Sleep is massively important. It influences many different systems of the body, is critical for the brain, and necessary for life itself. To list all the things it affects wouldn’t be feasible in a blog post. Go get the book and read it. As for actionable things you can do today to get better sleep, here are a few:
- Have a bed and wake routine. Try and be in bed by the same time every night and wake up the same time each morning.
- Limit caffeine later in the day (ditto for alcohol)
- Limit screen exposure before bed. Get a real book and read it to begin signaling bedtime.
- Don’t lay awake in bed too long if you can’t sleep. get up, read- but don’t lay there stressing about it.
- Keep your bedroom cool. Dr. Walker mentions as low as 65 degrees.
- A pre-bed shower can help cool the body off and improve sleep.
- Don’t try and make up for lost sleep on the weekends. Better is to get a little more each weekday.
- Don’t nap too late in the day. Beyond 4 or 5 pm and the nap will interfere with your sleep later.
- Keep the room dark, especially if you go to bed and it’s not dark out. Blackout shades are helpful here.