off your devices at least an hour before bedtime. The blue light glare from computers, cell phones and tablets messes with our melatonin levels which put us to sleep. Did you know most computers are set to maximum brightness? Here's an app I use that changes the brightness of the screen based on location and time of day.

5. Read relaxing and encouraging literature like the Bible, or your favorite spiritual book. What you put in your mind last thing at night stays with you during sleep.

6. Quiet your mind by playing some soothing music preferably with no lyrics.

7. Practice deep abdominal breathing and do some relaxing yoga poses. I've been following Yoga with Kassandra on Youtube. She does some wonderful and short evening videos. Check her out here. 

8. Avoid drinking liquids an hour before bedtime. The urge to urinate will wake you up earlier than you probably would like and it may be hard to go back to sleep.

9. Pray, reflect and be grateful.  
Focus on God, Jesus, or your Higher Power to bring a sense of calmness and peace to the mind like nothing else can. We are all on a spiritual path and it is important to be mindful of this fact and tune in to what our inner voice is telling us. Also, reflection is key to personal and spiritual growth. Take note of how you responded or reacted during the day. Name three things you are grateful for that day. Gratitude is powerful. 

10. Journal the cares and anxieties of the day to get them off your mind and onto paper so your sub-conscious mind won't be processing them while you sleep. It works.

11. Identify and let go of any unforgiveness or negative feelings towards anyone you may be harboring. Anger, bitterness, and resentment can keep us up at night. I have learned Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) to help release stored emotions. It's easy and you can do it any time, any place. Learn more here. 

12. Try some melotonin.
It's a hormone found in our bodies, but it declines with age. It's a natural supplement you can find in your local grocery store. Start off with 3 mg - 5 mg and enjoy a good night's rest. Take it before bedtime, however, never take it in the middle of the night. 

For Reflection

Sleep is a complex, restorative process that science is just starting to understand. Gone are the days when people say "I'll sleep when I'm dead." Not enough sleep with hasten that day, so don't let that be you. 

Try some of these suggestions to help you calm your mind and your body and get the sleep you need. For those who claim they only need 4 hours of sleep, you are depriving your body of much needed time to restore and rejuvenate. Scientists say the minimum hours of sleep are between 7 and 9. Me, I need 9. 

Our minds and our bodies need to be fed the proper diet of good food, good thoughts, and lots of rest and relaxation. For more tips on sleep, relaxation and renewal, check out my Pinterest page.

If you found these tips helpful, consider joining our community and receive my weekly posts. Simply enter your email address in the box provided. You'll also receive a copy of my free e-guide entitled "7 Steps to Finding Your Spiritual Path".

Stay tuned for more positive and practical wisdom and until next time, sleep well and keep looking up!


Ariel Paz